RI “Cheat Sheet” — Hasbro’s Cutting, Top Ranked for Women Startups, No Ships Coming
GoLocalProv Business Team
RI “Cheat Sheet” — Hasbro’s Cutting, Top Ranked for Women Startups, No Ships Coming
The weekly feature focuses on important and interesting numbers, data, and high-value factoids that impact Rhode Island and the economy.
1) Hasbro's Complicated Future
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTThe Motley Fool reports that Wall Street is still unsettled about Hasbro’s disappointing 2018 4th quarter results. The closing of Toys ‘R’ Us had a bigger adverse impact on sales than anticipated in Pawtucket or on Wall Street.
Game sales were down 22 percent in 4th quarter.
European sales overall down 24 percent for 2018.
In response, the company has been slashing away.
“To deal with the new dynamic, both here and abroad, Hasbro identified $50 million to $55 million in cost efficiencies it can achieve this year and a total of $70 million to $80 million in 2020,” writes the Motley Fool report.
“The toymaker suffered annual declines in sales from partner and franchise brands without a release from Walt Disney for any of its Frozen and Princess lines, and with the Star Wars franchise struggling over the back-to-back Last Jedi and Solo misfires, movies that were widely panned even though they made a combined $1.6 billion in worldwide box-office receipts,” writes Motley.
"We continue to add new capabilities based on our understanding of the consumer and how our retailers are going to market, while evolving the way we organize our business across our Brand Blueprint," said Duffy. "The organizational changes we’re making will impact a single digit percentage of our global workforce."
Now, Hasbro’s big initiative is esports -- and millions in prize money. Get ready to watch the transformation of the company in RI or beyond (see more below).
According to a new study, the growth of female-led startups is on the rise.
In 2016, the total number of female-owned firms was 1,118,863, a 23 percent increase from the 909,661 in 2007.
That’s compared to a 6.3 percent increase in male-owned firms. Similarly, the number of paid employees at female-owned firms rose from 7.5 million to 9.3 million over the same time period, a 24 percent gain. Looking specifically at startup businesses, women-owned firms employ more than half of a million people and generate more than $56 billion in revenue annually.
Providence DMA ranks third in the United States.
#3. Providence-Warwick, RI-MA Metro Area
Percentage of startups that are female-owned: 30.9%
Number of female-owned startups: 718
Employees at female-owned startups: 3,168 (out of 7,804 at all startups)
Gross sales/receipts of female-owned startups: $150-$500 million
Most active industry for female entrepreneurs: Administrative, support, waste management & remediation services
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that “Ship orders worldwide have shrunk to the lowest level in 15 years as vessel owners struggle with excess capacity that has kept freight rates well below break-even levels.”
Is this an early indication of a global recession -- or the impact of renewables?
“There were 3,200 vessels of a combined 81 million gross tons ordered globally in the first quarter, the lowest figure since 2004, marine data provider Clarksons PLC said in a report released Friday. ‘The global order book has declined to its lowest level since the early stages of the shipbuilding boom,’ George Warner of Clarksons Research said.”
4) Hasbro, Part II
State officials don't think Hasbro is going anywhere. Commerce RI officials tell GoLocal that they believe Hasbro is here to stay.