American International Toy Fair

In Case 8 “Conflict in Santa’s Workshop: Learning to Be a Team Player at ToyKing”, ToyKing was a large, U.S.-based toy design and manufacturing company that specialized in educational toys and games. Located in Torrance, California, the Design Studio headquarters consisted of over 60 toy designers and about 20 technicians and fabricators. Out of the toy designers, 15 were senior designers and the remaining 45 were junior designers. Their goal is to come up with new innovative toy concepts each year to help improve ToyKing. This case goes on to talk about how Karen Washington, a junior designer at ToyKing’s was agitated that senior designer Jeff Chang essentially took over the presentation while using Karen’s concept without giving credit. The…

George Jepson and Jack Mercury are the founding fathers of Galaxy Toys Inc. They founded this organization the year 1956. Galaxy Toys Inc. is an exceptional shop which deals in toys. They specialize in LEGO© new and old. Previously, George was working in a plant which manufactured barrel in Toledo. It was during this time that he developed interest in construction of toys. This was due to the advancements in space exploration witnessed at that time. George started by making a spacecraft toy for…

BEYOND ALL LIMITS At first they didn’t seem like much. Just some wood scraps lying on the floor of a garage. They were leftovers from making picture frames. They might be good for fireplace kindling wood, but most people would be tossing them in a trash pile. Not so Elliot Handler. He had been making picture frames with his business partner Harold Matson in a garage workshop. And as the scraps began stacking up in their business, Handler and his wife, Ruth, found a use for them in the making of…

Over the past decade, the “too-big-to-fail policy” has caused a slow deterioration of the US financial system in many ways. This term was coined after the financial crisis of 2008, and is more formally known as the “problem in which regulators are reluctant to close down large financial institutions because doing so might precipitate a financial crisis (Mishkin p.218).” In this situation, the government issues guarantees of settlements of uninsured creditors to large financial institutions. The…

Background The American International Group, AIG, is a leading international insurance organization to more than 100 countries. AIG is also one of the leaders of life insurance and retirement services in the United States. However, back in September 2008, the U.S. government announced an $85 billion bailout of AIG. “The bailout eventually increased to about $180 billion. Many focused on AIG’s Financial Product Group because they had written credit default swaps and other derivatives that…

The toy that I chose is called the Laugh & Learn Smart Stages Chair created by Fisher Price. Fisher Price was founded in 1930 during the Depression era by Herman Fisher, Irving Price, Margret Evans Price and Helen Schelle. From the very beginning, the company focused on play value, originality, strong construction, action and great value for your money, since most families didn’t have a lot to spend and most American businesses didn’t survive, so these qualities were felt as important. In 1931,…

and markets a variety of toy products around the world, which are sold to its customers and directly to consumers. The company operates through three segments: North America, which consists of the United States and Canada, International, and American Girl. The North America and International segments sells products in the Mattel Girls & Boys Brands, Fisher-Price Brands, and Construction and Arts & Crafts Brands categories. On March 9 1959, the first Barbie doll goes on display at the American…

over time. With new technology and an international economy, survival almost demands change. Presently, a great number of citizens are fearful of the United States leaning too far toward a Socialist form of government. The truth is, it’s too late. Although Americans frown upon anything labeled “socialist”, most Americans are supporters of Medicare and Social Security. Large majorities of Americans also like poverty relief programs like Medicaid and housing assistance, so it’s not surprising…

Costs and Benefits of Conduction Business Ethically Various business industries around the world are faced with ethical dilemmas. There are many companies that do not lose sight of morally appropriate decisions. However, other organizations continue to make skewed choices in regards to their business decisions. There are many companies who choose profitability over ethical and legal business practices. McDonald's, one of the largest international fast-food chains, has faced great scrutiny over…

Dissent from Capitalism “What does this accusation amount to? The history of all past society is the history of class antagonisms, which took different forms in different epochs” (Blaisdell 140-141). Karl Marx made an accusation that capitalism will eventually come to an end. The Horizontalist Movement in Argentina, Sabotage in the American Workplace, and the Occupy Movement in the United States can all prove Marx’s predictions to be authentic. Marx breaks society down into three important…