The Outdoor Play and Toy World

We have been warning for months now of price increases throughout the outdoor toy sector. The T range of products to suffer huge increases are Above Ground Pools.

Intex and Bestway Pool products will be around 30-40% higher in price this year compared to last year.

The main reason is the collapse of the pound. So many of the pools available last year were carried over from the previous year and even the year before when the pound was higher so the full effect of the reduction in the pound vs the dollar has been delayed until now. To make matters worse, many of the pools are actually paid for in September, when the pound was even lower than it is now, so the pools sector is likely to be the one outdoor play sector with the biggest increase.

As an example, the Intex 15ft Easy Set, which was often available for £150-£170 last year will most likely be at about £250 this year. Thats an increase of up to 66%.

Don’t say you were not warned!

Outdoor Toy Retailer Etoyszone has launched a new sister site: http://www.abovegroundpoolshop.co.uk/

It is naturally a specialist retailer of Above Ground Pools and Pool Accessories, and features mostly the Intex brand.

Paul Rogers, the man responsible for the launch said that Intex Inflatable Pools had been incredible popular over the last 5 years, and  that consumers can not really belive what great value for the money they are.

He added: ‘ Intex have continued to innovate and the new Intex Ultra Frame Pools are much more sturdy, modern looking and a real cost-effective alternative to an in ground pool.’

Good Luck, lets hope the sun shines this summer.

The sun is here, and the weather has in truth been better so far this year than in the last two seasons, and pools are running short of supply.

Even before the school holidays most retailers are reporting severe shortages of Above Ground Pools and Paddling Pools, and if the sun shines as predicted this week, then we calculate that there will be non left in the UK at all by the time the school holidays actually start.

Why? Well two reasons, firstly the very poor summers in the last two years has made retailers nervous. No one like carrying stock through the winter, but most retailers have done so in each of the last two years. In fact 2003 was the last year we can honestly say was a sell-out year.

But more importantly it was the recession. At the peak of the bad news and the banks failing and the extreme pessimism about the economy, most retailers had to make their pool stocking decisions for 2009. That was last October. It is hard to over estimate how low confidence was at the time, with the terrible economicnews, unprecedented banking news, and the aftermath of an appalling summer.

Many retailers we know simple said they would buy nothing and hope to sell the overhang from 2008. Well that’s done, and the result is that its a hard job already to get Childrens Paddling Poolsor Intex Above Ground Swimming Pools.

It will be very interesting when its time to reorder for 2010. What will the industry do? Stay safe or over compensate and have too much.

In the meantime, prices are rising as stock runs low, especially on paddling pools.