The direct-to-consumer business is booming at Hasbro.
The company’s latest HasLab crowdfunding project launched yesterday via Hasbro Pulse where the minimum order quantity of 8,000 pieces was met in under eight hours. Timed with the 40th anniversary of Hasbro’s G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero brand, the G.I. Joe Classified Series Cobra H.I.S.S. is the second G.I. Joe HasLab project and the first for the 6-inch scale Classified Series.
Backers turned out in droves to pledge $300 for the armored High Speed Sentry (H.I.S.S.) tank and Driver, fueled by the early bird promise of a second 6-inch scale Classified Series figure should the minimum be met within a week.
As of this writing, more than 10,405 backers have gotten behind the project, easily unlocking the first of four stretch goals: a pair of side-mounted missile launchers.
The quick success of the G.I. Joe Classified Series Cobra H.I.S.S. may signal a sweet spot in terms of product offering, size, and price for future crowdfunding projects. While the HasLab initiative has been successful since its launch in 2018, there have been some misses. The direct-to-consumer program has sent multiple crowdfunded projects into production from the Star Wars, Marvel, Transformers, Ghostbusters, G.I. Joe, and HeroQuest brands. To date, only the life-sized Sesame Street Cookie Monster project and a Star Wars The Black Series Rancor have failed to reach their minimum goals. Another current campaign for a lightsaber inspired by the recent Obi-Wan Kenobi series on Disney+ looks unlikely to reach its goal.
The Cobra H.I.S.S. is packed with play features, including LED lighting, a gunner turret, working treads, and more. The vehicle stands 10-inches tall and is 19-inches long.
Hasbro expects the Cobra H.I.S.S. to begin shipping in the fall of 2023.
This week, Hasbro Pulse was also recognized as one of the fastest-growing e-commerce sites in a new report from Newsweek and Statista. In the Collectibles category, Hasbro Pulse growth was listed as “extremely high.”
