NPD Group Issues Correction on L.O.L. Surprise! Growth as O.M.G. Dolls Launch

The NPD Group issued a correction for its most recent U.S. Toys Executive Summary — sent to NPD clients who subscribe to NPD’s U.S. Toys Retail Tracking Service — in regard to MGA Entertainment’s L.O.L. Surprise! brand.

According to the updated edition of NPD’s May 2019 summary, L.O.L. Surprise! grew 47% in May versus the same period last year. On June 27, NPD issued an incorrect version of the summary, stating that L.O.L. Surprise! declined 21%, when, in fact, the brand saw an increase. The updated summary was sent to subscribers on June 28.

“We extend our apologies to MGA Entertainment and others who may have been affected by the incorrect data,” says Joanne Hageman, president, U.S. entertainment sector at The NPD Group. “Although the executive summary is sent only to NPD clients, in the event that the corrected data was not seen by those who saw the original, we want to set the record straight.”

MGA is currently launching O.M.G., its latest brand extension for L.O.L. Surprise! The fashion dolls began hitting retail this week.

Recently, L.O.L. Surprise! hit a milestone 1 million subscribers on YouTube, debuted a subscription box with CultureFly, and launched a packaging recycling program in partnership with Terracycle.

About the author

James Zahn

James Zahn, AKA The Rock Father, is Editor-in-Chief of The Toy Book, a Senior Editor at The Toy Insider and The Pop Insider, and Editor of The Toy Report, The Toy Book‘s weekly industry newsletter. As a pop culture and toy industry expert, Zahn has appeared as a panelist and guest at events including Comic-Con International: San Diego (SDCC) Wizard World Chicago, and the ASTRA Marketplace & Academy. Zahn has more than 30 years of experience in the entertainment, retail, and publishing industries, and is frequently called upon to offer expert commentary for publications such as Forbes, Marketwatch, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, USA Today, Reuters, the Washington Post, and more. James has appeared on History Channel’s Modern Marvels, was interviewed by Larry King and Anderson Cooper, and has been seen on Yahoo! Finance, CNN, CNBC, FOX Business, NBC, ABC, CBS, WGN, The CW, and more. Zahn joined the Adventure Media & Events family in 2016, initially serving as a member of the Parent Advisory Board after penning articles for the Netflix Stream Team, Fandango Family, PBS KIDS, Sprout Parents (now Universal Kids), PopSugar, and Chicago Parent. He eventually joined the company full time as a Senior Editor and moved up the ranks to Deputy Editor and Editor-in-Chief.