Excessive Packaging

Maybe the toy companies are in kahoots. My son got a bunch of toys for his birthday the other day, and there is perhaps more packaging material than actual toy in there. Some of the packaging material is even moulded (is that the British spellling?) to look like something real, such that I still have it because I somehow feel bad getting rid of it.

Now, looking at it objectively from the outside, I would think that as a toy company owner, I would want as little packaging as possible. Not just because it saves room in landfills, but for many selfish and pragmatic reasons.

1) You can fit more smaller packages in the same volume of shipping container (e.g. truck).
2) You can fit more smaller packages in the same amount of shelf space
3) Less packaging materials means less cost of goods sold
4) Less packaging materials could mean one fewer stations on the assembly line
5) You could promote your packaging reduction campaign as a green move for your company

I mean, in case you don't have kids that get highly-packaged toys, here's an example. There are many toys that are tied down in the box. But some toys are tied down in literally ten places. And this is not a big toy, like a 6" action figure or doll type of thing. The cardboard box is folded into an elaborate shape which depicts a scene native to the toy. This box is taped about 50 times (exaggerating, but literally five or more places). Then the toy is tied to the box by what are essentially insulated wire - a metal core with a rubber casing. This tie is wrapped around a limb of the toy, and then behind the box, it is tied to itself, and often taped over the tie in the back. Some toys have about two or three ties, but as I said, some have like ten of them. Some toys even have a screw holding it into the packaging. It always just makes me think, "they must really be afraid someone's going to steal this from the box."

So to all in the toy industry: reduce the packaging, please!