Go Go Hamsters are safe after all

Despite the fact that Monday reports were issued from the US that the Go Go Hamsters may have contained arsenic chemical compounds, the fears were squashed with news that the toys were not toxic after all.

The poison scare sent the toy industry into a temporary meltdown sending shares of its distributor, Character Group, down by 8pc in the UK.  Still, the £10 toys are well on their way to be being the largest Christmas toy this season with an estimated figure of 600,000 expected to be sold by Christmas in the UK alone.

Good Guide, the US consumer group that raised the alarm, may be in hot water however, as the US producers Cepia are considering filing a damages lawsuit against the company for their misleading public statements.

Character Group released a press statement that said Mr. Squiggles the hamster in question is perfectly safe and passed all of the toy industry tests with remarkable colours.

Executive chairman of the group Richard King stated that the company was rocked by the claims due to their disruptive nature and the timing of the claims but that it is all part of the market game.

Good Guide stated last weekend that they had found the chemical anomaly in the toy only to then recant their statement, saying there was some confusion over the figures and that their testing techniques were different.

After the claims were made public Character Group sent the toy through a series of tests that affirmed the toy is safe.

Woolies stock floods toy market

Toy specialist Character Group expects that there will be many children disappointed with Santa on Christmas morning, given the fact that some of the most anticipated toys of the season will be out of stock. In particular the group predicts that the Peppa Pig products and Go Go Pets will come up short this year.

At the same time, its results for the full year have still suffered a bit after Woolworths collapsed last year with stock meant for Woolworths from 2008 swamping the marketplace and diverting profits.

Thus, the company was forced to record that they suffered a pre-tax loss of £2m for the year out of which £1m was left over from Woolies, which was drastic compared to its report of a £5m profit the previous year. However, due to some good Christmas trading this year the company has a lot of hope towards the future.

Richard Hickinbotham a prominent analyst said that Character Group will start out in the market place in 2010 in a much better position than last year and with a new focus on their products they should be able to continue the profitability turn around that they exhibited in the second half of 2009.

Next year the group already plans to put together new ranges for the Doctor Who line along with a new Fireman Sam line and more Go Go Pets.