A Trike with Snob Appeal describes the success of the high-end Kettler tricycle:
At a time when the $20 billion toy industry is struggling amid heavy price discounting, Kettler’s best-selling trike is the Happy Navigator, a model launched earlier this year that boasts a $150 price tag, three times the average trike price. And fans can fork out more than $250 for the trikes, which are backed by a research and development department and a long list of registered patents.
How do you sell a $150 tricycle?
Kettler, which conducts no advertising, says it uses a “cul-de-sac” marketing approach, relying on word-of-mouth on driveways and in playgrounds to build brand awareness.One factor driving interest in the Kettler is the growth of online commerce, which has helped fuel baby trends beyond boutiques in big coastal cities. Kettler’s trikes once were sold mainly in New York City boutiques and a few catalogs. But lately, Kettler’s Internet sales have been growing at 30% a year, thanks to newer online retailers like www.mytoybox.com. Kettler says it has also benefited indirectly from the recent spate of closings of national toy chains like FAO Schwartz and Imaginarium, boosting business both on Web sites and at independently owned stores.
What makes them so popular?
One reason for the trikes’ popularity is their design. With a low-slung seat set above the back wheels and often equipped with the optional seat belt and push bar, the Kettler allows parents to use it almost like a stroller, giving it a toehold in the high-end stroller market.Another factor is the company’s ability to keep its trikes fresh by adding new props and options. A few weeks ago, the company informed its retailers that it had just received a patent covering a modification of its steering lock — which allows parents to prevent the handlebars from turning — as well as a feature that limits the turning radius of the tricycle to 45 degrees, which Kettler says helps prevent the trike from tipping over.
The tricycles’ pricing structure bears a closer resemblance to BMW than Babies “R” Us. While the most basic trike retails at $70, Kettlers offer an array of options that often boost the actual price considerably. The deluxe stroller-version push bar with backpack retails for $55, and the seat belt is $16. A foot rest, used for children too small to pedal, is $18. Even the little red bell costs an extra $6. Some Kettlers even allow for additional seats inserted into the tricycle for multiple children, but building the custom stretch-trike costs an additional $55 for each insert.
They also make a pedal-powered car — “so well-known in Germany the word Kettcar appears in the German dictionary.”