PlaymoFriends
General => News => Topic started by: tigana123 on February 04, 2026, 22:41:09
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Seems to be true ...
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1KQR4AkGtJ/ (https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1KQR4AkGtJ/)
https://www.radio8.de/dietenhofen-playmobil-werk-schliesst-464636/ (https://www.radio8.de/dietenhofen-playmobil-werk-schliesst-464636/)
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Sell all the injection machines to China
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:sorrow:
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This is definitely not a good sign. :(
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I just read this
Across the European Union, factories are closing or quietly scaling back production. Chemical plants, steel mills, fertilizer producers – the most energy-intensive segments of the economy – are either relocating abroad or shutting down altogether.
This is no temporary setback. Europe has not emerged from the energy crisis of 2022 and it won’t anytime soon. What is most alarming about this predicament is that Europe’s leadership is unable to grasp what is happening to it.
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I just read this
Across the European Union, factories are closing or quietly scaling back production. Chemical plants, steel mills, fertilizer producers – the most energy-intensive segments of the economy – are either relocating abroad or shutting down altogether.
This is no temporary setback. Europe has not emerged from the energy crisis of 2022 and it won’t anytime soon. What is most alarming about this predicament is that Europe’s leadership is unable to grasp what is happening to it.
Yes, it's from that fount of truth RT News, a Russian company.
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Yes, it's from that fount of truth RT News, a Russian company.
So….its not happening then ?
Is your news saying factories are doing great, new production is opening up, more jobs are being created, economy is expanding ?
I’m confused
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Oh wait , I apologize
I keep forgetting that in some countries your not allowed to read certain material/books/websites
I’m in the USA and we have access to multiple opinions and we get to express them openly
My bad…..sorry
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https://www.tz.de/bayern/in-bayern-schliesst-350-mitarbeiter-betroffen-playmobilwerk-94154162.html#google_vignette
Seems they intend to end manufacturing in Germany in June and expand their other plants. Seems a questionable move from the outside, given that Germany is their primary market. I'd guess energy costs may be a consideration, and are lower in Spain where they already have a plant, but we'll see I guess. You would have thought they'd have presented a plan to the union, but they have a track record of poor relatons with staff.
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I like the
The Horst Brandstätter Group, to which the cult brand belongs,
I don’t like
Around 350 employees are affected by the closure of the plant.
Self inflicted
The Group justifies the move with massively increased costs in Germany
I don’t understand
. The company wants to strengthen competitiveness and use synergies within the Group
the quote that stood out the most
"The responsibility for years of mismanagement is now to be passed on to the employees again. Together with the works council and our trade union network, we will not allow this without resistance
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Oh wait, I forgot to pre-screen this and if it’s approved by the “ministry of truth” and comes from an “authorized country”
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It's happening alright, it's reported in German newspapers too.
All part of a de-industrialising in Germany since getting rid of their nuclear power plants. Auto manufacturers fortunately managed to get the EU to drop the ban on new ICE vehicles in 2035 as pushing EVs would have crippled the industry.
Also it helps to check sources first instead of just saying it's not happening because you don't like the particular news source quoted. RT is no more unreliable than say AP. Both have their biases.
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"The responsibility for years of mismanagement is now to be passed on to the employees again. Together with the works council and our trade union network, we will not allow this without resistance
It seems it would be better if they outsourced management.
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It seems it would be better if they outsourced management.
I thought when Horst past away , it was put into a sort of trust that a board of lawyer types would make the decisions instead of the kids as they moved into the Lachuza self watering pots heads
Then this wild card secretarian story surfaced
Very odd and it’s only steering the ship into the rocks and the damn band keeps playing their tunes as though noting bad is happening
Maybe send production to Hungary , they seem to be hungry enough for business to make decent controversial decisions
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So….its not happening then ?
Is your news saying factories are doing great, new production is opening up, more jobs are being created, economy is expanding ?
I’m confused
No, I'm not saying it's not happening, I'm just pointing out that in the article there is a political element overall into which the facts are put.
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... in Spain where they already have a plant...
I thought they had recently closed that one!
Edit: yes, in late 2023
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No, I'm not saying it's not happening, I'm just pointing out that in the article there is a political element overall into which the facts are put.
Ok , I understand more now , thanks for the clarification
Perhaps this is more unsurprising news w/a political undertone
“ Germany has lost more than $1 trillion in GDP output over the past six years as successive crises pushed the economy into prolonged stagnation, according to the German Economic Institute”
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I thought they had recently closed that one!
As long as the secretary doesn’t listen to some nutty brit leader and “just fight” I think the Horst Brandsatter Company can pull through with sound long term decisions.
My bet is on Chinese manufacturing . Low cost stable energy, huge unwilling child work force and distribution logistics worldwide. What would be more awesome than kids building kids toys to spread the smile . Maybe then we could get a proper Asian theme with distinct diversity through all the variants in Asian cultures
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I thought they had recently closed that one!
Edit: yes, in late 2023
Malta it is then :lol:! I suspect this is another sign of 'focusing on the core markets' but maybe I'm wrong.
Perhaps this is more unsurprising news w/a political undertone
“ Germany has lost more than $1 trillion in GDP output over the past six years as successive crises pushed the economy into prolonged stagnation, according to the German Economic Institute”
For clarification, this is a think-tank hypothesising what would have happened if there hadn't been a series of international crisis. So if there had been no Covid, and no war in Ukraine, and no tariffs from America. This feels very much in the 'if my Grandmother had wheels she'd be a bicycle' realm of thinking.
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As long as the secretary doesn’t listen to some nutty brit leader and “just fight” I think the Horst Brandsatter Company can pull through with sound long term decisions.
My bet is on Chinese manufacturing . Low cost stable energy, huge unwilling child work force and distribution logistics worldwide. What would be more awesome than kids building kids toys to spread the smile . Maybe then we could get a proper Asian theme with distinct diversity through all the variants in Asian cultures
They tried China once for their 25th anniversary if I remembe rightly and it was an embarrassing flop, so maybe "once bitten, twice shy".
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They tried China once for their 25th anniversary if I remembe rightly and it was an embarrassing flop, so maybe "once bitten, twice shy".
Given the way that they push the 'Made in Europe' tag in Thailand, S. Korea and in China it would be surprising to me if they would out-source manufacturing out of the EU.
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They tried China once for their 25th anniversary if I remembe rightly and it was an embarrassing flop, so maybe "once bitten, twice shy".
The Chinese manufacturing quality is typically the problem of the one who is ordering the product and at what level of production quality…. you get what you pay for
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They're doing so well at stocking the stores that now they are closing factories?! Will we see Playmobil this side of the Atlantic in the future?
My bet is on Chinese manufacturing . Low cost stable energy, huge unwilling child work force and distribution logistics worldwide. What would be more awesome than kids building kids toys to spread the smile . Maybe then we could get a proper Asian theme with distinct diversity through all the variants in Asian cultures
China does not want to show the diversity of Asian cultures. The government is working hard to suppress several of the cultures within their borders, let alone outside their borders.
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They're doing so well at stocking the stores that now they are closing factories?! Will we see Playmobil this side of the Atlantic in the future?
China does not want to show the diversity of Asian cultures. The government is working hard to suppress several of the cultures within their borders, let alone outside their borders.
I wasn’t thinking of putting the Chinese government in the drivers seat, I would suggest the gnomes in Zirndorf continue making the design decisions and Chinese children do all the manufacturing , assembling and logistics …the Manuel labor stuff
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I wasn’t thinking of putting the Chinese government in the drivers seat, I would suggest the gnomes in Zirndorf continue making the design decisions and Chinese children do all the manufacturing , assembling and logistics …the Manuel labor stuff
And you expect the gnomes in Zirndorf to give us accurate Asian culture themes? :lol:
I don't think China would even allow Uyghur sets to be produced in country.
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And you expect the gnomes in Zirndorf to give us accurate Asian culture themes? :lol:
I don't think China would even allow Uyghur sets to be produced in country.
Valid point
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I don't think China would even allow Uyghur sets to be produced in country.
Drifting ever further off-topic, but you can look on Taobao (Chinese Amazon) and see a large number of sellers of traditional Uyghur costumes and items. The Chinese government are quite keen on the ethic minorities as tourism drivers.
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I wasn’t thinking of putting the Chinese government in the drivers seat, I would suggest the gnomes in Zirndorf continue making the design decisions and Chinese children do all the manufacturing , assembling and logistics …the Manuel labor stuff
I think there are few things in China where the Chinese government if not in the driving seat is sitting in the back influencing the route taken.
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I think there are few things in China where the Chinese government if not in the driving seat is sitting in the back influencing the route taken.
Hmmm, having the Chinese Government as the back seat driver ???
What could possibly go wrong
At this rate ….im not so sure Playmobil will have any new sets in the US in the near future
We did get those cute bubble cars but not much else interesting
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Here is an interesting mini-documentary on Matchbox. A brand I collected as a child
I see striking similarities
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=loKD3rEpE7M
YouTube … “ The Silent Toy Car Factory: How UK's Matchbox Empire Faded Away”