This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 196.40.67.153 (talk) at 04:50, 31 December 2004 (very rough start). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.
Revision as of 04:50, 31 December 2004 by 196.40.67.153 (talk) (very rough start)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)H. Ty Warner (born September 3 1944) is the founder of Ty Inc., which manufactures and distributes Beanie Babies. Forbes estimates his net worth at approximately $6 billion.
He attended Kalamazoo College in Michigan but dropped out after a year and moved to Hollywood to commence a career in acting. He enjoyed little success as an actor and returned to Chicago.
In Chicago, he started working for a plush toy maker Daikin where he became an accomplished salesman, employing clever tactics to influence the decisions of "buyers" in large stores.
After nearly two decades at Daikin and a long sabbatical in Italy, Warner returned again to Chicago. He mortgaged his home and invested his life savings into founding Ty Inc. in 1986.
Using his extensive contacts in toy retail, Warner was quickly able to realize what would sell and how to sell it. At one Atlanta Toy Fair, he obtained orders for 30,000 toys in one hour.
In 1993, Ty Inc. launched Beanie Babies. By 1996, they had become a cult phenomenon delivering Warner tremendous wealth.
Warner's business strategy was novel. He did not spend money on advertising. He selectively limited production of certain Beanie Babies to encourage collectors. He did not distribute Beanies at large department stores to encourage the perception that Beanies were an elite offering. As a result of these strategies, collectors would enthusiatically await and buy up new products with a secondary market emerging where some Beanies sell for $1000 or more.
Warner has diversified beyond toys with significant investments in hotels, property and golf courses.