As toy retailers prepare their December sales reports, they are seeing the results of a holiday season in which price was joined by stock levels and unique toys as factors driving sales.  Wal-Mart's price cuts after Toys R Us went lower early (see 'Toy Wars -- News from the Front') appear to have put Wal-Mart back in position as the low-price leader, according to an A.G. Edwards study quoted by Playthings.  The study found that Wal-Mart was pricing electronic learning toys as loss leaders to attract customers, while Target was using games in that role. 

But that may be, in part, because Toys R Us may not be discounting products that are not in stock in many competitors' stores.  Heading into the last two weeks of December, two studies quoted by AP (one by investment firm Harris Nesbitt, and another by the Prudential Equity Group) found that Toys R Us had substantially better stock levels on key toys than Wal-Mart and Target.   The in-stock percentage spread was 20%-38% between Toys R Us and Wal-Mart. 

Unique toys were also a factor driving sales.  Toys R Us has exclusives from many of its top suppliers (see 'Toy Companies Supporting Toys R Us').  And at the high end, the newsmaking toys of FAO Schwartz's relaunch, including its $50,000 kids' Ferraris and $300,000 3-D motion simulators, appear to have been successful in attracting customers.  The NY Post reported lines around the block for the two-store chain's Manhattan store throughout the holiday season, and sales included a $100,000 gift card sale, according to the article (we note that the piker didn't want to pop for the 3-D motion simulator).  Store sources told the Post that sales at the Las Vegas store and via mail order were just as good. 

The return of FAO Schwartz wasn't the only change to the Manhattan toy retailing landscape.  Toys R Us announced that it is converting its Union Square location to a Babies R Us store, leaving its Times Square store as the only TRU in Manhattan.