A militia of little green army women is calling for backup.
Scranton toymaker Jeff Imel and his company BMC Toys drew national attention in the fall when he set out to design and produce women toy soldiers in a style historically dominated by male-looking figures.
Last week, he announced he would add more poses to the original four if he could raise some capital.
So on Thursday, he launched a to fund production and fulfillment and also gauge consumers’ willingness to buy little green army women.
Press attention is one thing, but he wanted some certainty they would actually sell.
He reached $28,235 as of Tuesday afternoon, more than double his original $11,400 goal. His success unlocked a number of so-called “stretch goals” that enable him to add different poses. He plans to produce 12 now, including a running rifleman, combat medic, a radio operator and low-crawl poses.
He got the answer he was looking for — consumers are hungry for a feminine take on a classic toy — but he admitted he won’t make back his total investment for years to come.
“The cost of the sculptor and the mold, it’s about the cost of a nice new car now,” he said, calling back a comment he made in September, when he compared development costs to a “modest new car.”
Imel made national news when a 6-year-old girl sent him a handwritten letter asking why he doesn’t make little green army women. His decision to try triggered a monthslong media blitz.
Given the high cost of injection mold tooling and safety standards, he faced an uphill climb from the start.
“It’s not very easy for someone to have a great idea and just go out and do it,” said James Zahn, senior editor of The Toy Book, a trade publication, and its affiliated consumer-focused publication The Toy Insider.
“It is impressive to see these people backing this with real money,” he said.
Zahn lives north of Chicago, near the Great Lakes naval base where sailors train. From his observations in shopping centers and restaurants, he surmises about half of the sailors who pass through the base are women.
“I think we’re starting to cross that bridge where this won’t be an uncommon thing any more,” he said of toys depicting women in roles historically reserved for men.
Imel expects little green army women will be ready for market by October 2020.
“I’m hoping this is a product that I sell as long as I have the business,” he said.
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