Nerf, according to Tom Warner, Hasbro senior vice president and general manager of the Nerf Brand, is “a cross-generational brand that has stood the test of time.” He sees Nerf as a brand “with all the love and all the elements where we can go beyond just being a toy brand.” Nerf, Byrne said, is a good candidate for Hasbro’s broader expansion plans, because of its long history and popularity. “You can’t do that with something that’s just come out last year,” he said. “But when you’ve got a brand that’s going into its third generation of fans, you can do a lot more with it.” Zuru then invested in engineering and manufacturing with the goal of becoming a true challenger to Nerf, with prices that were 40% lower for consumers, and higher margins for retailers. That helped it gain a foothold in discount mass merchants, while Nerf had more of its inventory at Toys R Us, and was hurt when that retailer went bankrupt and liquidated its stores. Nerf VR, a virtual realty game from Secret Location, the virtual reality division of eOne, scheduled to be released in 2022. Zuru, Byrne said, is the first company that has invested enough in product innovation and technology to be a challenger.

Expansion of the Nerf family entertainment arcade concept, Nerf Action Xperience Centers, which opened its first location in Singapore in 2019. Two additional locations in the United Kingdom and two in the United States are in the works. The wait is now over and players will be able to experience new features following the completion of the ongoing maintenance period. Furthermore, patch notes have been officially released to provide an overview of the changes in the update. As Nerf evolves into more of a multi-media and multi-dimensional brand, Warner says his team will be careful to not lose sight of “the bread and butter at our core - where Nerf starts- which is the toy.” But, he added, “I think we have earned the right to take it beyond that.” Nerf became a brand that’s bigger than a blaster and bigger than a ball,” said Byrne, who co-hosts the toy-focused podcast The Playground. “It’s really an experiential brand and it stands for active social play,” he said. Hasbro’s vision for Nerf parallels its vision for itself - to be a global player in entertainment, gaming, experiences, sports and social media, in addition to selling a lot of toys.There’s nothing like your kids running around in the garden or park playing with their friends. Add to their fun time with our range of Nerf Blasters and toys that cater to various play preferences, ensuring hours of engagement and physical activity. It’s really about how do you immerse our fan base in all the different ways to be actively involved in Nerf.” Nerf is partnering with a Mexican investment fund to open licensed Hasbro-themed family entertainment centers across Mexico.

In the investor presentation last month, Nyman said Nerf holds over 65% share, and said the brand has “aggressive plans to grab an even bigger share.” However, he noted, Nerf has something that is very hard to beat - 52 years of brand building and a name with cachet. Nerf has been able to fight off most competitors, and charge more for its products, because it invested in quality, Byrne said. “When you take up their blaster it’s gonna work,” he said. Other companies that made lower-priced versions, including Toys R Us, which produced a private label line of bargain blasters, couldn’t match Nerf’s performance. “You could be in the middle of a blaster battle and it completely jams up. Nobody wants that to happen,” he said. Nerf has really created an identifiable community where people’s self image is tied in with Nerf,” Byrne said. “Where they say ‘I’m a Nerf player.’ And that’s really important. It’s like I carry a Louis Vuitton bag or wear Christian Louboutin shoes, or i drive a Tesla.”

The top rival invading Nerf’s turf has been Zuru, which over the past decade has built its X-Shot brand into a worthy competitor.

Beaver Raymond also was warned about going up again Nerf when he created a line of blasters that shoot marshmallows, instead of foam darts. Two years ago he sold his Dallas-based Marshmallow Fun Company to outdoor activity toy manufacturer Zing, and now sells the marshmallow blaster line, and Zing’s other products, as Zing’s vice president of sales and marketing. Nerf is a very important franchise brand for Hasbro,” Eric Nyman, Chief Consumer Officer, and Chief Operating Officer, Consumer Products, at Hasbro, said in a Forbes.com interview. “We feel like there’s a lot of growth to come, which is one of the things we’re really excited about as we think about the opportunity we have across those three operating units to extend Nerf.” It was a category we were deemed relatively mad to enter into as there was such prominent representation in the space,” said Anna Mowbray, CEO of Zuru. We knew this was going to be a slow, incremental journey because you are going up against such a big player. We had to figure out how to do that in a smart, steady way,” Mowbray said.

We’ve created a strategy, which we’re starting to execute now, which is about always on,” he said. “How do we stay in front of our core consumers 365 days a year with engaging content that inspires them to play Nerf? And that’s a reflection of who they are.” Nerf now is the official football of the NFL Flag League, one of the fastest growing youth sports ... [+] leagues. Hasbro