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Layoffs rock Transformers, GI Joe and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles collectibles company Super7 after its "best [six months] since the inception of the company"
"These are people who were doing the best work in the industry, none of whom deserved to be let go," the Super7 founder says of the staff members pushed out of the company as it faces an uncertain future
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Things are not looking good for pop culture collectibles company Super7, which has announced significant layoffs weeks after increasing costs pushed the company to add an across-the-board price increase on the majority of its merchandise.
Rumored for weeks, founder Brian Flynn released a public statement on social media confirming the layoffs this week. “As you may have heard, we had to make the difficult decision to let team members go,” he wrote. “These are people who were doing the best work in the industry, none of whom deserved to be let go. I want to be clear that this reduction in staff is a direct result of the tariffs applied to our industry. The preceding six months before the tariff announcement had been Super7’s best since the inception of the company nearly 24 years ago. Then the landscape changed overnight.”
The statement comes weeks after the April 24 announcement from the company that an 8% surcharge would be added to all non-apparel items sold by the company; that announcement also placed the place on tariffs, stating, “For as long as possible, we’ve worked to absorb these rising costs ourselves — without passing them along to you. Unfortunately, the scale of these increases has made it unsustainable for us to continue doing so entirely.”
Reports have suggested that designers heading up lines for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Thundercats and Silverhawks have all been let go from the company, with associate art director Kyle Wlodyga having confirmed his departure via social media. (His Instagram profile currently reads “Former Art Director at Super7,” in addition to an Instagram reel confirming the news.)
Flynn’s statement continued, “So what does that mean for Super7? Well, it means we need to be smaller and focus on the core of our business while being very specific about what we make.”
Since its launch in 2001, the San Francisco-based company has built a brand for pop culture-focused toys, accessories and clothing. Originally basing its output on original designs and characters, Super7 has built out its audience through action figures and merchandise featuring licensed properties including Hasbro’s G.I. Joe and Transformers, as well as Toho’s Godzilla, Peanuts, Sesame Street, and musicians including Iron Maiden, the Beastie Boys, and Blondie (amongst many others). Whether or not Flynn’s statement suggests that such licensing programs might come to an end because of the company’s current position remains to be seen — as does what could happen to such programs with the loss of their core designers.
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