Growing up on a farm, Al Batzel collected toy replicas of tractors each year at the state fair. But he never imagined that he would be making a living from such toys.
In 1990, Batzel sold a few items at a toy show in a Rochester, MN, mall. He enjoyed it so much, he opened a seasonal kiosk, then eventually moved into a permanent store. In 1992 he launched a 12-page, black-and-white mail piece with just two photos. By 1994 Batzel had abandoned his career in construction, moved his store to a strip mall in Rochester, and opened a second store in the famed Mall of America.
A year later, Batzel revamped the copy-heavy catalog, which was designed to drive local traffic and serve a limited number of out-of-town requesters. He added color and expanded the product lines and page counts. Now the catalog boasts 72 pages of farm toys and accessories — from replicas of bulldozers to John Deere gumball machines. The toys and the logoed apparel sell best, according to Batzel. This year the John Deere 9400 toy — a four-wheel-drive tractor with 12 wheels — was the biggest hit. He sold more than 750 of them through the store and the catalog combined.
The catalog accounts for 18% of Al’s Farm Toys’ $1.3 million in annual sales. All orders are taken and fulfilled through the Rochester location; catalog production is outsourced to Blossom Printing in Blooming Prairie, MN. The book is printed by Dimension Graphic in Lenexa, KS, simply because “they gave me the lowest bid,” says Batzel.
But dealing with bids and numbers is a far cry from the childhood nostalgia that drew him to this venture. Batzel says he would like to sell the catalog to someone who is prepared to grow the business but would allow him to remain involved in some capacity.
For now, Batzel continues to look for new customers. “Being in the Mall of America, a tourist destination, really helps us build a mailing list all over the U.S.,” he says. And Al’s Farm Toys has participated in Greenwood, CO-based catalog request service Shop at Home to reach more of the gift-giving women and mothers who make up its core audience, but it has yet to rent lists.
Al’s Farm Toys
Where based: Rochester, MN
Annual sales: $1.3 million
Annual circulation: approximately 60,000
Pages: 72
Trim size: 5-1/4″ × 8-1/4″
Catalog founded: 1992
Number of editions a year: one