- A liquid-filled toy called the Super Squishy Blob Ball is bursting in store aisles.
- Eight former and current employees in Target stores in Wisconsin, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Florida, New Jersey, California, the DC Metro Area, and Maryland, as well as one employee in a New Jersey Walmart store said the toy has popped, leaked, or burst in their stores.
- The toy is manufactured by MB Wolverine and distributed by MJ Holding, and the design meets the standards for the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), a spokesperson for MB Wolverine said.
- The MB Wolverine representative said the company recently identified a small batch with an "isolated quality issue" that made it prone to leaks and spills.
- "The Company is proactively and voluntarily in the process of replacing all affected Super Squishy Blob Balls at retailers nationwide," a representative from MB Wolverine said.
- "We're aware that the vendor for Super Squishy Blob Balls has encountered some production issues and is working to replace defective product at all retailers where it is sold," Target spokesperson Joshua Thomas said.
- Walmart did not return Business Insider's request for comment.
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A popular toy has been making life difficult for some
The Super Squishy Blob Ball is distributed to 35 retailers across the country, including Target and Walmart, and some of the toys are prone to leaks and breaks, nine employees at Target and Walmart say.
Business Insider spoke to eight former and current Target employees in stores in Wisconsin, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Florida, New Jersey, the DC Metro Area, and Maryland, and one employee in a New Jersey Walmart, who said the toy has popped, leaked, or burst in their stores. Most spoke on the condition of partial or complete anonymity in order to speak frankly about the situation.
Jacob, now a former employee of a Wisconsin Target where he worked until about a month ago, described the toys as "the devil" and "the bane of [his] existence." He said that the toys would regularly burst all over the aisles and were difficult to clean up. As of a few months ago, Jacob said he would find one on the ground at least once a week.
The toy is manufactured by MB Wolverine and distributed to stores by MJ Holding. The toy meets all federal safety regulations and is tested to meet US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) standards, a spokesperson for MB Wolverine said.
The spokesperson said that the company recently discovered an "isolated quality issue" related to a small batch of the balls that was manufactured with a thinner outer wall, which made the toys prone to breaks and leaks.
"The Company is proactively and voluntarily in the process of replacing all affected Super Squishy Blob Balls at retailers nationwide," the spokesperson said.
A leader in a San Diego Target said the toys were a nuisance at his store as well.
"They are filled with slime and when it pops it's pretty hard to get it off merchandise," he said. "But I don't think they are popping in their own. I'm pretty sure it's kids doing it in purpose."
Business Insider purchased two Super Squishy Blob Balls from a Target store in Manhattan's Tribeca neighborhood on Tuesday. One of them burst almost immediately, while the other remained intact.
The popular toy is sold year-round and has been on the market for the last five years, the spokesperson for MB Wolverine confirmed. The distributing company is responsible for stocking the toy in stores.
"We're aware that the vendor for Super Squishy Blob Balls has encountered some production issues and is working to replace defective product at all retailers where it is sold," Target spokesperson Joshua Thomas said. "If a team member or guest ever has concerns about a product being sold at Target, we encourage them to speak with one of our store directors or a representative at Guest Services."
For employees where the toy is sold, cleaning up the mess has been unpleasant.
"It makes a puddle about 3 inches in diameter," a current employee in an Arizona Target store said, adding that the toy was leaking on one of his shelves about a month ago. "You pour some absorbent on it, scoop it up with a dust pan."
Cassandra, a current employee in a New Jersey Walmart, said that it is not uncommon for the toy to burst in her store. She said the toy burst on her hands two weeks ago and that last week, it leaked on three different people, including a young girl.
"My hands were burning and itching since I'm allergic to one of the ingredients in it," she said.
"Since entering stores, this product has established a reliable track record for quality and has always exceeded mandated U.S. safety standards," the spokesperson for MB Wolverine said in a statement. "The Company's complaint tracking system shows that this toy maintains an extremely low overall complaint rate (.0034% year-to-date through Oct. 31, 2019) and each issue reported to the Company is followed up on and resolved immediately. We apologize to any individuals and our retail partners who may have experienced any inconvenience related to this popular product."
Walmart did not return a request for comment.
