For many years Playmobil operated with a small number of basic themes. When a new set was introduced, 10,000 were produced and stored until they were all sold. Once they were sold out, or close to selling out, Playmobil would then decide whether to produce more.
Now, producing in large quantities and storing them ties up money and also costs money so in the last 10 years or so, maybe longer, Playmobil have started producing to meet expected demand for the near future. If demand proves to be greater than expected, they will then quickly produce more. The fact that they do not carry large stocks of sets saves money and also means that it is easier to withdraw a theme quickly if it is not popular.
Playmobil also tries to limit the number of sets to about 300 so every time a new set comes out, an existing set somewhere needs to be withdrawn.
