Cash register bells have been ringing, and that’s good news for the global toy industry as we approach the midway mark of the holiday shopping season.
According to fresh data from The NPD Group, toy industry sales across the 12 global markets tracked by the organization hit $36.7 billion in the first nine months of 2022. While that’s a 2% year-to-date increase over last year, the impressive reveal is that sales revenue spiked 30% when compared to the $28.3 billion generated between January-September of 2019, the last year of the pre-pandemic era.
“Unlike many other categories which grew tremendously during the pandemic and then saw sales drop dramatically post-COVID-19, the global toy market continues to perform and maintain an elevated level of sales,” says Frédérique Tutt, global toys industry analyst at NPD. “As we approach the final quarter of the year, seeing a 2% revenue growth is encouraging for the industry. Once again, toys and games prove their resilience against political and economic uncertainties.”
While total revenue continues to grow, overall unit sales volume dipped 4% year-to-date but saw an uptick in September.
NPD’s Retail Tracking Service reports growth across seven tracked countries, led by a 23% boom in Brazil followed by a 13% spike in Mexico. Those numbers were followed by more modest gains in Spain, Canada, the U.S., Italy, and Australia.
Winning Categories
Plush continues to dominate supercategory growth with a 32% year-to-date gain followed by a 12% spike in action figures and accessories. Other growth supercategories include explorative and other toys (10%), and building sets (5%).
According to NPD, kids and adult “kidult” collectors are driving a boom across the three fastest-growing subclasses this year. Non-strategic trading cards and stickers, action figures and collectibles, and traditional plush are all hot.
Top Licenses
Licensed toys are driving sales growth around the world with 29.8% of all toys sold being licensed. Pokémon caught the top spot through September followed by Star Wars, Barbie, Marvel Universe, and Hot Wheels.
Paired with encouraging reports on consumer habits from the National Retail Federation going into the holiday season, the industry looks poised to score some additional wins in the coming weeks.
