Robust sales of licensed toys and outdoor goods drove a 26% sales boom for Jakks Pacific in the first quarter. Net sales hit $83.8 million, up from $66.6 million in Q1 last year for the highest year-over-year Q1 sales growth since 2015. Gross margin hit 31.1%, the highest Q1 performance since 2017.
Sales of toys tied to gaming franchises, including Nintendo, SEGA’s Sonic the Hedgehog, and Apex Legends led the charge alongside sales for Disney Princess products, which nearly doubled. Additionally, sales of Raya and the Last Dragon and Black & Decker toys were brisk alongside Jakks’ Perfectly Cute and ReDo Skateboards.
“We had an excellent beginning to 2021, with strong sales growth in many product lines, a healthy increase in gross margins, and tight cost controls,” says Jakks Pacific Chairman and CEO Stephen Berman. “We delivered the best first-quarter operating results since 2015, with significant improvement in sales, gross margin, adjusted net income, and adjusted EBITDA. These results reflect the efforts we have made to broaden our product line, reduce our operating costs and cut interest expense.”
Berman says that the company recorded double-digit increases across all three of its divisions: boys, girls, and seasonal. Toys and consumer products were up 28% globally, while sales of Disguise costumes were flat.
