Grandparents account for about one-quarter of sales, or nearly $7 billion, in the $28 billion U.S. toy industry, according to findings from The NPD Group’s latest report, “The Power of Grandparents within the U.S. Toy Industry.”
While parents spend the most on toys, grandparents’ spending growth in the last 12 months exceeded nearly all other consumer segments, including parents. In addition, grandparents’ online spending has grown at a faster rate than any other toy consumer’s.
More than one third of grandparents’ toy sales go towards kids ages 2 to 4, so grandparents over-index on shopping for categories that cater to younger ages—particularly infant/toddler/preschool toys and outdoor and sports toys.
In terms of how grandparents make their purchases, 85 percent shopped in a physical store for toys in the last year, while 72 percent shopped online. Grandparents spend 3.5 times more per toy online than they do in stores. In addition, more than 60 percent of grandparents that previously shopped at Toys “R” Us report that they will be shopping for toys online in the future.
