US toy industry experts are saying 2015 was the strongest years for toys in at least a decade. It seems that the love for toys is coming back big time.
For the past few years there were real concerns amongst the people in the toy industry as mobile apps and video games were the top choice of children. But most toys during that time toys weren’t all that intriguing if we are honest.
With that said, the toy industry really got reinvented during these years and created much more intriguing and fun toys. This lead to kids and fans coming back to them big time. According to The NPD Group, which tracks and analyzes about 80% of the US toy market, the annual toy sales are expected to rise 6.2% to $19.9 billion in 2015. That’s the biggest increase in at least 10 years.
The growth is fueled by the Hollywood blockbuster movies but also by some intriguing new toys that are gaining the interests of children. Toymakers are using new technology, which is cheaper now and allows for the creation of various tech toys that keep their classic qualities and use the new possibilities, Vindy reports. “The selection is much greater than in the past,” said Jim Silver, editor-in-chief of TTPM, an online toy review site. “Technology is much better in the toy aisle, and it’s really inspiring young kids to play but also bringing older kids to things like radio control and role play items.”
Amongst the best performing movies on the toy market are Frozen and Star Wars as we have previously seen. Star Wars carries with it much more fans than just children and it is multigenerational, Marty Brochstein from the International Licensing Industry Merchandisers Assosiation says.
The multigenerational approach is also helping toy makers. 8-12 year olds are making 22% from the toy sales and are not the main group. Older teens and even adult toy collectors are much more active than before. This creates a new energy in the toy market which could lead to even bigger gains and even more interesting toys as time goes by. It is definitely a good time to be a fan of toys.
