We are grateful to have been provided a copy of a comprehensive report into global and Australian toy sales in 2020 comparing to 2019. The data assessed in the repot is pulled from a large pool of toy and toy related retailers in Australia and globally. The assessment itself is undertaken by the NPD group.
The results are extraordinary. While we won’t share the report itself here, we can share high level data. we have shared even more with our customers.
Tower Systems is grateful to serve local toy shops with toy shop POS software made for their specific business needs. Our toy shop software is comprehensive. It is also connected to the Shopify e-commerce platform for selling online – offering local toy shops a true omnichannel retail opportunity and enabling them to compete effectively with much bigger businesses.
Deeper in the report is a list of top performing brands, some of which plenty of newsagents stock. This information and other information nearby is what we can leverage to further grow the toy category in our businesses.
Of particular interest are the Christmas results and the move, in 2020, to toys and games of >$50 in value. This is the fastest growing sub-category for the Christmas season. It interests me because too many newsagents focus on low price point toys while shoppers are happy to spend up on higher price point toys.
Looking at the results more broadly …
- Global Trends
- 8/13 Countries grew sales revenue.
- Australia achieved strongest growth: 22% as shown above.
- Q4 growth was excellent.
- Australian Market
- +22% Growth.
- 12out of 13 super categories grew revenue.
- Unlicensed Toys Grew +21% .
- Licensed Toys Grew +26%.
- 10 months of consecutive growth (adding $256m to Toy Industry).
- Consumers move to bigger box items > $50 items
- Christmas performance
- +16 grow revenue/
- Unlicensed Toys grew 19%.
- Licensed Toys grew 11%.
- 12 out of 13 super categories grew.
– 5 categories grew faster than the total category.
- Looking ahead into 2021 and considering early indications.
- Toys / games remain strong.
- Online in toys and games is growing faster.
- Movie licences are back.
- Puzzles and Games need to be watched / managed / promoted.
- Collectibles are showing a strong start to the year.
- Shoppers are looking for newness.
The toys / games / puzzle and related categories are good for plenty of retail businesses, not just toy shops. They can make a terrific contribution. I know of non toy shops doing more than $150,000 a year in these categories and achieving a 50% or more gross profit – making the GP value of the categories considerably greater than the contribution from products more traditional for a non-toy retail channel.
