From the publisher

Welcome to the May edition of Toy World – which I am proud to say is another belter of an issue. We received a stream of compliments after our April issue arrived, with many people commenting how impressed they were with the size of the issue, given the time of year – but it certainly wasn’t a one-off, as this month’s bumper edition emphatically illustrates.

I am writing this leader column after returning from the Easter break, which I hope will turn out to have been a successful trading period for the toy community. Retailers and suppliers could certainly do with a bit of a boost after a challenging couple of months, where petrol, food, gas and electricity prices have all risen steeply, making us all feel poorer every time we fill the car up or put the heating on.

Sentiment plays an important role in many discretionary consumer purchases – and while we can put forward a compelling case for toys being considered ‘essential’ for kids, even the most ardent member of the toy community has to accept that we are not at the front of the queue for family budget if the queue also includes eating and heating.

Historically, toys is one of the retail channels that is at least partially protected from the impact of consumer spending cutbacks – there is an age-old adage that says parents don’t like their kids to bear the brunt when times get tough. There is a lot of truth in that, but equally, soaring inflation and the rising price of so many household essentials will test that theory in the most robust way.

If I was looking for the upsides, I would say that many consumers purchasing high ticket toy items fall into the bracket of people who feel they can cope with the current financial turbulence. There is also a wide spectrum of toys on offer at pocket money or competitive prices – the toy market has a far broader entry level offering than many consumer goods categories. Indeed, this month’s NPD article takes a timely look at Collectibles and charts how well the category has rebounded over the past year – it is certainly going to be a key area for retailers, both in terms of driving footfall and turnover, as we head into the summer months. Although if some expensive items of expenditure are off the table - new car, holidays etc- that may even leave a bit more money in the pot for the kind of purchases which drive the toy retail business for 10 months of the year.

This month’s issue includes a host of special features to keep you up to date with all the latest new products that will be coming to market shortly; our product category feature focuses on the Dolls & Collectibles sector – the girl’s aisle if you will – which remains as dynamic and competitive as ever, while there is also an extended Licensing World section, encompassing all the latest news from the world of licensing, a round-up of the hottest new character merchandise about to launch and a sneak peek at what will be happening at the Licensing Expo in Vegas later this month.

Finally, we are absolutely delighted to bring you an extensive preview of the forthcoming Toymaster show – over 50 pages of ads and editorial featuring the key ranges that exhibitors will be showcasing in Harrogate in a few weeks’ time. Last month’s INDX show saw a healthy mix of AIS members and other specialist retailers (both bricks & mortar and online) congregate in Solihull, and I am sure we will see even more independent toy retailers heading to Harrogate to start placing their orders for the festive season. As one Toymaster member says in this month’s Talking Shop section, “For indies, it is the right show at the right time,” providing the perfect complement to the London Toy Fair.

We caught up with the Toymaster head office team ahead of the show, to hear how the group supports its members and how it has been evolving – you can read what they had to say in our exclusive interview with Yogi, Paul and Brian, which starts on page 74. The Toy World team will be out and about in force at the show, so we are looking forward to catching up with as many exhibitors and retail visitors as possible during our trip. Let’s hope the sun shines and the mood is buoyant.

Of course, it would be naïve or disingenuous to pretend that many families will not have some tough choices to make this year when it comes to expenditure. However, we’ve faced some daunting challenges over the past couple of years and there have been some truly remarkable outcomes that none of us could ever have predicted – for example, two years of increasing toy sales, despite everything the pandemic and lockdowns could throw at us. Let’s hope 2022 proves to be another remarkable year – it certainly won’t be dull.