From the publisher

Welcome to the 11th birthday issue of Toy World. I say this every year, but it bears repeating – we are so grateful to all of the toy and licensing companies that have supported us throughout the years, and we’re delighted that people enjoy reading our magazine and website. We love what we do, and we hope that comes across.

The fact that this is comfortably our largest-ever September issue shows that trade press continues to thrive in a post-pandemic world (providing it is done well), offering a consistent and reliable platform for suppliers to share their latest news and new products with the retail community the whole year round.

This month’s (literal) behemoth of an issue includes a comprehensive round-up of the Pocket Money & Collectibles category, with great input from many of the sector’s leading players. Accompanying the main issue is a pull-out supplement devoted to the Games & Puzzles market, which offers a real deep dive into the category just ahead of its peak selling season.

Finally, if you flip the issue over, you will find an extended Licensing World section, which includes an in-depth preview of the forthcoming BLE event. It is a bit of a shame that this year’s event coincides with the LA Toy show, as indeed it will again in 2024. I truly sympathise with the organisers, who have to find a date that works for a multitude of disparate industries, while also avoiding religious holidays in the process. So, although there will be a few toy people missing this year, I am sure it is still going to be a fantastic event – you can find see all the latest from all the key licensing companies in the kids’ space in the ‘upside down’ part of the issue.

As well as celebrating the birthday of Toy World this month, we are also introducing a brand-new addition to our portfolio – the Licensing.biz website relaunches on 1st September, and we are excited to extend our footprint in the licensing field. Go to www. licensing.biz to sign up for our regular email news alerts and keep up to date with all the latest news and developments – plus our own thoughts and analysis of what is going on in the licensing world.

Back in the toy market, with the burst of extreme temperatures coming just before the summer holidays, it arguably couldn’t have been better for the toy community. No surprise then that toy sales in the first two weeks of July saw a considerable bounce, propelled by sales of outdoor toys. That said, it’s probably best to see that as a very welcome blip rather than evidence of a turnaround in consumer confidence. I saw a statistic recently which suggested that High Street footfall was actually up by a whopping 40% in June, yet sales fell in monetary terms. Plenty of people are visiting retail, but they’re watching what they spend very carefully.

And this year, we may well see Christmas sales going to the wire as they did before the pandemic. I say that partly because several major toy companies have either told me or been quoted as saying that they believe retail promotions will return to a more traditional (more aggressive?) pattern this year. If consumers believe that, they may be more inclined to wait for deals.

In addition, Christmas falls on a Sunday this year, giving consumers a full week and a final Saturday to complete their festive shopping. According to NPD, the last time that happened back in 2016, sales exploded in the final week, but that relies on retailers holding their nerve and having sufficient stock, and also suppliers being in a position to supply right through to the end of the festive season –in the current climate, that is two rather large ‘ifs’.

There is another development to factor into Q4 planning – the news that Amazon will be running a second Prime Day in October. This will certainly have an impact on the promotional plans of other retailers, who will want to be seen to be competitive, although it could also be seen as an opportunity for all retailers – on and offline - to kick start festive sales at a relatively early stage.

As well as optimising stock levels for Q4, suppliers also have the tricky task of working out how much to increase prices by. Speaking to NPD recently, we are starting to get more insight into the effect that increasing prices has on sales volumes. Perhaps unsurprisingly, initial signs suggest that the impact can be significant: for example, in the Action Figure category, there is evidence to suggest that when the price of a figure goes over £10, the volume can drop by as much as 50%. Of course, this isn’t black and white: there are a lot of nuances in different categories and at different price points, and even for different consumers.

It really is going to be a fascinating second half of the year – and Toy World and Licensing.biz will be here to record all the twists and turns.