There were finally toys under the tree at Christmas. And even in quantity. The toy market has signed “A record year in 2021”, announced Frédérique Tutt, global toy expert at NPD, at a conference for the industry on Thursday, January 13. Over the whole of 2021, 3.7 billion euros of games and toys were sold in France, an increase of 2.9% in value and 5.1% in volume, so that the market usually experiences annual changes of between plus and minus 2%.
Faced with the shortage of raw materials, the disorganization of world trade and the explosion in transport costs, the sector sounded the alarm in September 2021, fearing that it would not succeed in filling all its shelves at the the most important season of the year is approaching. According to the NPD institute, 53% of sales were made between October and December and 30% in December alone.
“Adjust controls”
These disturbing messages ultimately led consumers to change their purchasing behavior. “They anticipated”, notes Mme Tutt. As a result, sales for the last quarter increased by 1%, while those in December fell by 5%. Important work carried out upstream has also made it possible to“Adjust orders to minimize shortages and shortages”, recognizes Romain Mulliez, co-president of the Federation of shops specializing in toys and children’s products (FCJPE). The movement also benefited the toy ” made in France “, less subject to fluctuations in international deliveries. It won 14% of the market in 2021, compared to 13.4% in 2020.
If the “figures are good, the margin is very bad”, underlines Alain Ingberg, president of the Association of French toy creators-manufacturers.
“We are satisfied but without triumphalism”, launched Florent Leroux, president of the French Federation of Toy and Childcare Industries (FJP), which brings together the biggest brands. He recognizes that the sector “Thought he was doing better” given a favorable comparison effect with the year 2020, when toy stores were closed part of the Christmas season. Most of the growth in 2021 was therefore achieved thanks to a 4% increase in sales between January and September.
Another downside: profitability. Manufacturers and distributors had to tighten the bolts to best contain the surge in prices in the second half of the year. And if the “Numbers are good, the margin is very bad”, underlines Alain Ingberg, president of the Association of French toy creators-manufacturers (ACFJF). A tension on margins that professionals have also taken into account for 2022, considering that an increase in selling prices will not be able to completely offset that in production costs.