D. Tighe
Research expert covering consumer behavior, sporting goods retail, and the global toy industry.
Toy industry in the UK - statistics & facts
The toy industry in the United Kingdom is an important and lucrative market, growing steadily every year. The revenue of the toys and games market went from approximately four billion British pounds in 2015 to just over 4.7 billion in 2021, and is expected to reach over five and a half billion by 2027. The toys industry includes different segments with different target markets, from toys intended for children, to more complex games targeting adults like card games and board games. In 2021, toys for toddlers and kids were the most lucrative segment in the toy industry in the UK, with revenues in that segment alone exceeding 1.4 billion British pounds.
The rise of e-commerce in the UK toy industry
The pace of digitalization of the economy definitely picked up speed over the years and is showing no signs of slowing down. Online sales channels in the toys and games market in the UK have enjoyed a marked increase in revenue share since 2017 and are expected to overtake offline sales channels by 2024. In 2021, Smyths Toys, Waterstones, and LEGO had the highest online visibility scores among toy retailers in the UK. Popular for its interlocking plastic bricks, LEGO was the leading toy company in the world that year. Despite the rise of e-commerce, the number of brick-and-mortar stores for the retail sale of games and toys continued to increase in the last decade in the UK.Toy expenditure in the UK
Consumer spending on toys more than doubled between 2005 and 2021, with growing consumer demand driving a significant increase in the purchase volume of games, toys, and hobby goods in the United Kingdom. Specifically, in 2021, nearly 13 billion British pounds was spent on games and toys and other items related to hobbies in the UK, up from around 6.2 billion British pounds in 2005, based on volume. Average weekly household expenditure on games, toys, and hobbies varied widely between gross income deciles in the UK, with the highest decile group spending an average of six British pounds per week on toys, versus only one British pound spent by the lowest ten percent.
