Table of Contents
Overview
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- What you need to know
- Products covered in this Report
Executive Summary
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- The market
- Toy market grows 6.1% in 2016
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- Figure 1: Best-and worst-case forecast of UK value sales of toys and games, 2011-21
- Growing tweens and teens to benefit some categories
- Companies and brands
- Hamleys is worth paying more for
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- Figure 2: Attitudes towards and usage of selected brands, December 2016 and January 2017
- Toys R Us sales decline, while other specialists grow revenue
- Amazon launches STEM subscription service
- The consumer
- Argos is most popular for toys
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- Figure 3: Where people buy toys in-store and online, December 2016
- Low prices are main priority
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- Figure 4: Most important factors when buying toys, December 2016
- Parents of young children visit stores before buying
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- Figure 5: How people research before purchasing a toy, December 2016
- Parents of under-fives prefer educational toys
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- Figure 6: Attitudes towards toys and games, December 2016
- 21% plan to buy more toys this Christmas
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- Figure 7: Amount of toys purchased/which are planned to be purchased for Christmas 2016 compared with previous year, December 2016
- Importance of character merchandising
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- Figure 8: Attitudes towards buying toys at Christmas, December 2016
- What we think
Issues and Insights
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- How has the toy market performed over the last year?
- The facts
- The implications
- Who are the winners and losers in the toys and games market?
- The facts
- The implications
- What are the opportunities for growth in the sector?
- The facts
- The implications
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- Toy market grows 6.1% in 2016
- Sector to reach £3 billion by 2021
- Price rises could hit sales
- Tweens and teens to grow 12%
- Childhood obesity
- TV and technology dominate children’s activities
- Smartphone usage rises among 10-14s
- Black Friday and Christmas gift buying
Market Size and Forecast
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- Toy market grows 6.1% in 2016
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- Figure 9: Best-and worst-case forecast of UK value sales of toys and games, 2011-21
- The future
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- Figure 10: UK value sales of toys and games, 2011-21
- Forecast methodology
- The impact of the EU referendum vote
- Toy spend in previous slowdowns
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- Figure 11: Alternative market scenarios for the post-Brexit clothing and accessories market, at current prices, 2016-21
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- Figure 12: Detailed post-Brexit scenarios for the toys and games market, at current prices, 2016-21
- Price rises could hit sales
Market Drivers
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- Tweens and teens to grow 12%
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- Figure 13: Growth rate of the UK population, by age, 2011-16 and 2016-21
- Family sizes remain unchanged
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- Figure 14: Percentage of families with dependent children in UK, by number of dependent children in the family, 1996 and 2016
- Childhood obesity
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- Figure 15: Overweight and obesity prevalence, by age, England, 2014
- What activities children do
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- Figure 16: Activities children do at the weekend, May 2016
- Technology use
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- Figure 17: Technology devices children use in the household, May 2016 and March 2015
- Black Friday and Christmas gift buying
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- Figure 18: Attitudes to buying gifts in the Black Friday/Cyber Monday promotions, Christmas 2016
Companies and Brands – What You Need to Know
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- Non-specialists grab share
- Toys R Us sales decline, while other specialists grow revenue
- Focus on making the shopping experience more fun
- Amazon launches STEM subscription service
- More spent on advertising in 2016
- Hamleys is worth paying more for
- Toys R Us is good online
- Board games and construction dominate space
Competitive Strategies
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- Financial outlook of specialists
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- Figure 19: Key financials of the main players in the toy retailing market, 2014-16
- Figure 20: Outlet numbers of the main players in the toy retailing market, 2014-16
- Non-specialists focus on toys
- Retail offering and brand positioning
- New developments
- Digital activity
Launch Activity and Innovation
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- Autism-friendly toy shopping experience
- Buy now, pay later
- Scented toys with personalised message
- Curated subscription-based home delivery toy service
- Tesco’s Toy Tester Hotline service
- Toy concierge service
- London’s LEGO flagship store’s one-of-a-kind shopping experience
- Unique Christmas Grotto experience
- Harry Potter at Heathrow airport
Advertising and Marketing Activity
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- Total advertising spend up 11.1% year-on-year in 2016
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- Figure 21: Total recorded above-the-line, online display and direct mail total advertising expenditure, by UK retail advertisers of toy products, 2012-16
- Toys R Us dominates sector spend
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- Figure 22: Leading UK retail advertisers of toy products: Recorded above-the-line, online display and direct mail total advertising expenditure, 2012-16
- Majority of advertising spend channelled through TV
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- Figure 23: UK retail advertisers of electrical products: Recorded above-the-line, online display and direct mail total advertising expenditure, by media type, 2012-16
- Advertising spend peaks in the period leading up to Christmas
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- Figure 24: UK retail advertisers of toy products: Recorded above-the-line, online display and direct mail total advertising expenditure, by month, 2016
- Nielsen Ad Intel coverage
Brand Research
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- Brand map
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- Figure 25: Attitudes towards and usage of selected brands, December 2016 and January 2017
- Key brand metrics
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- Figure 26: Key metrics for selected brands, December 2016 and January 2017
- Brand attitudes: Hamleys is worth paying more for
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- Figure 27: Attitudes, by brand, December 2016 and January 2017
- Brand personality: The Entertainer is viewed as fun
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- Figure 28: Brand personality – Macro image, December 2016 and January 2017
- Toys R Us is welcoming
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- Figure 29: Brand personality – Micro image, December 2016 and January 2017
- Brand analysis
- Amazon has the highest level of usage
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- Figure 30: User profile of Amazon, December 2016
- The Entertainer has low levels of awareness
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- Figure 31: User profile of The Entertainer, January 2017
- Hamleys is highly differentiated
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- Figure 32: User profile of Hamleys, January 2017
- Smyths seen as tired
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- Figure 33: User profile of Smyths, January 2017
- Toys R Us is good online
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- Figure 34: User profile of Toys R Us, January 2017
- Early Learning Centre seen as fun
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- Figure 35: User profile of Early Learning Centre, January 2017
- Argos offers good value
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- Figure 36: User profile of Argos, December 2016
Space Allocation Summary
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- Summary allocation overview
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- Figure 37: Leading toy retailers, summary space allocation estimates, February 2017
- Detailed space allocation
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- Figure 38: Leading toy retailers, detailed space allocation estimates, February 2017
- Figure 39: Leading toy retailers, detailed space allocation estimates, February 2017
- Non-specialists in-store toy departments
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- Figure 40: Non-specialists: Toy department as a percentage of total floor space, February 2017
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- Argos is most popular for toys
- Toy specialists
- 44% buy toys online, while 47% buy in-store
- Low prices are the main priority
- Parents of young children visit stores before buying
- Fathers more likely to buy toys they have seen on TV
- Parents of under-fives prefer educational toys
- Men trust branded toys more
- Over half buy Christmas toys in advance
- Importance of character merchandising
Where People Buy Toys
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- Argos is most popular for toys
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- Figure 41: Where people buy toys in-store and online, December 2016
- Toy specialists biased towards ABs
- 44% buy toys online, while 47% buy in-store
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- Figure 42: Where people buy toys split by in-store and online, December 2016
- Repertoire analysis
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- Figure 43: Repertoire of where people buy toys in-store and online, December 2016
Factors Influencing Toy Purchasing
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- Low prices are main priority
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- Figure 44: Most important factors when buying toys, December 2016
- Fathers prioritise brands they trust
- ABs choose retailers with expert staff
How People Research a Toy Purchase
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- Parents of young children visit stores before buying
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- Figure 45: How people research before purchasing a toy, December 2016
- Fathers more likely to buy toys they have seen on TV
Attitudes towards Toys and Games
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- Parents of under-fives prefer educational toys
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- Figure 46: Attitudes towards toys and games, December 2016
- 64% of parents use digital games to entertain children
- Men trust branded toys more
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- Figure 47: Toy Retailing – CHAID – Tree output, December 2016
- Methodology
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- Figure 48: Toy Retailing – CHAID – Table output, December 2016
Buying Toys at Christmas
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- 75% buy toys for Christmas
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- Figure 49: Consumers who have purchased/plan to buy toys for Christmas 2016, December 2016
- 21% planned to buy more toys this Christmas
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- Figure 50: Amount of toys purchased/which are planned to be purchased for Christmas 2016 compared with previous year, December 2016
- Over half buy Christmas toys in advance
- Black Friday for toys
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- Figure 51: Attitudes towards buying toys at Christmas, December 2016
- Importance of character merchandising
Appendix – Data Sources, Abbreviations and Supporting Information
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- Abbreviations
- Consumer research methodology
Appendix – Market Size and Forecast
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- Forecast Methodology
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- Figure 52: Best-and worst-case forecast of UK value sales of toys and games, 2016-21
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