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In the toy industry, France and Britain, Germany, and the European "big three", although for many years ranked "old three", in fact, the gap between the three is very small. According to the toy market data in 2021, Germany ranked first, with 3.8 billion euros; Britain edged out France with 3.2 billion pounds (3.77 billion euros); France, at just over 3.7 billion euros, is third in Europe and in the top six.
So, what are the advantages and characteristics of the French toy market? Has anything changed since the outbreak? What trends are emerging this Christmas?
Population potential: With a current population of about 65 million, France's fertility rate in 2021 was 1.97 (i.e., 1.97 children per woman of childbearing age in France during 2021), the highest and fastest growing fertility rate among developed European countries.
Market vitality: At the same time, the UK will no longer enjoy the trade convenience of EU membership from 2021, and the European operational headquarters of some multinational brands will be evacuated from the UK, with Paris, France, and Frankfurt, Germany being the two major receiving sites. In 2021, the French toy market recorded 3% sales growth, with total sales exceeding 3.7 billion euros and total sales increasing by 5% year-on-year. It is predicted that the volume of the French toy market is expected to break the 4 billion euro mark in 2026.
The toy market also got off to a good start this year. Market sales rose 9% in April. Over the summer, sales began to weaken due to economic uncertainty. Between June and August, they fell 11% month-on-month, but were flat from last year and still up 5% from pre-pandemic levels in 2019. According to the NPD Group, there are five major categories that saw good growth driven by movie releases: dolls (+18%), children's electronic toys (+10%), toys for transportation (+8%), building blocks (+3%) and plush (+2%). Note, however, that sales have fallen back this year (-12 percent) and average prices have risen to around €15.
Local manufacturing: A prominent feature of the French toy market is the high proportion of local manufacturing. Locally made toys account for about 15 percent of total sales in France. Since the occurrence of international freight congestion in 2020, this proportion began to rise slowly, and the proportion of local toys in 2021 increased by 2.4% year-on-year.
France also has its own toy capital, Moirans-en-Montagne. The town, the carpentry center of France, was famous in its early years for making wooden whistles and, in the early 1900s, became the toy capital of France. There is still a lot of wood toy manufacturing capacity.
Channel: Traditionally, the distribution channels of toys in France are mainly supermarket chains, mainly Carrefour, Auchan, E. leclerc, and other local chains, which account for more than half of the share of the French toy retail market. But three years after the pandemic, the share of toys sold in supermarkets has fallen to a third.
What follows is the rapid rise of e-commerce. Besides international e-commerce giant Amazon, it is mainly controlled by local e-commerce platforms Cdiscount and FNAC. At one point during the pandemic, e-commerce accounted for a third of France's toy sales, but that share fell back to about 27 percent as people trickled back into the physical world after measures were eased.
The remaining third is made up of toy stores. Joe Club is the most famous of the big toy chains, which have also seen some changes in power in recent years. It was founded in 1952 and now has about 300 stores in France.
Category: Specific to the characteristics of toy products, "big children" products have been extremely popular in recent years, accounting for 20% of the overall sales. In 2021, sales of toys suitable for children older than 12 increased by 54% year on year, while sales of toys suitable for children younger than 11 remained flat.
Enterprises: The leading toy companies in the market share are Lego, Hasbro, Mattel, and other multinational giants. Board game company Asmodee is a local French toy company with a high market share. It also has something to do with the French public's love of board games. The board game category accounted for about a fifth of toy sales in 2020, according to the French toy association FJP. Other famous local French companies include Vulli, the leading company in the baby business, Moulin Roty Toys and Doudou et Compagnie in the plush category, Janod toys and Djeco Toys in the wooden category, and PAPO in the plastic/resin category Toys and Petitcollin Dolls.
Source: Chinese and Foreign Toy Manufacturing Magazine
So, what are the advantages and characteristics of the French toy market? Has anything changed since the outbreak? What trends are emerging this Christmas?
Population potential: With a current population of about 65 million, France's fertility rate in 2021 was 1.97 (i.e., 1.97 children per woman of childbearing age in France during 2021), the highest and fastest growing fertility rate among developed European countries.
Market vitality: At the same time, the UK will no longer enjoy the trade convenience of EU membership from 2021, and the European operational headquarters of some multinational brands will be evacuated from the UK, with Paris, France, and Frankfurt, Germany being the two major receiving sites. In 2021, the French toy market recorded 3% sales growth, with total sales exceeding 3.7 billion euros and total sales increasing by 5% year-on-year. It is predicted that the volume of the French toy market is expected to break the 4 billion euro mark in 2026.
The toy market also got off to a good start this year. Market sales rose 9% in April. Over the summer, sales began to weaken due to economic uncertainty. Between June and August, they fell 11% month-on-month, but were flat from last year and still up 5% from pre-pandemic levels in 2019. According to the NPD Group, there are five major categories that saw good growth driven by movie releases: dolls (+18%), children's electronic toys (+10%), toys for transportation (+8%), building blocks (+3%) and plush (+2%). Note, however, that sales have fallen back this year (-12 percent) and average prices have risen to around €15.
Local manufacturing: A prominent feature of the French toy market is the high proportion of local manufacturing. Locally made toys account for about 15 percent of total sales in France. Since the occurrence of international freight congestion in 2020, this proportion began to rise slowly, and the proportion of local toys in 2021 increased by 2.4% year-on-year.
France also has its own toy capital, Moirans-en-Montagne. The town, the carpentry center of France, was famous in its early years for making wooden whistles and, in the early 1900s, became the toy capital of France. There is still a lot of wood toy manufacturing capacity.
Channel: Traditionally, the distribution channels of toys in France are mainly supermarket chains, mainly Carrefour, Auchan, E. leclerc, and other local chains, which account for more than half of the share of the French toy retail market. But three years after the pandemic, the share of toys sold in supermarkets has fallen to a third.
What follows is the rapid rise of e-commerce. Besides international e-commerce giant Amazon, it is mainly controlled by local e-commerce platforms Cdiscount and FNAC. At one point during the pandemic, e-commerce accounted for a third of France's toy sales, but that share fell back to about 27 percent as people trickled back into the physical world after measures were eased.
The remaining third is made up of toy stores. Joe Club is the most famous of the big toy chains, which have also seen some changes in power in recent years. It was founded in 1952 and now has about 300 stores in France.
Category: Specific to the characteristics of toy products, "big children" products have been extremely popular in recent years, accounting for 20% of the overall sales. In 2021, sales of toys suitable for children older than 12 increased by 54% year on year, while sales of toys suitable for children younger than 11 remained flat.
Enterprises: The leading toy companies in the market share are Lego, Hasbro, Mattel, and other multinational giants. Board game company Asmodee is a local French toy company with a high market share. It also has something to do with the French public's love of board games. The board game category accounted for about a fifth of toy sales in 2020, according to the French toy association FJP. Other famous local French companies include Vulli, the leading company in the baby business, Moulin Roty Toys and Doudou et Compagnie in the plush category, Janod toys and Djeco Toys in the wooden category, and PAPO in the plastic/resin category Toys and Petitcollin Dolls.
Source: Chinese and Foreign Toy Manufacturing Magazine
