Study: Toys was the fastest growing industry in early 2025
The toy industry showed its resilence in the early part of this year.
Toy industry dollar sales grew by 6% from January through April, and units sold increased by 3%, versus the same period in 2024, according to research by Circana. Toys was the fastest growing industry in early 2025 across all industries tracked by the company, with its growth associated with new Pokémon releases and collectible sports trading cards.
According to Circana’s Retail Tracking Service, eight of the 11 supercategories in toys posted dollar growth including games and puzzles, and explorative toys, which were driven by trading cards of all kinds including Pokémon, One Piece, NFL, and MLB. Other supercategory growth areas included building sets, action figures, arts and crafts, youth electronics, infant/toddler/preschool toys, and vehicles.
"The toy industry is showing its resiliency during a turbulent time, but will need to nimbly adapt to a retail landscape of polarized consumers and ongoing inflation concerns,” said Juli Lennett, VP and toy industry advisor at Circana. “The good news is consumers are signaling that they will spend on the things they need and those that make them happy.”
Circana’s key toy industry trends and highlights so far in 2025 are below:
- Adults continue to drive market growth in toys. In the first quarter (January through March) of 2025, toy sales for adults (ages 18+) grew by 12%, versus the same period last year — making it the fastest growing age demographic in the market, according to Circana’s receipt-based Checkout data. At $1.8 billion, adults also accounted for the highest spending among all age groups in the first quarter.
- New consumer findings on the Pokémon phenomenon. Nineteen percent of adults have purchased Pokémon trading cards for themselves in the past six months, according to findings from Circana’s March Omnibus Survey — and only one-quarter of these buyers actually play the game. Most are collecting them as a hobby or to display, while others are buying the cards in bulk to resell.
- Pricing trends and tariff talks point to a polarized market. Pricing trends so far in 2025 indicate that consumers are either trading up or pulling back. Higher-priced segments, especially between $20 and $69.99, drove industry growth through April, and segments under $15 grew, year over year, while the mid-tier felt a pinch.
According to Circana’s "Future of Toys" study, when asked how their spending on toys may or may not change due to tariffs, about one-third of consumers would choose a less expensive toy, while another one-third would still purchase the toy despite a price increase.