Six per cent YoY growth marks a “pivotal moment” for the industry, as licensed toys and brands with cross-generational appeal fuel sales
The UK toy market has bounced back to growth for the first time in five years, with Circana reporting a six per cent year-on-year rise in toy sales for 2025.
At a press briefing on the opening morning of Toy Fair, Circana’s Melissa Symonds revealed the top performing categories were building sets (+25%), action figures (+16%) and games and puzzles (+15%).
Kerri Atherton, Head of Public Affairs at the BTHA, said this is a “pivotal moment” for the industry following a number of challenging years.
“What is particularly encouraging is the consistency behind the recovery when trading conditions have remained tough, with toy sales increasing every month of the year and growth evident across both children’s toys and the expanding kidult market,” she added.
Licensed toys accounted for a growing chunk of the £3.9 billion UK toy market: 38 per cent of all toys sold are tied to IP, an increase of 16 per cent largely driven by gaming, TV and movie properties. Standout brands include Pokémon, Minecraft, Lilo and Stitch, and Jurassic World.
The cross-category collectibles segment is growing twice as fast as the total toy market, driven by trading cards such as Pokemon and Magic: The Gathering, alongside Funko and other collectible figures. That’s also buoyed by the kidult market, which has nearly doubled in the past 10 years: in 2016 spend by and for over-12s accounted for 17 per cent of toy sales; today it’s 30 per cent.
“There’s something for everyone in the collectible market, and that’s at all age brackets,” said Melissa. “We’re hoping to see that cross generational appeal for toys turn into cross generational play. We could all use a little more fun in our lives.”
The pre-school and infants market also delivered its strongest performance since 2017, with LeapFrog and Tonies the frontrunners.
The average price of a toy rose five per cent to £12.37, while cheaper toys in the sub-£5 price point actually saw a decline in sales.
