CHILDREN Vs. EMERGING COLLECTOR MARKET – The Toy Companies Gamble

CHILDREN Vs. EMERGING COLLECTOR MARKET – The Toy Companies Gamble

Since the beginning of Castheads Magazine and Media, I have been following the toy and toy collector industry for a long time. I say ‘toy collector’ as a loose term because what adults collect are essentially classified as toys. Hobby and Collector are not category classifications in most countries’ administrations. However, after 8 years of closely studying the market, and psyche of collectors, understanding distribution, licensing, and working to build brands, there is one thing that is greatly lacking for many toy companies that seem to be missing out: data. Without reliable data and insights many ‘toy’ brands are probably missing out on one of the greatest revenue streams possible and as many shows and toy fairs as they visit and take part in without current and LIVE data it’s going to get harder to hold on to that little market share, they already have.

The Collector Market

Essentially the collector market can be divided into different categories, but due to the nature of collecting and collector mindset, these lines often get blurred which usually benefits the brands even more.

There are the transportation collectors, Ships, trains, planes, and automobiles. If it moves has history, looks good, inspires excitement and nostalgia it is bought and shelved. A large demographic with purchasing power collectively holds one of the largest communities on social media. Collectors who range from the ages of 16 – 65 and a lot spend incredible amounts of money just collecting models of all scales and brands even if they can’t display them. Some buy as an investment and the rest buy for the love of forever being a child.

The POP Culture collectors buy anything related to music, movies, the silver screen, comics and manga, fashion etc. The POP Culture collectors are probably one of the most powerful types of collectors which a lot of industries like to leverage. Funko POP is one brand that cashes in on both the adult and Children’s markets using POP Culture as their strategy. This is the group that drives the licensing industry and is probably one of the most robust in finance. This group holds a strong financial culture involving auctions, trade deals, comic cons etc. This is the group that also drives up the prices of toy collectables based on the popularity of the Pop subject.

The fashion collector is a group that fashion brands like to cash in on through merchandise. Our brand is really expensive and powerful, but we still want to be aspirational so let’s license the brand to more achievable products but also, let’s make it a limited edition just to make sure people remember who they are buying. A clever way for fashion brands to seed their mark into bigger wider markets and audiences without needing massive budget spends.

Who has the DATA?

So far two reliable sources have started to build on databases that can contribute invaluable data to toy companies using technology to collect the data, but financial infrastructure is needed to help these companies generate more data that can be analysed. Castheads Media is one of them that has created a fully function multi-platform app that can deliver collectors’ choice in what brands they like, why they like it, what they collect the most, what colours they prefer and most likely buy, what countries prefer what types of models and scales etc.

But why do you need the data?

Simple, it’s too expensive to be too ambiguous with where your products go. We have begun to see the rise of shipping and freight charges that do not look like they subside anytime soon and that is going to radically affect cost. Then countries themselves are constantly changing duties and taxes which directly affect industries like the toy industry, sometimes unfairly taxed like children are not supposed to have joy. The data narrows down the waste and helps understand the market and its spending power. And how does the COLLECTOR help in all of this? They generate reliable data that can be measured because the mindset is habitual.

The Distribution Myth

To add a small note, many brands are under the impression that if they do not have distributorship in certain markets, they won’t have sales. But to a collector, if they see something they want they will get their hands on it somehow. If you want to know how you can call us, I won’t reveal all our secrets here. But never think for an instant your brand won’t do well in a market you have never penetrated because with platforms like CastHeads Magazine collectors see what they like globally and go for it.

Sneaky Sneaky Hotwheels

While most of the toy industry world turns its attention to the great American and European Toy Shows, Mattel has been sending its support and key designers to the Asian region because lo and behold they have discovered an insanely large market of collectors who are spending billions of dollars collectively and yearly on their collections.

The love for Hotwheels in the region is so huge that over the last 8 years, dozens of brands from Hong Kong and China have developed higher detail 1/64 scale brands, charging premium prices and the region is eating it up like manna from heaven. So much so that from last year Mattel designers have been turning up for events and shows in Singapore, Indonesia, Hong Kong and Malaysia and guess what, look at the 2023 – 2024 line including the revival of HotWheels Elite 1/43 scale THIS YEAR!

CHILDREN Vs. COLLECTOR

While the market towards children is important and never-ending it’s also fickle. When parents feel the stretch of inflation, they reduce their home spend and toys usually take a back seat. A collector will account for inflation and make sure they adjust their budget appropriately so that they can continue to purchase what they love regularly. Another point is that collector parents will always go to the brands that they are familiar with for their kids as well. Except of course really serious collector brands, then parents wait till their kids are teenagers to get them into a guilt-free addiction.

Every industry goes through massive change and so do markets. Developing those changes takes insight and data to future-proof your brand. Sometimes I hate to say it but be like Hotwheels. They understand the community and its sustainability right down to sending people halfway across the globe to see what’s going on and defend their market share with new innovative designs and releases catered to their collector market. Don’t forget the collectors.