The business of balancing trends and needs in SA's lucrative toy market this festive season

Have you started that search for the best toy ever for your kid that still suits your pocket ahead of the festive season?

According to global research specialist IMARC, the South African toy market size reached a staggering R8.7 billion ($511.02 million) in 2024.

While many parents and other loved ones are feeling the pinch, buying a gift for a child remains an emotional purchase that ensures a resilient market, says Catherine Jacoby from Toys R Us..

They ensure there is a range of products to suit any budget, says the company marketing head.

"We obviously do see the state of the economy, and that customers are looking for affordability and a solution that offers value but also developmental play patterns so that their kids are still engaged. Gifting is still on the radar, no matter if this year it's slightly less than the year before."

Toys R Us believes in the power of play, Jacoby says, which means awareness of parents' concern that kids could be spending too much time on screens

"There's definitely a place for this and we sell that sort of product. But there still is a demand for original and nostalgic play patterns that have got various benefits whether it be connecting with family members through a game of Uno or Monopoly, or role play with building up the shopping basket and mimicking what your parents do at the grocery store."

As much as they're seeing tech and gaming peak in the tween category, they do still see core toy categories performing well, especially for the younger ones, Jacoby says.

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When it comes to forecasting trends and products that will sell, they utilise global intelligence and also watch what is happening locally.

Here Jacoby references the pull of social platforms, which can result in a product going viral overnight.

"It's about managing that demand and not over-investing in a product that's seen a sudden peak, but also ensuring that you do have a supply in the pipeline. We've got to monitor what is happening globally and then blend it with what our local market requires - that can be affordability or it might be a local trend that we have to pick up on, where kids are wanting what their peers are wanting."

For more detail, listen to the interview audio at the top of the article