Thursday, January 15, 2026
In 2025, the toy industry recorded its best year in… 25 years!
“We suspected it, and now it’s confirmed! According to Circana, sales of games and toys in France grew by 7.1% in value—and the same in volume—in 2025. A record level, accompanied by plenty of good news for the sector. Let’s take a closer look so we can fully enjoy the highlights…
A great way to start the year! Circana, the French Federation of Toy and Childcare Industries (FFJP), and the Federation of Specialist Toy and Children’s Product Retailers (FCJPE) have released the sales report for the games and toy sector in France for 2025. As expected, last year saw a flood of record-breaking achievements in this market.”
“Incredible” figures
‘These figures are incredible. We are experiencing a historic moment because, since 2000, sales of games and toys in France have never seen such a level of growth,’ says Frédérique Tutt, expert in the global toy industry at Circana. And for good reason: estimated at €4.7 billion in revenue last year, the market grew by +7.1% in value and +7% in volume. ‘Prices remained stable, averaging €18 over the entire year and €21 during the Christmas season,’ the expert adds.
Compared to its European neighbors, France recorded the highest growth, ahead of the United Kingdom, which finished the year up +6.1%, and Germany at +3.2%.
In 2025, 37 product segments out of a total of 103 experienced growth. The categories that generated the most revenue gains were standard construction games (excluding early-age products) at +35%, strategy card games (including Pokémon cards) at +78%, storytelling toys at +63%, card games at +16%, and traditional plush toys at +11%.
Specialists outperform
While physical stores, which account for two-thirds of games and toy purchases in France, benefited more from the growth than e-commerce, the best-performing channel was the specialist and multi-specialist retailers, up +11%. ‘This channel now represents 42% of sales. Toy retailers have also resumed expanding their network, with around fifty new stores opened last year,’ comments Philippe Gueydon, co-president of the FCJPE and CEO of King Jouet.
In contrast, hypermarkets and supermarkets continue to lose ground, ending the year 2025 down -1% in value. This underperformance raises questions in such a dynamic market…
Kidults, licenses, collections
On the manufacturers’ side, while Lego and Asmodee, which distributes the famous Pokémon cards, have particularly boosted the market, Florent Leroux, president of the FFJP and CEO of Ravensburger, notes that ‘40% of the top 100 games and toy manufacturers in France saw growth last year.’ Pleased that inflation has ended in this market, he also highlights the remarkable achievement of such performance despite declining birth rates. ‘This growth demonstrates the ability of manufacturers and the industry to adapt to new market trends.’
Among these new trends, four phenomena explain the strong performance of the games and toy market. First, licenses have reached a record level in France, now accounting for 30% of annual games and toy revenue, up +19% year-on-year. Second, collections (cards, figurines, etc.), which grew by 45% last year, now represent 13% of the sector’s revenue.
New releases have also strongly driven the market, accounting for 29% of sales in value last year, up 23%. Finally, the famous ‘kidult’ phenomenon—those aged 12 and up returning to the games and toy market—continued to grow, reaching 33% of sector sales over the year as of last September, up 16%.
All indicators are green for 2026. In addition to major cinema and licensing news (such as
Pokémon’s 30th anniversary), the market will benefit from Lego’s momentum, continuing to launch new products such as its interactive Smart Play system, as well as its first Lego Pokémon sets, with FIFA-licensed games expected for the next Football World Cup. While the kidult trend is expected to continue, children are also coming back into play. ‘Last year, spending per child increased by 2%,’ notes Frédérique Tutt.
The security challenge
The industry continues to mobilize around product safety and the regulation of non-European marketplaces. After asking specialist stores to write to their local elected officials, ‘around 80 deputies, senators, and European representatives were met locally by our members to raise awareness on these issues,’ explains Philippe Gueydon.
Florent Leroux adds: ‘Some proposals and measures are making progress, such as the small parcel tax. But for now, these remain symbolic measures in the face of the safety challenge, as 86% of toys on these marketplaces are dangerous. Ideally, these products should be blocked before arriving in Europe.’ Clearly easier said than done…