Report: Amazon.com Toy Sales Jump 30% in Third Quarter – and the deals aren’t over yet

A report out Monday finds that the Toys product group on Amazon.com sold an estimated $510M for Q3 2018, up 30% from last year. Amazon.co.uk Toy sales also witnessed a significant year-over-year growth of 15% with total estimated sales reaching £60M.

Edge’s Market Share research reveals that Outdoor Play, Toys for Adults and Automotive toy trends will carry Amazon into the new year as one of the biggest toy sellers in America. Additionally, Edge predicts that 2019 will be the year Amazon expands its private brand strategy to include the toys category. To get the latest Q4 update on Amazon’s private and exclusive brands sales and strategy, read Edge by Ascential’s report here: Amazon.com Private Labels & Exclusive Brands Q4 Update. (RELATED: Check Out Amazon’s Amazing Toys and Games Page)

“In our previous Toys report, we predicted that the Amazon.com 2018 holiday season would be all about Games, and that prediction has been supported by the very strong growth experienced in Q3 2018,” explains Chris Perry, VP at Edge by Ascential. “The Games category also represents one of the larger trends evident on Amazon.com: toys for adults. Because both adult and family-friendly board and card games are group activities, their popularity soars when family and friends to get together and celebrate the holidays, so we expect this category to continue this strong growth through Q4.”

In the quarter leading up to the crucial holiday period, Edge found that Games grew by 65% to reach an estimated $100 million in sales, made up of mostly ‘analog’ games such as board and card games, puzzles, and other group games like Jenga. Toys and games marketed to adults made up 8 of the top 50 toys during Q3 2018 and most of those products were board or card games.

On Amazon.co.uk, LEGO, the classic construction blocks brand, was the number one Toy trend and produced 14 of the 50 bestselling toys on Amazon.co.uk during Q3. Edge’s Market Share data found that the fastest-growing toy category on Amazon.co.uk was Outdoor & Sports Toys, which grew by over 40% YoY during Q3 2018 to surpass Games & Puzzles and Infant & Preschool in total sales.

“Most toymakers make over a third of their annual sales during the holiday season and as the first year with Toys R Us, more of those sales are going to go online,” continues Perry. “Although the UK toy market is in decline, Amazon is still growing strong and increasing its market share while also enjoying the most loyalty from its customers. In the coming years, Amazon.co.uk will be at the heart of growth in toy retail. And considering how closely Amazon’s first foray into toys follows the closure of Toys R Us and the release of the retailer’s “A Holiday of Play” print catalog, it’s not much of a stretch to expect this to be just the beginning, in both regions.”

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