INDIAN TOY INDUSTRY 

 History 

Rattlers, pull carts, dolls, stackers, building blocks, stuffed toys, train sets and various toys are the child’s best friend during the long, hot and dreary summer break. Interestingly these products have varied range of traditional Indian toys that are slowly coming back into vogue, courtesy a makeover. Earlier there was time when a clay dancing doll from Panruti (Tamil Nadu) which were shapes of birds, animals and musicians from Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) or a leather horse from Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh) could amuse a child for hours. Today, however, the markets are brimming with a variety of factory-manufactured toys of different brands.

As time passed the Barbie doll replaced the humble clay doll, while Lego took the place of simple wooden building blocks. Like the stackers could be used to recognize similar objects, the ‘pallankuzhi’ (traditional board game played in South India) helps sharpen mental calculation abilities for children and then the abacus improves mathematics. These days different toys are recommended for different age groups. Thus children between one and five years usually amuse themselves with stackers, while pre-schoolers can take their first steps towards accounts with the help of a colorful abacus. Some Indian NGO’s have taken the lead in reviving the traditional toy-making industry by creating toys that are a take-off on the traditional ones, but with a strong emphasis on finish, design and quality. One such example is that of Maya Organic. A Bangalore-based NGO which came to the rescue of the declining resin or lac-ware industry in Chennapatna, Karnataka. For many decades in India the small town had thrived on the earnings of the making of toys. Capitalizing more on the knowledge and skill of the artisans the after studying market trends, and the NGO has developed a brand of wooden educational toys called Moogli toys.

 Brief introduction 

Indian Toy industry is large and growing which needs more organized approach to face the challenges of factor distribution & marketing. Many of these toys are usually imported through Dubai & Malaysia. The Chinese toy market is also flooding the domestic market but Indian markets still have design or modification to some games that reflect Indian taste in them which is absolutely true. Social relevance is majorly used as a factor that is being used.

Indian Toy Industry is fragmented and region based but even is largely unorganized as the market is very small compared to the population and per capita income. The Toy business is generally based on constant innovation and one need to always be abreast with the changing tastes of the customers to produce new innovative toys for survival in the market. Since the last four or five years the Indian Toy Industry has shown a healthy growth rate. The market is growing at 15% to 20% per annum, which is a sound situation and it is further is estimated to grow for least five or six years. As Indian market is highly price sensitive, the reduction in prices of the products would contribute to increase in the sales.

Across the world the toy Industry is highly fragmented. The size of the toy market can be estimated to be about Rs.4.5 billion. There is no excise imposed so the figure of production would not be available. The four large players who have global operations namely Mattel, Lego, Hasbro, and Bandai. Mattel Toys are the largest toy manufacturers in the world. Bandai of Japan even is famous. Mattel has been in India since 1985; it sells toys under the brand name of Barbie, Hot Wheels, and Star Beans, etc. The Mattel Company is a $6 Billion company out of which their market share in India is around 20%. Today India has over 800 Indian toys and games manufacturers, exporters and suppliers. Indian Toys and games can be classified as fun or educational toys. Toys and games which are available in India include soft toys, computer games, dolls, electronic games, etc.

 Market capitalization 

The Indian Toy Industry is of Rs 150-crore and is set to grow at 25 % due to rising demand from India and abroad. India is producing the incomparable quality of toys, which is unmatched elsewhere and therefore, the demand for Indian-made toys is rising by leaps and bounds.

More emphasis on quality and innovation along with Indian taste has helped both children and profit margins.

According to analysts at Maya Organic, such toys easily account for approximately Rs 200,000 to Rs 250,000 (US$1=Rs 42) of their business each month.

 Size of the industry 

Indian Toy Industry’s market size is about Rs.250 Crores where 10% constitutes of organized sectors and 90% constitutes of unorganized sector.

India has been ranked 8th and UK is ranked 1st for the Toy Industry in the world. An average Indian kid today spends Rs 250 on a toy, UK kid spends Rs 281$(14000 Rs).

Funskool has a market in India of 30%. The Toy Association of India estimates that about 90 % of the Indian toy industry belongs to the non-organised sector.

 Total contribution to the economy/ sales

Indian Toy Industry is estimated at Rs.800-Rs.1200 billion which is dominated by approximately 1250 small and very small producers scattered across the country. The producers are mostly based in the Delhi, Mumbai, Northern State of Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana, also some in the Southern State of Tamilnadu and in other clusters across India’s central states. India has 35 – 40 crores manufacturing base out of which Delhi especially Noida rules 30 crore of markets and Mumbai rules the other 10 crore market.

 Employment opportunities 

Indian Toy Industry has tremendous potential to raise its productivity, create employment and for all-round development of the economy. Today Indian entrepreneurs have great opportunities to produce toys for the children in the country as they are moulded with tradition and culture.

 Latest developments 

• A report by India’s National Productivity Council suggests and gives emphasis that the country’s toy-manufacturing industry is still in the nascent stages of development and will need more support from the government to upgrade its technologies and research and development facilities.
• In 2006 the toy retail business has risen by 150 % globally over the last one and a half decades – to USD95 billion.
• Today The Indian Toy Industry is worth around INR4,000 crore, with INR1,500 crore from the organised sector and INR2,500 crore from the traditional sector.
• Toy Association of India study shows that the share of local manufacturers in the domestic market has gone down to around 60 % from over 90 %five years ago — although the Rs 1,300 crore markets have been growing by 20% a year. This has forced several local manufacturers to stop production and import and hawk Chinese toys.
• Today India has reached a level of Rs.1000 crore Toy Industry with many host of products like fun games, electronic toys, stuffed toys, educational games, toy cars, etc.
• Today India faces big challenges majorly from unorganized sector which contributes over about 70% of the total toy demand out of which stuffed toys account for 15%.
• Indian Toy Industry is heralding the inclusion of a new label. My Baby Excels, which began its operations recently is the sister concern of Excel Home Videos and Excel Interactive. Excel Home Videos are the largest home entertainment company in the English movie category.
• The Indian Home Entertainment has the licensee for Walt Disney Studios, Twentieth Century Fox, MGM, HIT Entertainment, Shringar and Merchant Ivory Productions among others while Excel Interactive is a leading gaming company which markets and distributes games from world leaders like Electronic Arts (EA) and Disney Interactive Studios.