Adults behaving like children? The toy industry couldn’t be happier

The children who once begged their parents for Lego sets, Pokemon cards and video games have grown up. They have jobs, mortgages and bills to pay. But they also have credit cards, and the world’s toy manufacturers have discovered that nostalgia is considerably more profitable when the customer no longer needs pocket money. Cyprus imported $42.09 million worth of toys in 2025, almost 22 per cent more than a year earlier, as a growing appetite for childhood favourites is changing the economics of the toy industry across Europe. From Germany and France to Britain, Spain and Italy, adults are spending billions on collectable figures, trading cards, elaborate building sets and the games they remember from childhood. Some are buying for pleasure, others for nostalgia, and a few are hoping their purchases will eventually be worth more than they paid. For manufacturers, the attraction is rather simple. Children grow up, but their favourite characters rarely disappear. And when those children start earning their own money, they become customers all over again. The scale of that opportunity is striking. According to market research from Circana, consumers in Europe’s five largest toy markets spent €5.7 billion on toys for people aged 12 and over in the 12 months to September 2025, an increase of 14 per cent. That represented almost one-third of all toy sales across Germany, France, Britain, Spain and Italy. The figures include teenagers as well as adults, but they point to a significant change in an industry traditionally dependent on children. And Germany is leading the way. The country’s older-consumer toy market reached €1.79bn, accounting for 35 per cent of total toy sales, the highest proportion among the five countries. France followed with €1.51bn, while Britain recorded €1.48bn, representing 33 per cent and 31 per cent of their respective markets. Spain, however, delivered the fastest growth. Although its market was smaller, at €487m, spending on toys for older consumers increased 19 per cent over the year. Italy recorded €459m, with growth of 16 per cent. Germany’s increase stood at 15 per cent, France’s at 16 per cent and Britain’s at 7 per cent, according to the same research, which measured purchases by people aged 16 and over for recipients aged at least 12. What makes these figures particularly interesting is the challenge facing European toy manufacturers. The industry’s traditional customer base is shrinking in some markets as birth rates decline and populations grow older. Selling more toys to adults is therefore not simply a fashionable new strategy. It offers manufacturers another way to sustain sales when there are fewer children to buy for. France provides a particularly revealing example of how businesses are responding. Retail group King Jouet has gone beyond placing expensive collectables on conventional toy-shop shelves. It has created King’Dultes, a retail concept aimed specifically at teenagers, adults and collectors. Dedicated shops have opened in Paris, Marseille, Nantes and Bordeaux, selling everything from trading cards and model kits to board games, collectable figures and Lego. The Bordeaux shop opened in July 2026, while the company has also developed a dedicated online store. It is a remarkable change in the traditional toy-shop model. Rather than waiting for parents to arrive with their children, retailers are building businesses around customers who come in looking for something for themselves. And there is considerable money to be made. In Britain alone, adults spend an estimated £8.6 billion annually on nostalgic childhood favourites, according to research published on November 4 by financial services company Novuna Personal Finance. The figure is based on a survey of 2,000 adults and includes video games, toys and collectables, making it broader than the European toy-market figures. Nevertheless, it offers a fascinating glimpse into the spending habits of people who never entirely abandoned their childhood interests. More than half of British adults, 54 per cent, still buy games, toys and collectables they loved growing up, with those making such purchases spending an average of approximately £290 a year. Among adults aged 18 to 44, the proportion rises to 77 per cent, compared with just 27 per cent among those over 55. And the purchases are not necessarily cheap. Almost a quarter of 25 to 34-year-olds still buy Pokémon cards and games, spending an average of £259 over the past year. Buyers of retro gaming products in the same age group spent £297, while Lego enthusiasts aged 18 to 24 spent an average of £273. For some, however, childhood has become a distinctly expensive hobby. The largest individual purchase reported by respondents averaged £601, rising to £864 among 25 to 34-year-olds. Some reported spending as much as £5,000 in a single transaction. Lego’s Star Wars Death Star set, released in 2025 with a British price tag of £899.99, illustrates how far manufacturers have moved from the traditional pocket-money market. At that price, a toy is competing with holidays, electronics and other sizeable purchases for a share of household disposable income. However, for many buyers, the attraction is not really about owning another plastic figure or completing another model. It is about remembering a time when life seemed considerably simpler. The British research found that 24 per cent of respondents associated such purchases with happy childhood memories, while 22 per cent described them as a way to relax and escape everyday pressures. Another 18 per cent were finally buying things they had wanted as children but could not afford. Among 18 to 24-year-olds, that proportion rose to 29 per cent. Theresa Lindsay, chief marketing officer at Novuna Finance, linked the trend to the comfort people find in familiar experiences during uncertain times. “We might be older, but we haven’t lost our love for the things we grew up with,” she said. There is, however, a less sentimental side to the business. Some 15 per cent of those surveyed believed their purchases could eventually increase in value, introducing an investment element into what was once simply a pastime. Rare trading cards, discontinued Lego sets and limited-edition figures can command substantial sums on resale markets, although their value depends on scarcity, condition and changing consumer tastes. A collectable might become valuable, but it can just as easily fall out of fashion. Nostalgia, after all, does not come with a guaranteed return. For manufacturers, the more dependable business opportunity lies in something else: selling familiar products to customers who return repeatedly. The same character can generate revenue through trading cards, building sets, figures, games and new editions, appealing to children discovering it for the first time and adults who remember it from years earlier. That model is helping the wider industry enjoy an unusually strong year. Across Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain, total toy sales increased 8 per cent in value during January–August 2026, while licensed toys linked to familiar entertainment properties grew 20 per cent. Such products accounted for 35 per cent of sales, compared with 31 per cent in 2025, with Pokémon, Star Wars and other established franchises continuing to attract customers. Meanwhile, figures released on November 11 show that British toy sales increased 13 per cent to £2.64bn during the first nine months of 2026, their strongest growth in at least a decade. Consumers bought 257m toys, some 38 million more than during the corresponding period of 2025. Sales to teenagers and adults aged 12 and over rose 22 per cent during the first half of the year, although children remained the industry’s largest customers, accounting for 64 per cent of British toy sales. For Cyprus, the international figures raise an intriguing question about who is buying the toys arriving on the island. According to World Bank data, Cyprus imported $42.09m worth of products classified as toys not elsewhere specified in 2025, compared with $34.53m in 2024. Import volumes increased too, from approximately 3.25m kilograms to 3.56m kilograms. The figures cover one broad customs category, rather than every type of toy and game, and do not establish whether the products were purchased for children or adults. Nevertheless, they reveal a substantial import market, with its value rising considerably in a single year. More recent official figures show that related retail activity has continued growing during 2026. According to the statistical service (Cystat), turnover at specialised retailers of cultural and recreational goods, including toys, books, stationery and sports equipment, increased 9.3 per cent in value during January–September compared with the same period last year. Sales volumes increased 10.5 per cent, meaning more goods were sold across the category, rather than turnover rising solely because of higher prices. Neither measure identifies adult toy buyers, but Cyprus already has an established community of collectors, gamers and popular-culture enthusiasts. That was particularly evident at Cyprus Comic Con, which attracted a record 35,939 attendees to the Cyprus State Fair in Nicosia from October 2 to 4, according to its organisers. The event brought together independent artists, collectable dealers, merchandise sellers, gaming businesses and enthusiasts, demonstrating how interests once regarded as relatively niche can support a wider network of commercial activity. Not all attendees were adults, and the event encompasses considerably more than toys. Nevertheless, its growth illustrates how popular culture is creating opportunities for specialist businesses on the island. Chris Ellinas, co-founder of Cyprus Comic Con, has described the commercial activity surrounding the event as a “functioning micro-economy”, pointing to the hundreds of vendors and creatives supported by its growing audience. The latest attendance record strengthens the case that these interests are no longer confined to a small community of enthusiasts. What remains unclear is whether Cypriot adults are spending on toys and collectables at anything approaching the rates recorded in Britain, Germany or France. No comparable national survey has established the size of the island’s adult collector market, and rising toy imports alone cannot provide that answer. But the experience elsewhere in Europe gives retailers a reason to pay attention. With Christmas approaching, the industry is preparing for one of its busiest periods. In Britain, the final three months of the year typically account for 45 per cent of annual toy sales, while half of adults surveyed by Novuna who celebrate Christmas intend to buy nostalgic favourites for themselves, spending an average of £158. For toy companies, however, the real attraction of grown-up customers is that their spending need not be confined to Christmas. There is always another trading card to find, another model to build, another limited edition to collect. And that may be the industry’s most successful trick of all.