Toymakers, artists target 'kidult' market

Under threat from the global trade war, toymakers are looking for a tariff-proof consumer.

- GREGORY SCHMIDT

Adult collectors with deep pockets may be the answer.

To attract them, companies are teaming up with artists to create exclusive, expensive toys like $350 Barbie dolls and $8,000 Lego sets. These are generally pitched as works of art intended for display rather than mass-produced products designed for children’s play. Hasbro, Lego, Mattel and others have created dedicated sites to sell these higher-end toys to collectors.

Tariffs loom over the toy industry. Nearly 80% of toys sold in the United States are made in China, which faces the steepest potential tariffs threatened by President Donald Trump. The president has played down the potential effect of tariffs, saying that children “will have two dolls instead of 30,” adding that those two dolls would “cost a couple of bucks more than they would normally.”

Global toy sales fell 0.6% last year, a second consecutive annual decline, according to the market research firm Circana. And that was before Trump's tariffs, which industry sources predict may lead to product shortages and higher prices during the crucial holiday season.

But toys that appeal to adult buyers — or “kidults,” as Circana describes some of them — have been a bright spot: Sales of franchises like Barbie and Lego and collectibles like trading cards are growing much faster than the market overall.