Blind box craze unwraps surprise revenue streams for non-toy retailers

Fashion and beauty products can also benefit from the 'mystery.'

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More retailers outside the toy business should adopt blind boxes to boost sales, as mystery collectables continue to capture the imagination of both serious and casual buyers worldwide.

Whilst blind boxes — product packaging with a random item from a series, where the buyer doesn't know what's inside until they open it — are popular for entertainment products, even industries like food and beverage (F&B) and fashion could use them as a sales strategy, Jason Tjiptadi, a consultant at Euromonitor International, told Retail Asia in an exclusive interview.

"Industries such as fashion or skin care can also adopt 'mystery products,' where consumers do not know which design or variant they will be getting," he said. A T-shirt or perfume blind box can always gain traction with social media hype, the consultant added.

Rich toy culture

The global blind box toy market was valued at $14.3b in 2024 and is expected to grow 6% annually to $21.4b through 2031, according to Cognitive Market Research. Whilst North America dominates the blind box toy business, the Asia-Pacific region is expected to post the biggest growth due to growing interest in collector toys amongst children and adults.

"The region's rich toy culture, driven by both local trends and global franchises, drives up demand for one-of-a-kind and limited-edition releases," it said in a 2024 report.