India’s indigenous toy industry to grow to $2-3 bn by 2024

The game is for India's toy industry and the government is appealing to toy manufacturers to build toys which emphasises upon ecology and psychology. It is true that our toys reflect reuse and recycling that has been a part of the Indian lifestyle. Most Indian toys are built out of natural and eco-friendly materials. The colours used in them are natural and safe, as per a report.

There is an opportunity for the toy manufacturers of the country to build such toys that are better both for ecology and psychology by embracing under the spirit of ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ in the toy manufacturing sector like, how Indian pharma industry now recognised as the India is the pharmacy of the world and supplies medicines all over the world.

At the start of the pandemic, there was a huge demand for medicines like hydroxy-chloroquine, which ensured that production was increased and sent out to at least 150 countries, at least half at cost or on gratis basis. Indeed, with a prime focus on the reuse-and-recycle culture that has been a part of the Indian lifestyle, toy manufacturers in the country have traditionally used less plastic and more recyclable material in their indigenous products. A report says, India has been importing toys of an average value of $285 million for the last 3 years and the Toys exports from India amounted to $130 million during 2019-2020 with USA and UK being the lead export destinations.

India’s share in the $100-billion global toy market is at an abysmally low 0.5%, and about 85% of the toys sold in the country are imported. The India Toy Fair 2021 – the first-ever digitally accessible exhibition was organized to provide a much-needed boost to the $1.5 billion industry. It showcased toys from Ladakh to Ernakulum, the exhibition also showcased the booming gaming industry – with the government launching “Toycathon”, an online toy hackathon for innovative toy/game concepts.

With low per capita spend on toys, the government intends to provide a much-needed boost to the sector by creating sustainable market linkages for traditional toymakers and creating a vibrant vendor ecosystem. The India Toy Fair 2021 witnessed by bringing together investors, businesses, MSMEs and artisans on a common platform to revitalise the industry and boost competitiveness in the sector – with more than 800 exhibitors registering for the event.

In a recent development, Swedish furniture giant IKEA announced that it was looking to scale up sourcing of toys from India for its operations in New Delhi. The company, which currently sources only cotton-based soft toys from India, is also exploring to expand in some other categories such as wooden toys and is exploring opportunities to partner with several players in the segment.