Paris (AFP)
French toy professionals expect a "rebound" of sales in 2019, after a 5% decline in 2018, a year penalized by the backs of two brands and the fall in consumption before Christmas due to the movement of "yellow vests" .
"The profession hopes a rebound after a year 2018 quite complicated," said Michel Moggio, the director general of the French Federation of Toy / Childcare Industries (FJP).
After a "difficult" first quarter, "we had a great summer", the "annunciator" sign of a happy Christmas 2019, he said during a press conference: at the end of August, the dolls were 25%, 12% board games and puzzles, 9% action figures and 9% stuffed animals.
According to the NPD firm whose studies refer to, sales of toys in France have increased by 2.3% since May compared to 2018, the French market being the fifth largest in the world and the second largest in Europe. .
Last year, the market contracted by 5% to 3.4 billion euros, including a final quarter, during which traditionally more than half of annual sales of the sector, which had ended by a decline of 7%.
Moggio believes that the year should end on a positive note for the sector because of the "two big releases" at the upcoming cinema: the Snow Queen 2 and a new Star Wars.
"However, toys on license represent a quarter of the market," he said, adding that last year this category had declined.
The economic factors are pretty good, added Moggio: the distribution problems have been solved - Toys'R'Us and PicWic merged, the Grande Récré has been taken over - and the government's aid to purchasing power " will (have) consequences on consumption and, hopefully, on the purchase of toys ".
In addition, the crisis of "yellow vests" had "really affected the market," said Moggio, and "online shopping had failed to offset" the drop in attendance of physical stores.
But this year, the profession hopes to "escape" even if, according to him, distributors are "better prepared".
For him, the sector also counts on an enriched offer, many innovations, notably thanks to "the integration of technology in many toys", such as augmented reality "which adapts well to children".
© 2019 AFP