The booming global toy market stays largely untapped by Bangladeshi entrepreneurs, no topic its seemingly to become the second-largest foreign foreign money earner after ready-made garments (RMG), supplied there might perchance be required policy toughen from the govt..
Constant with projections by market prognosis and records company Statista, the worldwide toy market will reach roughly $150 billion by 2032, up from $102.8 billion in 2023.
On the second, China dominates the toy alternate, well-known esteem its spot within the RMG sector, retaining over 86% of the worldwide market share and exporting toys rate $88.58 billion in 2023.
In distinction, Bangladesh’s toy exports were valued at moral $77 million final fiscal yr, no topic reaching around 88 countries in latest years, per recordsdata from the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).
Equivalent to the RMG sector, toy manufacturers are required to accomplish per purchaser specs. The toy alternate is broadly labeled into four segments: metallic-essentially based fully, wooden-essentially based fully, plastic-essentially based fully, and cloth-essentially based fully products.
Constant with recordsdata from the Nationwide Board of Income (NBR), foreign companies in Bangladesh dominate toy exports, with local companies contributing handiest a minute share.
The global toy market contains a various fluctuate of products created for play, leisure, and tutorial purposes, essentially for teens but every at times for adults as properly. It covers classes equivalent to mature toys, electronic toys, action figures, puzzles, board games, tutorial kits, and more.
Foreign corporations dominate Bangladesh’s toy exports
Sonic (Bangladesh) Restricted, a subsidiary of Sonic Community, a Hong Kong-essentially based fully firm, is the largest toy exporter in Bangladesh. Its factory is found within the Uttara Export Processing Zone in Nilphamari.
Each month, Sonic produces 1 million die-cast scale units, including these of the winning vehicles from world rallies. Its predominant export locations include European countries equivalent to Spain, France, the UK, Germany, and Italy, as well to Japan in Asia.
The firm is the largest die-cast mannequin manufacturer exporting to the European market, producing units for all predominant automobile manufacturers.
Sonic Global used to be established in Hong Kong in 1988, and in 2013, it started production at its factory in Bangladesh.
In 2023, Sonic’s toy exports were valued at $43.17 million, per EPB recordsdata.
Cupcake Exports Ltd, a subsidiary of the US-essentially based fully multinational Cupcake Community, is one among the main soft toy exporters in Bangladesh.
The fabric-essentially based fully toy firm started production in 2019 with moral 65 workers and now employs over 600 other folks. The factory’s total investment used to be around $3 million.
In an interview with TBS, its Chief Govt Officer, Yasir Obaid, acknowledged, “In our first yr, exports were about $35,000, and this yr, we predict our export assign to reach $2.5 million.”
“On the day we started production, the govt. announced a national lockdown attributable to COVID-19, which delayed our progress. Operations resumed in September 2021 with an preliminary purchaser from Ukraine, though this endeavor used to be later impacted by the Russia-Ukraine battle,” he acknowledged.
In the origin, the firm centered medium-sized stores in Europe and the US but has since shifted its focal level to dapper retail outlets with toy traces, he defined.
Alternatively, he famed that exporting from Bangladesh stays a field attributable to the shortcoming of dedicated toy purchaser areas of work within the nation.
On the second, Cupcake Exports Ltd works with six traders, with more within the pipeline. Alternatively, a important barrier is the absence of purchaser areas of work in Bangladesh, which forces exporters to tear in one other nation for alternate dealings, Yasir defined.
Mountainous retail outlets equivalent to Walmart, Inditex, and H&M indulge in toy segments, but they are essentially centered on licensed products. Bangladesh has restricted involvement on this space, because it requires explicit certifications, he added.
He extra defined that Disney, a key player in toy licensing, has certification by the Better Work programme to export licensed products. If Bangladesh’s toy alternate were included on this programme, it might perchance perchance probably well attract each foreign and native investment.
Bangladesh is already taking part within the Better Work initiative for its garment and shoes sectors, which can advantage as a foundation for constructing the toy alternate. Enticing Disney and an identical entities in production within Bangladesh might perchance perchance unlock tall alternatives for the sphere, the Cupcake CEO added.
Native corporations can grow with govt policy toughen
Native exporters imagine that whereas China at existing dominates the worldwide toy market, Bangladesh has the aptitude to become the second-largest toy exporter interior the subsequent decade, given the moral govt policy toughen.
Kamruzzaman Kamal, director of Advertising and marketing at PRAN-RFL Community, a key exporter of plastic-made toys, suggested TBS that Bangladesh’s entry into the worldwide toy market requires supportive govt policies to foster inform on this sector.
The firm within the origin produced plastic toys for the local market, but in latest years, it has expanded its exports to several countries.
Constant with NBR recordsdata, the firm exported about $1 million rate of plastic toys and tricycles within the final fiscal yr.
Kamal acknowledged that the local toy market, once fully dependent on imports, has now become an export-pushed alternate, assembly about 80% of home query.
The firm is peaceable within the early levels of exporting low-assign products but sees alternatives to diversify its export portfolio by introducing bigger-hand over toys. To provide bigger its export footprint, Kamal acknowledged the firm is step by step increasing its production capacity for the export market.
He hoped that global economies would fetch better as geopolitical tensions ease, as steadiness is required for boosting exports.
Exporters acknowledged the expertise gained by the RMG sector in facing world traders and managing provide chains might perchance perchance offer a important profit in tapping into the toy market, especially since pretty a range of their established manufacturers already characteristic toy traces.
Packaging stays a key field, as exporters must import packaging materials to meet purchaser specs. Additionally, product sorting out is required, with exporters at existing required to ship samples in one other nation for overview.
Bangladesh can capitalise on China’s decline
“In 2016-17, China managed about 98% of the worldwide toy market, but now they are step by step exiting this alternate,” acknowledged Dr Mashrur Reaz, founder and chairman of Protection Alternate of Bangladesh, a personal mediate tank centered on applied public policy and market solutions for economic inform.
Plastic toys are moreover a low-assign alternate, and attributable to rising wages in China, the nation will no longer be competitive on this sector, he acknowledged, adding that this creates one more for Bangladesh to grab a important share of the market, because it’s moreover a labour-intensive alternate.
“If we adopt the moral policies, Bangladesh might perchance perchance potentially export $10 billion from this sector,” he acknowledged.
Mashrur extra acknowledged that after the RMG sector, Bangladesh has no varied dapper-scale export earner, with sectors esteem leather-essentially based fully, dwelling textiles, and frozen foods hovering between $1 billion and $2 billion in exports.
