Indian toy industry grows 316 per cent in the last nine years: Ministry of Commerce and Industry
Trade, Import and Export for MSMEs: The exports from the toy industry in the last nine years have significantly increased, from $36.91 million in 2013-14 to $153.88 million in 2022-23, registering a 316 per cent growth during this time period.
Interestingly, while the exports of Indian toys have been increasing year on year and reached their peak at $177.04 million in FY2021-22, exports declined by 13 per cent to $153.88 million in the last fiscal, according to data from the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
Experts believe that the increase in exports has been driven by the structural changes introduced by the government over the years. “The government has revised the import duty to 70 per cent on toys which has given a boost to local manufacturing. The ‘Quality Control Order’ was also introduced to regulate the quality of toys in accordance with the Bureau of Indian Standards. The National Action Plan for Toys, launched in 2020, brought 15 ministries together providing momentum to the toy manufacturers,” Manu Gupta, Chairperson of the Toys Association of India told Financial Express Aspire.
Hemali Gada, the founder of the educational toys manufacturer Hungry Brain said, “Unlike before, various toy fairs and exhibitions are now held regularly, helping us explore newer markets and reach more consumers.” She added that although the BIS tests increase the cost of products, they have been a critical step for the industry as they make it mandatory for the products to undergo quality testing before being exported. Hungry Brain exports its early thinking stimulation toys for infants and life skill development programmes for toddlers to 25 countries including the US and the UK.
However, toys from China still dominate the market but Indian manufacturers have increased their production, especially in the areas of manufacturing dolls, board games, promotional toys, and activity sports guns, said Gupta.
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“Since the Indian toy industry is dominated by small players they lose out on the economies of scale, unlike China, which heavily subsidises its toy manufacturing. Perhaps, a PLI scheme for domestic toy manufacturers would provide the much-needed boost to the sector,” said Gupta.
According to the Government of India’s investment promotion platform, Invest India, the Indian toy industry is expected to grow to $3 billion by 2028, registering a compound annual growth rate of 12 per cent, between 2022 and 2028. The platform also states that there are 4,000 MSMEs involved in toy manufacturing.