Feature: Tariff hikes continue to bite into U.S. toy industry, consumers
A soccer figure initially priced at 29.99 U.S. dollars is sold at 39.99 dollars as tariffs have significantly impacted the business, said Justin King, senior vice president of sales with Five K Ltd., a family-owned U.S. toy company that distributes action figures, dolls, crafts, and other European toy brands.
by Xinhua writer Liu Yanan
NEW YORK, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) -- Despite a return to growth in U.S. toy sales in 2025, tariffs remain a drag on industry profit margins and a headache for price-sensitive consumers, industry insiders said at the just-concluded Toy Fair 2026.
"We have very aggressive pricing, so we can keep our retails (price) down for our customers," said Suzy Brown, a representative with MasterPieces Inc., a U.S. jigsaw puzzle company and game store.
MasterPieces didn't take advantage of the tariffs to raise prices and absorbed some of the hidden costs, Brown added.
"Obviously, as prices go up with tariffs and suppliers, our prices are gonna have to go up too. We can't absorb it all," Brown told Xinhua.
Tariffs added pressure on profit margin, and the existing tariff rate on imported toys, averaging about 20 percent, represents a big increase, according to Brown.
YuMe Toys, a brand of fan-driven collectibles, coped with tariffs mostly by raising prices, as suppliers don't have much profit margin, said Ben Ibarra, sales director of YuMe Toys's U.S. operations.
"We tried to get through it as smoothly as possible, but that was tough," Ibarra said.
Ibarra added that the company's imports are still subject to tariffs of around 25 percent.
Fiona Fu, a merchandiser with Guanyi Toys, a China-based supplier of wooden toys, crafts and kids' furniture, said U.S. customers have largely absorbed additional costs due to the tariff hikes.
Retail prices of Guanyi Toys' products were raised in big box stores, according to Fu.
For example, a soccer figure initially priced at 29.99 U.S. dollars is sold at 39.99 dollars as tariffs have significantly impacted the business, said Justin King, senior vice president of sales with Five K Ltd., a family-owned U.S. toy company that distributes action figures, dolls, crafts, and other European toy brands.
As suppliers didn't lower prices, "we just added the tariff to the products' price," said King.
Five K Ltd. entered into a distribution agreement with Spain-based Banbo Toys in 2024 to bring collectible soccer player figures to the North American market, while the soccer figure products are manufactured in China.
Although U.S. toy industry sales reached 30.3 billion dollars in 2025, up 6 percent year on year, a recent report by Circana, LLC, stressed a growing polarization between value-focused purchases and premium offerings. Sales of entry-level and mid-priced toys have softened, while higher price tiers accelerated, echoing the bifurcation in U.S. consumption.
"With more than 85 percent of toys sold in the United States imported from overseas, international trade is essential to our industry's supply chain, innovation, and ability to bring affordable products to American families," said the Toy Association.
The erraticness of trade policy creates challenges and uncertainties, making it difficult for retailers to plan and program effectively, said Colin Jesmer, key account specialist with New York-based baby and children's furniture and toy brand Delta Children.
"It's a little bit of giving on our side and a little bit of taking on our side," said Jesmer, describing how the company handles additional costs from tariffs.
Current tariffs on imported products are manageable, but any tariff above 25 percent prompts consideration of shifting operations to mitigate their impacts, Jesmer noted.
The Toy Association continues to advocate for the exclusion of toys from all tariffs.
Nearly 90 percent of the economic burden of U.S. tariffs falls on U.S. firms and consumers, said a recent study by the New York Fed. ■