Who here hasn’t heard or read the wordings “Made in China” labelled onto the products that we use in our day to day lives? Toys are no different! It seems as if “Made in China” label has become so common that it has reached a point where China can easily be referred to as the “North Pole” for toy manufacturing. Let us now ponder over the fact that exactly how many toys are made in China each year?
China is the world’s largest toy manufacturer and kids’ products exporter, accounting to almost 70 per cent of the world’s toy supply. The total export value of the toys reached $25.733 billion in 2018 and is growing at an average of 4.5% year-on-year. In 2018 alone, China exported $7.244 billion worth of toys to the United States. Based on these statistics, it wouldn’t be wrong to consider, that out of every 100 toys you find in the world, 50 are manufactured in China.
According to an official report by the CTPJA, the Chinese General Administration of Customs, provide the data that allows us to have a better understanding on how China plays a significant role in the production of toys and other kids related stuff. Let us first understand why exactly China is a self-affluent in producing so many toys that cater to the world’s 50% export.
Why Are Toys Made in China?
There are not one but many reasons as to why OEM toy manufacturers prefer Chinese manufactures to pump out their toy manufacturing. And let me be honest here, this rule is not entirely reliant on the production of toys, in fact almost all the consumer goods, electronics, cutlery and much more are now being manufactured in China.
Below are the reasons why US manufacturers prefer China for their Toys production.
Very Low Wage Rates
The first and foremost reason why the brands prefer China for the manufacturing of their toys is purely due to the inexpensive labour pool that is present in the region. China is home to approximately 1.43 billion people. Which reciprocally means due to a large number of labourers present, the factories present in the country can pump out bulk products, meet the client’s seasonal requirements and are also able to successfully supply merchandise on a bespoke basis. This factor alone has remained one of the significant reasons why US companies prefer China for their toy production.
Strict Quality Assurance
Given the number of exports that China does on year to year basis, all the toys that are being manufactured in China must follow a standard and best practices while making. Overall, there are almost 10,000 toy manufacturers in China, and their workforce is somewhere closer to six million. Any Chinese toy exporter must abide by the strict quality assurance standards before they are eligible to export any goods to the Western countries. Regular quality audits, paint screening and testing are conducted along with the ethical manufacturing standards.
Where Are Toys Manufactured in China?
China is leading its way in the Toy manufacturing industry. Benchmarking their standards to comply with the international regulations and ensuring that each unit they produce is of top quality and is acceptable to the Western consumer-base, there are almost 10,000 manufacturers in China. The list of the most popular cities where the manufacturers have based their Toy production plants are:
- Guangdong
- Dongguan
- Foshan
- Shantou
- Shenzhen
- Yiwu
- Yunhe
- Zhejiang Province
- Yangzhou
- Linyi
- Qingdao
- Jiaxing
Out of this list, Guangdong province alone producers over half of the total export of toys that China does on a yearly basis.
LEGO, which is a very famous brand of toys in both toddlers and kids has opened up their manufacturing plant in Zhejiang province. LEGO by far is the latest toy manufacturer in China and its numbers are continuously growing year after year. This further proves that China is investing heavily in automation, research and development to produce the best quality toys in the market and they want to ensure that they keep on leading the way.
Which Countries Import Toys Made in China?
Based on the data available with the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China’s website, the Top 10 export destinations for China’s traditional toys are:
- United States
- United Kingdom
- Hong Kong
- Japan
- Germany
- Netherlands
- India
- Russia
- Mexico
- Kazakhstan
If you are interested in numbers, then you would be shocked to know that both India and Kazakhstan have recently increased the volumes of importing toys from China.
China Toy Export Statistics
Toys in the Chinese market can be classified broadly into:
- Electronic
- Mechanical
- Plastic
- Wooden toys
Chinese toy manufacturers set up exhibitions to display their latest products and showcase their autonomy over this industry in a variety of fares throughout the world. Down in the list below, I have listed the Toy exhibitions that are going to take place in the year 2020, in China only:
| Date | Exhibition | Venue |
| 6 – 8 March 2020 | Shenzhen International Toy & Education Fair | Shenzhen World Exhibition and Convention Center |
| 11 – 13 May 2020 | Beijing International Kindergarten Supplies Exhibition | China International Exhibition Center |
| 21 – 23 October 2020 | China Toy Expo for Toys, Hobby and Baby Articles | Shanghai New International Expo Center |
In the chart below you can clearly see the Chinese toy export market is growing in numbers year-by-year. This indicates that China is doing an excellent job when it comes down to meeting international standards and is widely being praised for it as well, so the figure speaks.
What Are the Most Popular Toys in China?
As per my research, the most trending and popular toy category in China is a PLUSH toy. This is based on the market summary report extracted from prnewswire.com. Other than the Plush toys, there are a plethora of other categories in toys that are widely gaining popularity. Those are but not limited to:
- Infant and Pre-schoolers toys
- Activity toys
- Dolls
- Games and Puzzles
- Construction and building toys
- Electronic and remote-control toys
- Sports and outdoor play toys
- Ride-on
And many more!
Are Toys Made in China Safe?
Safety is the first and the foremost concern for any parent when they are buying a toy for their loved ones. So is the case with me. Whenever I hop onto my recliner and get hold of my iPad to browse through a list of toys that I am planning to buy for my kid, safety is the least of the concerns. Now you may ask why?
All of the Chinese manufactured toys that are available online or in your favourite toy shops are imported into the country. And for China to export these toys, their manufacturers need to follow strict international guidelines that are in place to ensure that the toys are not manufactured using materials that are harmful to a human being. Rigorous quality assurance tests are conducted before these products are released and rest assured, you can buy them as you would buy any toy manufactured in the USA, UK or perhaps any other country.
A word of caution here, though. All those toys that have small parts pose a choking hazard. Chinese manufacturers are not at fault here if you end up buying a toy with tiny bits that are detachable and somehow end up in your child’s ears. God, I wish that never happens!
Secondly, a toy with lead or caustic materials is also not considered safe. If any of the toys that you plan on buying have got either of these two substances present, then realistically these toys are not meant for your kids and for some other industrial use or purposes.
Conclusion
The one and the only significant reason why the manufacturers resort to China for their toy production is due to the lower manufacturing costs, which in return results in decent profits. But there is a growing concern to this now since with the inception of Artificial intelligence and latest researches being done to automate the production of these toys, there is an obvious impact on the cost of manufacturing being done in China as well.
Due to this very reason, at the turn of this millennium, factories had no option other than start moving their production units to lower-cost places in China or to automate their manufacturing. They surprisingly choose Automating along with deploying their manufacturing hubs in locations where the cost of land and operations is less as compared to the busy areas of China.
Finally, let us not underestimate China’s domestic buying power as well. When we say that China is the only country that exports the most significant number of toys in the world, then you would be surprised to know that a fraction of China’s middle-class can quickly gobble up this same number of toys exported to other countries. Quite shocking, isn’t it?
Written & Authored By:
Zohaib S.