World toys look at China, Chinese toys look at Guangdong, Guangdong toys look at Chenghai, and Chenghai toys are looking at digitalization one after another.Chenghai District of Shantou is known as the “Toy Capital of China”, contracting 70% of the world’s toy manufacturing. In the local area, there are 43,000 toy merchants, with an annual output value of 58.79 billion yuan. Against the backdrop of a global economic downturn and shrinking external demand, the “Toy Capital” is showing its resilience by embracing digitalization. Recently, Alibaba International Station and Shantou Toy Association have joined hands to open the “Shantou Chenghai” toy channel to create a never-ending toy exhibition, and promote the transformation and upgrading of Chenghai toy industry belt through full-link digital foreign trade services. At present, the Alibaba international station platform has attracted more than 3,000 toy merchants from Chenghai, driving the total annual export volume of the local area to 18.1 billion yuan.Ali International Station: The compound annual growth rate of toy exports is 15%(Alibaba International Station and Shantou Toy Association join hands to open a toy channel to create a never-ending toy exhibition)In Shantou City’s “three new, two special and one big” new industry layout, the toy creative industry is listed as one of the two characteristic industries, and it is clear that Chenghai District will be the focus of implementing the digital transformation pilot of industrial clusters. More and more local foreign trade manufacturing companies have begun to move to cross-border e-commerce. At the just-concluded 22nd International Toys & Gifts Fair, toy companies have gradually become the mainstream with the help of the digital platform of Alibaba International Station. With the support of big data, toy merchants have also found new business opportunities in the challenge, and through the supply The timely adjustment of the chain has significantly improved product competitiveness.According to the cross-border index of Ali International Station, the overall trend of the global toy market is positive. In 2022, the sales revenue of the global toy industry will increase by 12% year-on-year, and the average sales price will increase by 8%. Wu Yun, head of Maternal and Child Toys Industry Operations at Alibaba International Station, pointed out that in the case of sluggish growth in European and American markets, toy consumption is extending to emerging markets represented by Southeast Asia, Latin America and Africa, with a large number of children and low per capita consumption. And good economic development prospects make the emerging toy market an important future growth point for the global toy industry.Ali International Station: The compound annual growth rate of toy exports is 15%The cross-border index of Ali International Station shows that in the past three years, the compound growth rate of the toy industry in Alibaba International Station has been 15%. In terms of categories, driven by the two major demands of raising babies scientifically and cross-age kidults (generally referring to the new generation of fun-loving adults aged 20 to 40), the growth of intelligent interactive toys is particularly rapid. In 2022, the intelligent toy market has reached 14.1 billion US dollars, and it is expected to increase to 16.5 billion US dollars in 2023. Among them, smart toys embedded with artificial intelligence (AI) technology that can realize custom programming are widely welcomed by users of different age groups.The market trend pointed out by big data has pointed out the direction for the merchants in the Chenghai toy industry belt. Chen Han, a “second generation” from Chenghai, has been running a toy factory since his parents’ generation. Under the traditional foreign trade model, he has low sensitivity to the market, long toy development cycles, and slow replacement. For a long time, the parent’s toy factory mainly produces remote-controlled toy cars with a unit price of less than 40 yuan. “Cross-border e-commerce has become an important choice for us. Through online real-time data trend feedback, we can understand market demand and improve products in a timely manner.” Chen Han told reporters that during the epidemic, he led his team to develop dinosaurs, octopuses, and bears. Claws and other small animal decompression toys are exported to Europe and the United States, and they are sold out within three days of going online. Within six months, the average monthly sales of such toys reached 2 million yuan. “”In terms of the types of toys, traditional plush, building blocks and outdoor toys are still the core interests of buyers, while emerging smart electronic toys and educational DIY toys are becoming more and more popular.” Wu Yun said.With the improvement of people’s awareness of raising babies scientifically, educational toys will achieve a year-on-year growth of 12.7% in 2022, and will shift from traditional educational toys to scientific and educational educational STEM toys, such as programmable robots, scientific research and excavation toys, and 3D printing assembly toys etc.In addition to intelligence, green and low-carbonization is another significant trend. Major toy brands are increasingly investing in environmentally friendly materials, committing to use 100% recycled, recyclable or bio-based materials in their products and packaging by 2030.
