By Paul Allen in strategic leverage — 12 Nov 2025

UK Toy Sales Surge 6% Driven by Adult Fans Rekindling Lego and Pokémon Demand

UK toy sales have risen by 6% so far in 2025, reversing a series of declines following the pandemic, analysts report. This rebound is largely fueled by a surge in spending from 'kidults'—adult consumers—who are gravitating towards nostalgia-driven brands like Lego and Pokémon. This demographic shift is reshaping the toy market by leveraging the emotional and cultural cachet of iconic franchises to bypass traditional constraints in toy demand.

Adult Nostalgia Shifts Demand Constraint from Children’s Latent Interest to Autonomous Adult Consumption

Historically, toy sales growth hinged on capturing new child customers, with demand closely tied to birth rates and current child population size. This created a constraint: the market size cap of children under a certain age. The recent UK sales reversal reveals a fundamental shift in that constraint. Instead of relying on children’s direct interest, brands like Lego and Pokémon now exploit the adult 'kidult' segment, which operates under very different consumption dynamics.

Adults purchasing for themselves have higher discretionary spending power, fewer budget restrictions, and seek more complex, collector-oriented products. For example, Lego's Adult Fans of Lego (AFOL) sets—which can cost $50–$500+ per set—target hobbyists willing to pay premium prices for intricate builds. Pokémon continues to monetize nostalgia through trading card games and merchandise, which also appeals to an older demographic beyond children.

This repositioning has changed the system’s economic lever: spending shifts from lower-margin, entry-level child toys to higher-margin, adult collector items. The 6% increase in UK toy sales is not just volume growth but value expansion, as adult consumers are less price-sensitive and more engaged with premium product lines, increasing revenue disproportionately to unit volume. This contrasts with prior phases when the constraint capped sales growth at the slower pace dictated by child demographics.

Brands Leverage Multipurpose IP That Works Across Generations Without Constant Reinvention

The resurgence notably centers on enduring intellectual properties like Lego and Pokémon rather than new, untested brands. These franchises succeed because their systems span generations, enabling repeated engagement over decades without the continuous, expensive marketing refreshes new brands require. Lego leverages its modular system of bricks that are compatible across sets from decades past, while Pokémon’s card game leverages an extensible rule set and collectibles ecosystem to sustain player engagement.

This multi-generational system design acts as a compounding advantage. Adults who grew up with Pokémon can seamlessly re-enter the market, buying booster packs or collectibles that have evolved but remain backward compatible. Lego's build complexity gradations ensure that as users age or increase skills, new product lines can meet their desires without discarding earlier investments. This design reduces customer churn and acquisition costs compared to brands that target only a narrow age band.

In contrast, brands without such layered IP face higher marketing and product development costs to attempt similar adult engagement. This makes Lego and Pokémon uniquely positioned to convert dormant nostalgia into active spending efficiently.

Retail and Distribution Systems Adjust to Enable Adult Consumer Convenience and Engagement

Another mechanism in play: the distribution and retail system has adapted to facilitate adult purchases. Leading toy retailers now carve out dedicated premium or hobbyist sections for Lego and Pokémon products, both in brick-and-mortar and online platforms. These sections provide detailed product information, collector guides, and community event tie-ins, reducing friction for adult buyers who demand more contextual data before purchase.

Online platforms like Lego’s official website feature adult-targeted shopping experiences with curated sets and build inspiration galleries, speeding the buying decision and increasing average order values. Pokémon also leverages e-commerce and third-party marketplaces to tap collectors worldwide, providing availability of hard-to-find items and secondary market engagement tools.

This repositioning of retail infrastructure lowers the purchase friction constraint for adults, who might otherwise require specialist knowledge or be deterred by child-focused marketing channels. It also shifts inventory management dynamics: retailers prioritize stable adult-fan product lines, reducing risk versus fast-fashion toy lines reliant on viral children’s trends.

Why This Demand Shift Matters for Toy Manufacturers and Investors

Manufacturers leveraging adult nostalgia sidestep the long-term demographic headwinds facing the traditional toy market by unlocking a spending base with greater capacity and willingness to invest in premium experiences. This changes the fundamental constraint from a limited child population to an expandable adult collector audience, enabled through layered product complexity, enduring IP, and adapted retail channels.

Investors should note that brands with the systems and IP architecture to span consumer lifetimes create compounding revenue streams not available to niche or child-focused brands. This dynamic is reminiscent of how tech companies leverage network effects and backward compatibility to entrench user bases over time.

This adult-driven model also introduces higher profit margin product lines with longer sales cycles, reducing pressure to constantly innovate or chase viral trends and enhancing operational predictability.

Comparing Alternative Approaches: Why Other Toy Companies Lag

Many toy brands still chase volume through rapidly changing children’s trends, relying on large marketing budgets to sustain demand. These models suffer from lumpy sales cycles, high churn, and pressure to launch new hits annually. Without legacy IP or adult engagement mechanisms, they remain tethered to demographic constraints and lower-margin products.

Unlike Lego and Pokémon, who monetize their business model through premium set sales and collectibles, these brands compete heavily on discounts and promotional pricing, compressing margins. They also struggle to build multi-decade customer relationships, increasing customer acquisition costs.

Brands attempting to pivot into adult collectors without existing IP face an expensive uphill battle to build trust and relevancy. For example, attempts to launch adult-oriented toy lines around ephemeral pop culture phenomena often fail to capture sustainable leverage, unlike the enduring Lego system or Pokémon ecosystem.

For a deeper understanding of how companies reset constraints to unlock new growth, see how consumer spending constraints shifted recently and why Beyond Meat struggled without durable positioning.

As toy brands like Lego and Pokémon capitalize on adult nostalgia to drive premium sales, marketing automation tools like Brevo become vital in reaching and engaging these discerning consumer segments. Brevo’s all-in-one platform helps marketers craft personalized email and SMS campaigns that nurture lifelong brand connections and boost customer lifetime value. Learn more about Brevo →

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Frequently Asked Questions

What caused the 6% surge in UK toy sales in 2025?

The 6% increase in UK toy sales in 2025 was driven mainly by adult consumers known as 'kidults' who are purchasing nostalgia-driven brands like Lego and Pokémon, shifting demand from children to adults with higher discretionary spending power.

How do adult consumers influence toy market dynamics?

Adults buying toys for themselves tend to spend more on premium, collector-oriented products with prices ranging from $50 to over $500, as seen in Lego's AFOL sets, increasing market value beyond traditional child-focused volume growth.

Why are brands like Lego and Pokémon successful across generations?

Lego and Pokémon succeed by leveraging multi-generational intellectual properties that allow backward compatibility and sustained engagement without needing constant brand reinvention, reducing marketing costs and increasing customer loyalty.

How has retail adapted to cater to adult toy consumers?

Retailers have created premium and hobbyist sections dedicated to brands like Lego and Pokémon and enhanced online platforms with curated shopping experiences, collector guides, and community events to reduce purchase friction for adult buyers.

What are the economic benefits for manufacturers focusing on adult nostalgia?

Manufacturers targeting adult nostalgia unlock a higher margin market with longer sales cycles, benefiting from an expandable adult collector base instead of being limited by child demographics, improving profitability and reducing dependence on viral trends.

Why do other toy companies struggle compared to Lego and Pokémon?

Other toy companies often rely on fast-changing children’s trends and heavy discounting, resulting in low margins, high marketing costs, and customer churn, lacking enduring IP that engages adult consumers and sustains multi-decade relationships.

What examples illustrate premium pricing for adult-focused toy products?

For example, Lego's Adult Fans of Lego (AFOL) sets can cost between $50 and $500 or more per set, targeting hobbyists who value complex builds and are willing to pay premium prices, illustrating the shift to high-value adult consumer spending.

How do Lego and Pokémon maintain customer loyalty over time?

Lego maintains backward compatibility across decades of brick sets and gradations in build complexity, while Pokémon uses an extensible trading card game system and collectibles, enabling lifelong engagement and reducing customer acquisition costs.