Sales of games and puzzles were up dramatically in the first half of 2021, both against the same period in 2020 and against the pre-pandemic year of 2019, NPD reported based on its tracking of sales in chains and online. Games and puzzle sales were up 17% vs. sales in the first half of 2020, and up 31% vs. 2019, according to the report.
Collectibles were driving the increases: Trading Card Games was the top dollar growth class out of all 96 classes in NPD’s toy industry data, and Pokemon was the top property for the entire toy category. The full top ten property list for the entire toy category is:
- Pokemon
- Barbie
- Star Wars
- L.O.L. Surprise
- Fisher-Price
- Marvel Universe
- Hot SWheels
- Little Tikes
- Nerf
- LEGO Star Wars
NPD noted that the Q1 stimulus checks had a big impact on sales, and that the child tax credit was likely to have an effect in the second half of the year.