Sale of Toys Exceeds Amount of USD 100 Billion – Toy Libraries Opening Worldwide, Where Is Serbia?

Last year, the sale of toys worldwide exceeded the amount of USD 100 billion, and in the USA and China, 50% of the total sales were realized, as shown by the data of NPD Group. Most toys are made from plastic, which is a great problem for the environment, because, as estimated, as much as 80% ends up at landfills.

It is no wonder that toy libraries, which extend the life cycle of toys, are opening all over the world. At the same time, parents can rent toys with which the child will really play, because, as shown by research, 35% of the toys are forgotten by the child in a month and it doesn’t even play with 60% of them. The first library of this type opened a long time ago, in 1935, in Los Angeles, whereas the idea of renting, instead of buying, toys spread throughout Europe in the 1960s.

In the past years, startups have been entering this field, connecting traditional libraries with digitization. In an attempt to make the process easier for parents, they offer them the possibility of doing everything online. Also, some libraries are based on a subscription model and pre-selected packages adapted to the child’s age, whereas others offer the possibility of renting individual products.

The pandemic has accelerated the founding of toy libraries worldwide, because it has led to major changes in people’s lives. As the owners of the toy library Happy Baton in Hong Kong, Natalie Chow and Jade Poon, note, parents now want to spend quality time with children, and flexible working hours enable them to do so.

They explain the success of these libraries with the fact that everybody profits – the children, the parents and the environment. There’s no mess at home, and the child keeps getting new toys. A standard renting period is four weeks, but it can be extended by however much is necessary.

– Our homes were full of toys that our children used to like, but which only gathered dust afterwards. Then again, as the child grows, we keep buying new ones, and the mess just increases. So we came to the idea of making an online library of toys, which parents welcomed. This way, toys are recycled, and space is saved at home – Chow and Poon explain.

In Serbia, this idea has not yet taken root. Libraries have opened at some kindergartens, whereas humanitarian organizations and foundations have also offered this option, especially when it comes to toys for children with special needs.

M. D.

NPD Group

Happy Baton

Natalie Chow

Jade Poon

toys

toy library

toy recycling

sale of toys

toys for children with special needs