It might be a challenging year for the toy trade, but Harrods’ Toy Kingdom is confident it is about to have one of its strongest 12 months yet.
Sales have risen since the London store’s toy area underwent a multi-million pound refit last summer, helping the Toy Kingdom to deliver double-digit growth in Q1 year-on-year.
Harrod’s outgoing director of home and ToyNews Retail Advisory Board member David Miller said: “Toy Kingdom had a very positive start to the year. Despite the bad weather we have continued to see strong sales throughout Q1. The luxury market within toys is certainly an area of growth for Harrods.
“Although 2013 will be a challenging year, I believe it is going to be a very strong one for Toy Kingdom. Intrinsic to this will be the new ranges coming in-store over the second half of the year.
“Within these ranges we have a number of stand-out products incorporating the latest in cutting-edge technology and design, for all genders and ages, which we hope can play a pivotal role in driving the overall success of the department.”
Construction, doll and role-play toys have all performed well for Harrods, as have higher-end products in particular, Miller continued.
The retailer also reported impressive sales of collector dolls and Hasbro’s Furby product.
Harrods is confident its solid performance will continue in the months ahead, too.
“[Our hopes for Q2] are very positive. There are major film releases including The Lone Ranger and Iron Man 3, which are supported by some strong product from leading brands such as LEGO and Hasbro.
“There are also new releases of updated characters as well as new series appearing on TV, so we would expect an increase in sales of figures and play-sets such as Transformers and Ben 10.”
