UK sales of games and puzzles soar during first week of coronavirus lockdown

Posted on 2nd April 2020 By Billy Langsworthy

The NPD Group has published the top 10 best-selling toys from the UK as Brits prepared to go into lockdown in response to the COVID-19 crisis.

The top ten best-selling toys week ending March 21st 2020 were:

1   Monopoly Classic – Hasbro
2   LOL Surprise! Hairvibes – MGA Entertainment
3   Dobble – Asmodee
4   LOL Surprise! OMG Lights – MGA Entertainment
5   Technic Bugatti Chiron Construction Kit 1:5 – LEGO
6   Scrabble Original – Mattel
7   Technic Land Rover Defender – LEGO
8   Cluedo – Hasbro
9   LOL Surprise! OMG Doll Assortment – MGA Entertainment
10   Uno Original – Mattel

The biggest selling toy category in the first official week of lockdown was Games & Puzzles, winning a 21% share of weekly spend across the entire toy sector, up from 9% in the same week in 2019 and a growth in value of 240%.

Outdoor & Sports took 18% of all sector spend, up from 12% last year. Top sellers included playhouses, slides and Swingball as parents prepared for anticipated good weather.

Elsewhere, sales in the Arts & Crafts category almost doubled (up 97%) with slime, dough and craft kits all making it into shopping baskets, while Building Sets rose 59% year-on-year.

“Our figures clearly show that consumers are preparing for the coming weeks of isolation with a selection of family board games, outdoor and seasonal summer toys, craft kits and building sets,” said Frederique Tutt, Global Toy Market Expert for The NPD Group.

“It’s interesting to see the classic games of Monopoly, Scrabble, Cluedo and Uno on this list. These ‘standards’ have shown us over and again that they can stand the test of time when reinvented and so it looks like they’ll continue entertaining generations of Britons as householders look to release stress and tighten family ties during these challenging times.

“We’ve seen this trend to buy board games during this lockdown period in France too, but where Brits buck the trend is in the sale of some of the toughest building sets available. With their price points at around £233 for the Technic Bugatti Chiron Construction Kit and approximately £153 for the Technic Land Rover Defender kit, these sets clearly aren’t just for the kids. We’re seeing a clear ‘kidult’ and adult trend here. Perhaps some of the buyers are grabbing the opportunity to use their newly found spare time to achieve a long-term dream to build one of these cars in LEGO.”

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