“Compared to a regular month, toy sales double and even triple in December. In this period, parents buy more expensive toys than they do the rest of the year because it is a special occasion. The average shopping receipt is 40% higher in the period. The average receipt is less than RON100,” said Constantinescu.
He added the fourth quarter is very important for toy retailers, as it generates 40% of annual sales.
“Compared to a few years ago, customers are more informed, they go online to seek information about product safety and usability, which is goo for us because not all retailers sell safe toys,” said the head of Noriel, a company owned by the Constantinescu family and Axxess Capital (40%).
Noriel’s online sales grew by more than 60% this year.
Noriel is a Romanian manufacturer and retailer of toys. It owns a toy factory in Prahova county and 44 stores across the country. Over 75% of the 2,000 toys Noriel manufactures are under is own brand.
“This year we will register a double digit organic growth. We have opened four new stores this year and we will continue expansion. We will also introduce an in-store pick-up service for products ordered online,” said Constantinescu.
Noriel mostly makes board games and puzzles in its factory but plans to extend its product range. Other toys are made in partnership with Chinese manufacturers.
Constantinescu said 2014 has been the best year so far for the Romanian toy market, estimated at EUR150 million.
“The toy market stagnated, then registered slight growth in the past 2-3 years, but now it is growing more steadily,” he said.
According to research firm Euromonitor, more than 90% of toys are imported and products with low and medium prices, RON10 to RON100, hold the biggest market share.
Toy retailers on the Romanian market are Noriel, Toyplex, Symk, Jumbo. Their main competitors are hypermarkets, which sell low-prices toys, online stores and no-name products sold in markets.