The global toy market is worth USD 123 billion. China exported toys worth USD 34.82 billion to this vast market last year, while Bangladesh’s exports amounted to just USD 62.9 million. However, Bangladesh’s toy exports grew by nearly 15 per cent in the last fiscal year.
Despite this growth, Bangladesh has yet to capitalise on the opportunity to capture a larger share of the global market. Industry entrepreneurs say the sector is falling behind because of complications in importing raw materials, a lack of policy support, the absence of a coordinated plan to improve product quality and frequent power outages. Although several factories backed by foreign investment have made progress in exports, domestic entrepreneurs face numerous obstacles.
The global toy market is expanding, with demand growing for various types of toys among teenagers as well as children. Yet Bangladesh’s share of the market remains negligible. Its annual toy exports have largely hovered between USD 50 million and USD 60 million.
Several toy manufacturers said efforts had long been underway to diversify products to boost exports. Many fashion brands and retailers around the world sell toys alongside ready-made garments (RMG). This makes expanding toy exports a relatively accessible opportunity for Bangladesh.
Like garment manufacturing, toy production requires manufacturers to meet buyers’ specifications and quality standards. The toy industry can broadly be divided into four categories: metal, wooden, plastic and fabric toys. These products, designed for recreation, entertainment and education, include traditional toys, electronic toys, character-based dolls and models, puzzles, board games, educational materials and many other items.
According to The Toy Association, an international toy industry organisation, global toy sales have increased for two consecutive years. Sales stood at USD 110.8 billion in 2023 and rose by nearly 3 per cent the following year. Last year, sales increased by 7.87 per cent to reach USD 123 billion.
China has long dominated global toy exports. It is followed by the Czech Republic, Germany, the Netherlands, Mexico, Poland, the United States, Hungary, France and Hong Kong. Bangladesh ranks near the bottom of the list.
According to the UN Comtrade database, China exported toys worth USD 34.82 billion last year. The Czech Republic exported USD 4.02 billion worth, followed by Germany with USD 2.35 billion, the Netherlands with USD 1.6 billion and Mexico with USD 1.42 billion.
Toy exports rise, but so do imports
Bangladesh’s toy exports have hovered between USD 50 million and USD 60 million over the past four years. In the 2025–26 fiscal year, the country exported toys worth USD 62.9 million, a 14.99 per cent increase from the previous fiscal year.
According to the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), Bangladesh exported toys to 41 countries in the last fiscal year, including China, Germany, Australia, Spain, France, Italy, Japan and the United States. Italy was the largest destination, accounting for USD 14.9 million in exports.
Despite domestic production, Bangladesh also imports toys every year. Toy imports totalled USD 11.6 million in the last fiscal year, up 2.65 per cent from USD 11.3 million in 2024–25.
According to the UN Comtrade database, China exported toys worth USD 34.82 billion last year. The Czech Republic exported USD 4.02 billion worth, followed by Germany with USD 2.35 billion, the Netherlands with USD 1.6 billion and Mexico with USD 1.42 billion.
Foreign investment drives toy exports
On paper, 25 companies export toys from Bangladesh, but only 13 to 14 are major exporters. The top five factories among them were established with foreign investment.
According to the National Board of Revenue (NBR), Sonic (Bangladesh) Ltd was the country’s largest toy exporter in the 2025–26 fiscal year, shipping toys worth USD 42.1 million.
The company is a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Sonic Group. Located in the Uttara Export Processing Zone (EPZ) in Nilphamari, it manufactures miniature vehicle models using the die-casting process.
Sonic Group has also established two other toy factories in Dinajpur: Win Champion (BD) Ltd and BP Manufacturing (BD) Company Ltd. In the last fiscal year, Win Champion exported toys worth nearly USD 7.5 million, while BP Manufacturing exported USD 4.8 million worth. They ranked second and third among the country’s toy exporters.
Cupcake Exports, a factory established in Narsingdi through German-Bangladeshi investment, exported toys worth USD 3.1 million in the last fiscal year. The fabric toy manufacturer began operations in 2019.
Meanwhile, Meigo (Bangladesh) Ltd, established with Chinese investment in the Dhaka EPZ, exported die-cast toys worth USD 1.364 million in the last fiscal year.
How can Bangladesh unlock its export potential?
PRAN-RFL, one of the country’s leading industrial groups, sells toys in the domestic market and exports them abroad. In the last fiscal year, its Durable Plastic and RFL Plastic units exported toys worth nearly USD 1.2 million.
Its products range from plastic rattles to toy elephants and horses, balls, puzzles, building blocks, swings and tricycles.
Asked about the sector’s prospects, Kamruzzaman Kamal, marketing director of PRAN-RFL Group, told Prothom Alo, “Toys are a global product, and there is demand for them in every country. Besides providing entertainment, toys are very important for children’s creativity and physical and mental development.
“Countries that maintain leading positions in the export market are constantly developing new toys. We must follow the same path. At the same time, initiatives are needed to improve product quality. If the government moves forward with a comprehensive plan to develop this sector, results can be achieved quickly.”
Aman Plastic Toy Industries is another major player in Bangladesh’s domestic toy market. The company currently exports toys to Sri Lanka and Italy. It exported toys worth around USD 200,000 in the last fiscal year.
Aman Ullah, proprietor of Aman Plastic Toy Industries, told Prothom Alo, “Most of the raw materials needed to manufacture toys have to be imported. We face considerable difficulties in importing them. Providing bonded warehouse facilities would make the process easier.
“The toy market is also highly diverse, and we need initiatives to expand our product range. Small entrepreneurs like us cannot do this on our own. We need government support.”
Aman Ullah also stressed the need for an uninterrupted power supply. He said several hours of load-shedding every day caused 1–15 per cent of products to be damaged during production, compared with a rate of just 1 per cent in China.
The young entrepreneur believes Bangladesh could export toys worth several billion dollars if the government extended the kind of support it provided to industries in the 1980s.