Japan's Toy Market Just Hit A Record
Japan's toy market reached 1.1 trillion yen (about $7.4 billion) in fiscal 2024. That's a 7.9% increase from the previous year. Over the last decade, the market has grown 36%. Incredible numbers, that's for sure.
Let me repeat that: The toy market in Japan has grown more than a third in ten years.
Now here's the part that makes this story fascinating: Japan has one of the lowest birth rates in the world. Their population is aging. The number of children being born each year is decreasing.
By every traditional metric, their toy market should be shrinking. Dying. Struggling. Instead, it's booming.
Why? Because adults are buying toys. For themselves.
Trading Cards Are Leading The Revolution
The growth is being mainly driven by trading cards and character merchandise. And when we talk about trading cards, we're not talking about kids spending their allowance.
Japan's collectible card game market alone was valued at $2.34 billion in 2024. It's projected to reach $7.09 billion by 2033, growing at 13.1% annually.
Globally, the trading card market was $21.4 billion in 2024 and is expected to hit $58.2 billion by 2034.
These aren't kids' lunch money numbers. This is serious economic activity driven by adults with disposable income, nostalgia, and zero shame about their hobbies.
Pokemon cards. Yu-Gi-Oh. Magic: The Gathering. What started as children's games has become legitimate adult collectibles, investments, and passions.
When Did We Decide Adults Shouldn't Play?
Here's what fascinates me about the kidult phenomenon: the shame around it is completely arbitrary.
Nobody questions an adult spending thousands on golf clubs, wine collecting, or watches. But spend that same money on trading cards or action figures? Suddenly, you're "immature."
Why? When did we collectively decide that adulthood means abandoning everything that brought us joy as children? Does "growing up" require giving up play, imagination, and the things that made us happy?
Japan seems to have skipped that memo entirely. Or maybe they're just ahead of the curve in realizing it's nonsense.
Adults work hard. They have disposable income. They want to spend it on things that make them happy. If that's a rare Pokémon card or a limited edition figure or completing a trading card set, so what?
The market has spoken. And it's speaking to the tune of billions of dollars.
The Economics Are Undeniable
Let's talk about why this makes perfect business sense.
Adults have money. Kids rely on parents, allowances, and birthdays. Adults have salaries, credit cards, and the ability to make impulse purchases without asking permission.
Nostalgia is powerful. The adults buying these cards and toys grew up with these properties. Pokémon launched in 1996. Those kids are now in their 30s and 40s with careers and expendable income. They're not buying for their kids - they're buying for themselves.
The shame is evaporating. Social media and internet communities have normalized adult collectors. You're not weird for having a Pokémon card collection - you're part of a global community of millions doing the same thing.
Investment potential is real. Some of these cards appreciate in value. A first edition holographic Charizard can sell for six figures. What appears to be "playing with toys" to outsiders is actually a legitimate alternative investment strategy to those in the know.
Quality has improved. Modern collectibles aren't cheaply made kids' toys. They're high-quality products designed specifically for adult collectors with adult budgets.
Going Forward
Japan's toy market boom isn't an isolated phenomenon. It's a preview of what's happening globally.
The kidult industry is real. It's growing. And brands that ignore it are leaving massive amounts of money on the table.
If you're making products traditionally aimed at children, you need to be thinking about the adult market. Not as an afterthought. Not as a "bonus demographic." As a primary target.
Because increasingly, the adults are the ones with the money and the passion. The kids might play with your product, but the adults are the ones building collections, joining communities, and driving market growth.
This isn't a trend that's going to reverse. If anything, as millennials and Gen Z age into their peak earning years while maintaining the hobbies and interests they developed in their youth, this market is only going to expand.
The generation that grew up being told "put away childish things" is responding with "actually, no." And they're backing it up with billions of dollars in purchasing power.
Trading Cards Aren't Just For Kids Anymore
I've been writing about this for years. Watching adults embrace hobbies that previous generations would have hidden. Seeing communities form around collectibles and nostalgia. Tracking the economic indicators that showed this wasn't a fad.
And now Japan has proven it at scale. In a country where demographics should have killed the toy market, adults kept it alive and thriving.
Trading cards aren't just for kids anymore. They never really were - we just convinced ourselves they should be.
The kidult economy is here. It's massive. It's growing. And it's not going anywhere.
So the next time someone asks why grown adults are buying Pokémon cards or collecting action figures or building elaborate LEGO sets, you can point to Japan's $7.4 billion toy market and ask them a better question:
Why wouldn't they?