IREDELL COUNTY, N.C. — The toy industry is counting on parents to get out and buy more toys this holiday season to turn around a slump in sales.
According to The Toy Association, 2020 and 2021 were record years for the toy industry during the height of the pandemic. So far this year, sales are down 8% compared to the same time frame in 2022.
What You Need To Know
- Toy sales are down 8% in 2023, compared to the same time frame in 2022
- The Toy Association credits families on tighter budgets as one of the reasons they are spending less
- An Iredell County family makes a tradition out of an annual toy donation, and is learning new ways to stretch their budget
Families are facing tighter budgets and increasing prices, which could contribute to the shift.
The O'Connell family in Iredell County has seen an increase in toy prices as they do their annual shopping. For three years in a row, it's been a tradition for Michelle O'Connell and her daughter Sarah to shop the toy aisles and find new items to donate to The Atrium Health Levine Cancer Institute.
The family knows how it feels to spend a special occasion in the hospital. It's where Sarah O'Connoll, who is now 13, spent her second birthday.
"They gave my mom a look and then they told her I had cancer," Sarah O'Connell said. "We were there for like two weeks. I got surgery on my kidney because the tumor took over."
The O'Connells said the cards and toys they got during that time meant so much.
"And now that she is older and much more aware of what she's doing and what she's been through, we wanted to give back because we know what that feeling is," Michelle O'Connell said. "Your world just changes."
The O'Connells said despite an increase in prices, they are committed to their tradition.
"Last year, we were able to find a lot more toys in the $20 and under range, which is a little easier for us financially," Michelle O'Connell said. "This year, the majority of them are $30 and up. I know prices have gone up a lot, but it's a big difference."
The family is checking bargain stores and buying more interactive books for the children they are donating to.
Fortunately, Sarah O'Connell has been treatment free for 11 years and annually she goes to the Levine Cancer Institute for her survivorship appointment. The family is taking their donation for babies, kids and teens spending the holidays in the hospital on November 17.
"We realize that we are really part of the lucky ones," Michelle O'Connell said. "So, even though things have gotten more costly, we want the kids and the families to know that they still matter, even though people might be struggling -- actually, because people might be struggling."