Licensing Trends from Toy Fair 2026
February 24, 2026
Licensed products had a higher profile at the 2026 edition of New York Toy Fair than they have in quite some time.
Overall, both the number of exhibitors and the foot traffic at the show seemed down (official Toy Industry Association figures were not available as of press time). Exhibitors and attendees collectively attributed this fact to a number of factors, including tariffs and other economic concerns reducing budgets for international travel and conference attendance; worries about visa, border, and other travel issues on the part of some international toy companies; and the fair’s recent gaps and schedule changes, which bumped it from some companies’ regular show rotation.
That said, the mood was upbeat and business was being done, according to executives on site. Toy industry sales grew in 2025, according to Circana, marking a turnaround from 2024’s flat performance, with unit sales up 3% and dollar sales up 6% (the latter fueled in part by a 4% increase in average selling price). Games, puzzles, and building sets were particularly strong, while plush, dolls, and outdoor and sports toys lagged behind.
Licensing is Driving the Industry; Classic Properties Reign
Circana noted the strength of licensing in 2025, with products based on entertainment, sports, and gaming properties propelling the market. Pokémon led the way, according to researchers, with U.S. sales of products based on the property increasing 87% year-over-year, to $2.5 billion.
Not surprisingly given this context, licensed merchandise had a high profile at the show. Classic properties dominated; in addition to Pokémon, notable IPs maintaining significant acreage across the floor included Hello Kitty, which in its 52nd year seems as strong as ever; Bluey, a newer property that is quickly becoming a classic; Peanuts, coming off its 75th anniversary in 2025; and the Disney and Pixar properties, with Stitch remaining particularly prominent.
Many companies were touting classic properties with movies coming up this year and next to give them a boost. Some examples mentioned by exhibitors throughout the aisles and in the showrooms included Masters of the Universe, Paw Patrol, Toy Story, Minions, Spider-man, and Star Wars (The Mandalorian and Grogu). A few new TV productions based on classics were also top of mind, including HBO’s new Harry Potter series.
Even with classics having such a major presence, the frequency of deals involving newer properties, compared to the recent past, also stood out. Not surprisingly, Netflix’s K Pop Demon Hunters was all over the show as its licensees begin to roll out merchandise tied to the hit film in a big way. Hasbro, Mattel, Jazwares, Spin Master, Funko, Bendon, Horizon Group, Monogram, and Ravensburger were among the many companies showing products.
Other new licensing deals being touted at Toy Fair this year included Ooly’s new agreement with Girl Scouts for arts and crafts products, Crayola’s new license with Ms. Rachel, and Playmates’ debut of Paris & Pups toys, among others.
Licensing Merry-Go-Round
Some longstanding toy lines are changing licensee hands this year, generally winding down in 2026 with the new licensees taking over in 2027. A few examples included:
- Mattel becoming the primary licensee of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, taking over from Playmates.
- Mattel consolidating rights to DC Comics characters, assuming categories formerly held by McFarlane Toys.
- Hasbro signing a license with Warner Bros. to become the main global toy licensee for the Harry Potter franchise, including the upcoming HBO series; Mattel had been a primary licensee in the past, along with many other smaller players.
- Schleich sunsetting its Smurfs line of collectible figures after more than 20 years.
Schleich was also one of several exhibitors that mentioned plans to be more involved in licensing, either by adding new licensed IPs to their toy offerings and/or by licensing some of their proprietary brands into new categories. Some had concrete plans, with new deals expected in the near future, while others were considering boosting their licensing efforts down the road.
Multiple Factors Drive Growth
Several trends are helping fuel increases in the licensed portion of the toy industry. For example:
- Mash-ups of two disparate IPs were ubiquitous, from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with G.I. Joe at Playmates to Fortnite with horror icons Michael Myers, Billy the Puppet, and Leatherface at NECA. This ongoing trend seems to get stronger each year as a way to bring more fandoms to a toy line and more new and different offerings to existing fandoms.
- Co-branding of proprietary toy brands with outside IPs remains a big trend. Property owners of all types want to be associated with key toy lines such as Jazwares’ Squishmallows, Super Impulse’s World’s Smallest, or Hasbro Games’ board game brands, while the toy and game brand owners want to reach new fans with new IPs. These co-brands resonate with fans, but they also contribute to making the formerly critical concept of exclusivity pretty much a thing of the past.
- Property owners’ desire to latch on to popular toy lines across licensees extends to toy company brand owners as well, propelling toy-to-toy licensing deals that would have been almost unheard of a decade ago. From Play-Doh kinetic sand at Horizon Group (now co-branded with other Hasbro IPs including Koosh, Nerf, Lite Brite, and Candyland) to Mattel brands such as Barbie and Hot Wheels appearing on key proprietary Hasbro lines, this phenomenon is now commonplace, driven by a variety of objectives. When arch-rivals Mattel and Hasbro are collaborating on joint products, you know the landscape has changed.
- Collectibility remains critical, from new twists on bag charms and blind boxes seen across numerous booths, to toys fitting into the “collect, play, and display” trend. The importance of collectibility leads to a voracious appetite for new licenses in an effort to keep things fresh. And licensees reported strong interest from their licensors to be part of new collectible programs of all types.
- Corporate brands, especially foods, have been steadily expanding across the show floor over the past several years, especially at plush companies. They are also increasingly highlighted in other categories of toys, including dolls, vinyl figures, building sets, squishies, puzzles, and more. Kraft Mac and Cheese is one particularly active example in this space, but a variety of brands have capitalized. There is likely room for expansion; non-licensed foods from fruits and vegetables to sticks of butter were common, offering opportunities for relevant brands.
In addition to corporate brands, toy companies are increasingly considering an ever broadening array of IPs, beyond character/entertainment, for licensing potential. Sports, art, fashion, celebrity, and other property types are seeing their presence grow, although they continue to maintain a relatively small slice of the market.
One interesting example this year was book-only properties (without any entertainment support to date), which started to make an impression at mass-market toy companies. This is something that would have been almost unheard-of in the past. Playmates showed action figures, trading card games, and other products tied to the bestselling Dungeon Crawler Carl gaming-themed fantasy-comedy survival novels by Matt Dinniman, while Bonkers Toys highlighted its Warrior Cats toys, based on the Warriors middle-grade fantasy novels created by Coolabi and published by HarperCollins. Companies including Ravensburger, The Noble Collection, and Goliath Games were touting products tied to the Empyrean adult romantasy series by Rebecca Yarros.
Toy Companies Latch Onto Broader Trends
As always, toy marketers watch trends in décor, pop culture, and other facets of life for their potential applications in playthings. Current developments making inroads include:
- Street fashion drops. Super Impulse brought “drip culture” to the toy business with its new license-driven Drip Drops collectible line of real mini-sneakers. The micro-kicks have real laces, collaborative designs, chase figures, and blind box components.
- Kid-friendly beauty. Toys that mimic adult cosmetics, haircare, and other beauty categories are a hit, from safe and age-appropriate lip gloss doubling as bag charms, to slime mimicking a compact.
- Beverage trends. Toys reflecting the popularity of dirty soda, boba tea, and cold-press coffee were spotted across several exhibitors.
- Antidotes for anxiety. Products that meant to calm the mind, an ongoing trend since the start of the pandemic, seemed more numerous than ever, from fidget toys, to ASMR sound elements, to slimes and compounds (a trend that seems to have no end), to coloring books and other mind-focusing crafts.
- Holiday takes on classic toys and licenses, notably in the form of advent calendars. Consumers’ desire for advent calendars featuring their favorite licensed toys and collectibles is definitely not waning, with toy companies of all shapes and sizes still issuing new editions each year. Some are for casual fans, but a growing portion are higher end and appeal to the adult collectors with exclusive products and new innovations each year.
In the plush category, there is a lot of innovation going on, but sales are lagging. As a result, some companies are marketing their plush items as home décor. More plush companies than ever are selling pillows, for example (including licensed versions), while companies such as Jazwares are expanding their selections of plush plants and flowers (including licensed examples), with their sights on expanding distribution beyond toy departments and into home goods channels.
Gaming Goes From Strength To Strength
Games and puzzles represent one of the strongest areas within the toy business, with sales up 37% in 2025, according to Circana. In Hasbro’s latest quarterly results, issued shortly before the show, it called out its Wizards of the Coast and digital gaming business, which grew by 45%, and its Magic The Gathering segment (including the licensed Universes Beyond editions), which increased by 59%.
The strength of gaming was evident at the show in a number of ways. Several new original licensed board games were introduced, mostly for “kidults,” tied to digital gaming brands or other IPs. Most of the key family board game brands added new co-branded versions to their portfolios to appeal to gamers of all ages.
Tabletop and trading card game brands are also increasingly working with outside IPs, as well as expanding their outbound licensing efforts. They also continue to issue simpler junior versions of their games as well as card packs meant for collecting rather than playing, as a means of expanding their audience.
A few of many examples of new licensed products in the physical gaming space included PlayMonster’s Pudgy Penguins adult party game; Kess’s tabletop game based on the video game Final Fantasy; The Noble Collection’s new line of chess sets, checkers, and other games and Ridley’s new puzzle and game program tied to Star Wars, Marvel, and Pixar, under license from Disney; and Ravensburger adding to its co-branded Labyrinth editions with new K Pop Demon Hunters, Stitch, and SpongeBob versions.
Tariff Talk
A year ago, at the 2025 edition of Toy Fair, tariffs were top of mind. In 2026, things had settled down a bit, but exhibitors and others noted some of the ongoing impacts affecting their daily routines. Many said they had increased prices on some items, while trying to keep as many as possible steady. Some companies had stopped making certain products or delayed the release of new products.There was a notable increase in toys that entered the U.S. from Vietnam. Delays in retail orders caused some sourcing issues, and impacted the bottom line. And tariffs were cited as affecting both profits and sales during the year as well.
Last week’s Supreme Court decision ruling many of the tariffs illegal — exhibitor Learning Resources was one of the plaintiffs in the case — came after the show concluded. While the decision comes as a relief, it also creates more uncertainty, at least for a time: Will there be new tariffs of 15% for 150 days as promised as of press time? What will happen on day 151? Will companies be reimbursed for the illegal tariffs they have paid? Will they need or want to go to court, as some have already, to ensure that happens? Will there be more tariffs implemented and perhaps reversed throughout the year?
Despite uncertainty and disruption ahead, both tariff-related and otherwise, many exhibitors and attendees at Toy Fair, especially those active in the licensed portion of the market, say they are, on balance, upbeat about their prospects in 2027.