Ever heard of kidults? It’s a nickname given to adults who buy toys for themselves. And they aren’t kidding around: Between June 2021 and June 2022, they reportedly accounted for 14% of US toy sales, up from 9% in 2019. That might explain why some of the biggest toy companies are playing along — and making products specifically for them (see: Lego A/S, Build-A-Bear’s “After Dark”  collection). To learn more, we spoke to Tom Warner, general manager and senior vice president of global action brands at Hasbro.  

Q: Why are more and more adults buying toys for themselves?

We’re at this really interesting intersection, where you have adults who grew up in the ’70s, ’80s, and ’90s and loved playing with toys. And there’s always been something so special about those toys you loved. But now, they’re adults, and they have more disposable income. They’re looking for ways to show their passion, and toys are a natural fit for them. The other thing that’s cool, [which we saw with] “Transformers: Rise of the Beasts,” was parents bringing their kids in. So these kidults are sharing their love with the kids now growing up. And that extends to toys.

Q: In the past, there seemed to be a stigma attached to adults who played with toys. Has that changed?

One hundred percent. It’s really flipped. I’ve been in this business for a while and [can remember] the days where you were “a nerd” if you collected action figures and such. Now, it’s the exact opposite. I equate a lot of that with the success of Marvel, Star Wars, and Transformers — they brought [these brands] into pop culture and the mainstream ... [Also] social media has really accelerated the fan or kidult economy ... [It’s] allowed fans to connect with one another and celebrate their love for these brands in a bigger way.

Q: Is there actually a difference between a toy that’s intended for adults and one for kids? Or is it just marketing? 

There’s definitely things we do differently. I’ll use my action figure brands as an example. What we’ve learned through our research is that it’s so important to get as close to the character that [adults have] seen in films or comics. There’s a term we use, articulation — which is the number of moving joints and things like that. That’s very important to our adult fans. They’re looking for that authenticity and we see that across a lot of brands … Also, how an adult wants to play is different. They’re not going to do crash-and-bash play and get these toys on the ground. They’re going to display them, because they’re conversation pieces or a way to express their fandom. So we make sure that our presentation and packaging allows them to do that in the biggest way possible.

Q: Looking ahead, would you consider the kidult market to be a top priority? 

It definitely is, as is our preschool and kid markets. We don’t see it slowing down. We see it continuing to grow. These are our most vocal fans. They’re the ones on social media, so we want to make sure they feel like part of the brands we’re creating ... For us, kidult has become its own segment within our businesses. What we’re trying to do is service a fan at any age — from preschool to kidults — and take them on these journeys with these great brands. To do that, what we’ve found is you need bespoke content and toys for each one of these different segments ... So it’s allowed us to expand our brands into new areas.