Toy retailers -local and international- in Indonesia and other Southeast-Asian countries like Thailand and the Philippines are struggling to stay in business. E.g. international giant Toys "R" Us tried to establish a presence in both Thailand and Indonesia but failed to make an impact.
The US toy retailer has withdrawn itself from both countries. Consumers in the expanding economies of Southeast-Asia will absorb many features of Western life. Toys for children are not among these. Several reasons lie behind this fact:- Traditional Western toys often imply an indoor lifestyle. In warm tropical countries life is traditionally outdoors and without air conditioning living indoors is uncomfortable. In countries like Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines domestic aircon use is still in its infancy with a very low penetration level. Children are used to play outdoors which does not require an access to many toys making them unfamiliar with the concept of using toys for playing.- Gift-giving to children at certain fixed occasions in the year is in most Asian countries a non-existing phenomenon.
In Thailand, an occasion like Christmas does not exist and birthdays are traditionally not celebrated. Gifts to children come mostly in the form of new clothes. When toys are given it is rarely because of a special occasion.
In Indonesia, Christmas is an official festival but mostly a religious one without the gift-giving aspect. For most Indonesians the end of Ramadan celebrated during Idul Fitri marks the most important festive occasion of the year. Normally children will receive new clothes during this period rather than toys.
Children in Southeast-Asia are now more familiar with computer games than traditional toys. As computers and computer games also hold the interest of many parents the purchase of a computer plus games has a higher preference since more family members can enjoy the product which is not the case with a childs toy.The last factor also plays an important role in Western countries where children move away from traditional toys and more into computer games.
Children in Southeast-Asia attach themselves straight into this new development without first going through the traditional phase. In Thailand, for example, this happens either at home or in computer games arcades. Mostly these are shops with a few to up to a dozen computers on which children can play games, also interactively against an hourly rate of THB 20.- (€0.42). Children (99% boys) from as young as 6 up to late teens will occupy all machines when school is out.
Traditional Western toys like miniature cars, board games and dolls hold very little attraction for most Southeast-Asian children and traditionally they are also not exposed to them. Toy retailers in these countries normally survive on a Western (expat) clientele and a small percentage of the high-middle to upper-class local population. However, increased economic development and a higher standard of living will not create a demand for Western style toys in Southeast Asia.
This article appeared earlier on www.businesstrendsasia.com
