Sales at toymaker Hornby up 7% after bumper Black Friday and Christmas
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Profits increased 10% in December at Kent-based company, which had struggled after end of Covid hobby boom. The toy-train maker Hornby enjoyed bumper trading in the final three months of last year, marking a turnaround for the Kent-based company, which has struggled since a hobby boom during the Covid pandemic.
Sales at the model train firm, which also sells toy planes and cars under the Airfix, Scalextric and Corgi brands, rose 7% in the key “golden quarter” compared with the same period a year earlier. December saw particular growth, up 8% year on year, while profits were up 10%. Hornby shares rose almost 4% on Wednesday on the news.
The company credited its success to activity around Black Friday, when almost 50% of transactions came from first-time customers, and Christmas demand in December, when revenue grew 23% and profit grew 38% year on year. Hornby has also benefited from the rise of the “kidult” market – nostalgic teenagers and adults snapping up toys and particularly collectibles. Research from the consumer behaviour advisers Circana indicates accounts for almost a third of UK toy sales and continues to grow.
The positive results follow a turbulent few years for the Margate-based firm. It enjoyed a jump in sales during Covid lockdowns from shoppers staying at home and shopping online, but by 2023 that had soured. The company saw losses mount as inventory levels built up and by the end of the year shares had slipped to their lowest price for decades.
