Company browse Jellycat merchandise at Nordstrom Michigan Avenue on September 30, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois.
Jeff Schear | Getty Pictures Leisure | Getty Pictures
British toybrand Jellycat, beloved by Gen Z globally, greater than doubled its revenue in 2024 on the again of a “kidult” pushed craze for toys as extra adults flip to gentle toys for consolation.
Jellycat, a personal firm based by Thomas Gatacre in London in 1999, is well-liked for promoting huggable gentle toys from its £18 ($24) Bashful Beige Bunny to its £275 Amuseables Nordic Spruce Christmas Tree. The agency noticed “fast progress” in 2024, in line with monetary studies shared with CNBC.
The corporate, owned by Jelly Holdings, noticed income rise 66% to £333 million ($449 million) for the 12 months ending December 31, up from £200 million in 2023. Its revenue earlier than tax greater than doubled to £139 million, up from £67 million the prior 12 months. It is planning to pay dividends of £110 million to its homeowners.
The toymaker sells its “jellies” in 8,000 outlets throughout 80 nations, together with at high-end shops like Selfridges and Harrods in London and Galeries Lafayette in Paris. It mentioned its noticed essentially the most progress in demand for its gentle toys in Europe, China and the U.S.
“Everybody appears to be loving them: from kids to kidults and Gen Z, right through the generations to oldsters, grandparents and past,” the corporate mentioned within the report.
Its additionally seeing reputation throughout its new “Jellycat Experiences” held in shops such because the Jellycat Fish & Chips in Selfridges and Jellycat Patisserie in Galeries Lafayette. Different scorching gadgets embrace equipment like bag charms and purses.
‘Nostalgic’ kidults
The corporate’s progress could be traced to rising grownup demand for child toys with the $30 Labubu doll turning into a viral TikTok success sensation earlier this 12 months. It is gained traction as a world standing image with each adults and children shopping for into the hype across the tiny stuffed animal toys.
On TikTok, Jellycat boasts 2.1 million followers at current whereas 20 million posts sit underneath the hashtag #jellycathaul. In viral movies, younger adults rave over their $20 greenback gentle toys, whereas some exhibit huge collections of jellies stuffed on their cabinets.
Toy trade analysis group Circana discovered that adults are driving the toy market within the U.S, with gross sales rising 18% this 12 months, throughout prospects aged 18 and older. Adults spent $1.8 billion on toys within the first quarter of this 12 months, accounting for the very best spending throughout all age teams.
In 2024. gross sales have been being pushed by “nostalgic” kidults searching for out consolation amid financial and geopolitical turmoil globally, Circana mentioned.
“By tapping into the enjoyment financial system, toys are more and more being recognised for his or her optimistic psychological well being advantages as they spark nostalgia and produce escapism from international turmoil into customers’ lives,” Melissa Symonds, UK toys director for Circana mentioned on the time.
[/gpt3]
