List of Toys That Face Disappearing From Stores Due to Tariffs
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Toymakers are reeling from the impact of President Donald Trump's tariffs on imports, some already warning that certain items could soon disappear from U.S. shelves.
In a recent survey of 410 toy manufacturers, the Toy Association found that 81 percent of small companies were delaying orders due to the tariffs, with 64 percent canceling them outright. Among midsize companies, those figures rose to 87 percent and 80 percent, respectively
Why It Matters
Representatives of the industry have been lobbying for toys to be exempt from the tariffs, which the Toy Association's survey found could cause nearly half of U.S. toy companies to go out of business within months. However, the administration has so far expressed no indication of granting this exemption, President Trump recently admitting that prices could rise and leave children with fewer toys in the near future.
Which Toys Could Leave the Shelves?
Several toy makers have already warned that they had halted new orders due to the tariffs.
Basic Fun!
Florida-based Basic Fun! sells household-name toy brands including My Little Pony, Care Bears and Tonka Trucks.
Jay Foreman said recently that he had paused shipments of Tonka trucks, Care Bears and other toys from China after Trump's early April tariff announcements, and would attempt to rely on the inventory already stockpiled in the U.S, according to The Associated Press.
Care Bears, from Basic Fun!, are displayed at the Toy Fair, in New York's Javits Center, Monday, March 3, 2025.
Care Bears, from Basic Fun!, are displayed at the Toy Fair, in New York's Javits Center, Monday, March 3, 2025.
Richard Drew/AP Photo
"Consumers will find Basic Fun toys in stores for a month or two but very quickly we will be out of stock and stock product will disappear from store shelves, " Foreman said.
Even before the April 2 announcements, and the recent increases to China's tariff rates, Foreman said that tariffs would result in price increases across the company's entire range, which also includes Lincoln Logs and the light-up peg art toy Lite Brite.
Duncan Toys Company
The nearly 100-year old company, widely credited with popularizing the yo-yo, has a product line primarily focused on outdoor goods, including Frisbees, juggling balls, as well as indoor puzzle games.
Josh Staph, CEO of Duncan Toys, told Agence France-Presse that he had halted shipments into the U.S. as a result of the 145-percent duties on Chinese imports.
He said that while the products are designed and developed in the U.S, manufacturing takes place in China, and that most of the inventory that would be sold during the Christmas period had not yet entered the country. Staph added that other American toy companies will likely be taking similar action to avoid the new duties.
Storytime Toys
The Massachusetts-based company specialized in educational toys, such as storybooks and puzzles, which were manufactured in China. Storytime founder Kara Dyer said she placed a small order before the latest tariff hikes and is now pausing holiday season orders.
"I'm going to hold out hope for another two weeks that the tariffs will be removed and I'll be able to place the order," she told The New York Times last week. "But if not, I will have to put my business on pause. I will definitely not place an order if the tariffs are in effect. It wouldn't make any sense."
In a post to Instagram last month, Dyer said that relocating manufacturing to the U.S. would mean raising prices to prohibitively high levels.
What People Are Saying
Greg Ahearn, President and CEO of The Toy Association, told CNN: "A 145-percent tariff is tough on any industry, but ours is truly unique from the standpoint that 96 percent of the manufacturers here in the U.S. are considered small- or medium-sized businesses. So when you think about these businesses, and a 145-percent tariff being put on them, it's untenable for them."
"No toys are currently being produced in China. And there are reports that major retailers here in the U.S. are starting to actually cancel orders," He added. "Christmas is at risk."
President Donald Trump, downplayed the issue during a cabinet meet on Wednesday, saying: "Well, maybe the children will have two dolls instead of 30 dolls, you know. And Maybe the two dolls will cost a couple of bucks more."
Marshall Murdough, director at toy company Simplay 3 E-Commerce, which manufactures in the U.S, told Fox News: "The American consumer benefits because they're not going to see an additional $15 dollars tacked on to a $100 dollar item. Our prices are going to remain the same, they can trust what they see when they look at our price whether its online or in the store."
Jay Foreman, CEO of Basic Fun!, wrote in an April 11 blog post: "Since 80 percent of toys sold into the United States are from China, this is catastrophic for our industry. For now, the lucky few that are making some plush, pop figures, bricks, and plastic trucks in places like Vietnam are getting a break, but the rest of us are in the firing line."
Hasbro CEO Jim Cramer told CNBC that the company was making "rapid changes" to avoid the impact of the tariffs: "You know, our goal was to get to about 40 percent of global sourcing out of China by the end of 2026. I think we'll hit that much earlier."
What Happens Next?
The administration remains hopeful for a deal with China it says would lead to a reduction in the tariffs. Although Beijing has dismissed this possibility, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has called the current situation "unsustainable for China."
Newsweek has reached out to the Commerce Department via email regarding the possibility of an exemption for toys.
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