Beijing: Meet Princess Secret, a potential best-friend-forever for the children of China's swelling mass of consumers, who increasingly demand better-quality toys at cheaper prices than foreign brands can offer.
The doll's manufacturer, closely held China Focus (Yiwu), is among Chinese exporters seeking licences to sell on the domestic market as overseas growth flags.
"Our products probably cost twice as much as those designed for the local market, but that's not a problem because they're still cheaper than imports," Maggie Zhang, a sales manager, said at the country's biggest trade fair last month, while staffing a stall stacked with Princess Secret pink dolls, gloves, scarves and cosmetic bags.
Huge potential
The nation's toy market is expected to double to 60 billion yuan (Dh33.03 billion) by 2015 from 2010, according to the China Toy and Juvenile Products Association.
In contrast, overseas sales grew 8.9 per cent in the first nine months of the year, lagging the 23 per cent growth in total China exports. "Chinese toy exporters are coming to a turning point where domestic growth is starting to outpace that of overseas orders," said Hua Zhongwei, a macroeconomic analyst with Huachuang Securities in Beijing. Mattel Inc's best-selling Barbie remain expensive for most Chinese families.
Chinese toy exporters, who made $7.9 billion of overseas sales in the first nine months according to customs data, are also turning their eyes to home because of weak prospects in the US and Europe. The US toy market is about $21.9 billion and the global market is about $83.3 billion, according to NPD Group.
