The Pokémon Company International revealed that the 2021as well as being the year of the 25th anniversary of the brand, also represents a vintage record for sales in Europeboth for the Pokémon Trading Card Game and for the toys, thus leading to celebrate the anniversary also on the market.
The Pokémon brand ranked # 1 for 2021 in France, Belgium and the Netherlands, winning the award “Best Gaming Licensed Property” at the Licensing Awards 2021, with the highest sales growth compared to the same period last year among all companies analyzed in the UK, France, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands, according to data from NPD Group.
In France, Germany and the UK, the franchise took first place among toys and trading cardswith an increase of even more than 100% compared to the sales recorded in the previous year.
After 25 years, Pokémon continues to sell at record rates
Among the novelties, the Pokémon TCG: Battle Academy, the first board game inspired by the TCG, won in the Best Game category at the 2021 “Toy of the Year Awards” in the United States, in seventh overall position with sales equal to over five million euros.
In 2021, Pokémon reached its highest ever annual position in both Germany and the UK, ranking ninth in Germany with 100% sales growth and seventh in the UK with 78%.
Pokémon instead took first place in Belgium and the Netherlands, achieving growth of 183% in the Netherlands and 125% in Belgium, where sales were almost double that of the company that ranked in the second place.
In addition to its success in Western Europe, TPCi continues to keep its eye on the future through a targeted marketing campaign for the Trading Card Game in Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and Israel.
On this occasion, The Pokemon Company reminds that the new expansion Sword and Shield – Shining Stars of the Pokémon TCG, which introduces the mechanics of the Pokémon-V ASTRO, will be released on February 25, 2022, while among the latest novelties in terms of toys are a Celebration Pikachu from Mega Construx (Mattel), the strategy game Pokémon Labyrinth from Ravensburger and Pokémon-branded Jazwares products including the popular Pokémon Volcano portable playset that becomes a backpack.
Mathieu Galante, Licensing Director (EMEA) of The Pokémon Company International said, “2021 has been a bumper year for Pokémon. Our program is packed with exciting activities and innovative, cutting-edge new products, including anniversary ones. has produced an extraordinary increase in demand and sales. We are extremely pleased with the result as it once again demonstrates the cultural relevance and uniqueness of the brand, and in the coming months we will continue to strive to bring innovative products to our fans. “
“The sales for the Pokémon TCG were simply sensational in 2021, breaking all previous records,” added Simon Benton, Vice President of Sales for the Pokémon TCG in Europe. “We thank our business partners and distributors for their support in introducing our products to consumers. Pokémon is the number one company for NPD in three countries and has seen an increase in earnings of more than 100% over the same time of year. in most of our core markets. These figures have consolidated the incredible success of the year in which we celebrated the 25th anniversary of the brand. In 2022 the goal will be to further expand the sales area with the increase of the distribution for the GCC in Eastern Europe “.
All this obviously does not concern video games, where however the results continue to be impressive as evidenced by the 6.5 million copies of Pokémon Legends: Arceus.
