Why don't supermarkets sell pocket money toys?

[lollipoprainbow]

Why do supermarkets sell such crappy toys for kids ??! I sometimes want to treat my dd to a toy when she has been good and we usuallyend up looking in supermarkets. I was so fed up with the crap yesterday ! Overpriced plasticy tat, tiny expensive cuddly toys and don't get me started on lol dolls!!! Growing up we used to have pocket money toys things you could buy that didn't cost the earth.

An Asda near me still have a section with £1-£3 toys. It’s all plastic crap though so not much different to what you explained and a waste of money. Often I go for pens or pencils when I want to get Dd a treat. She loves pens etc. Or even a magazine or a cheap DVD.

We used to buy DS a little toy car from the supermarket, they were around £1. Admittedly this was around 10 years ago, but I can't imagine they've increased tenfold in price since then.

@lollipoprainbow

It's more the price that I'm pissed of about there was nothing under £10.

Take a minute to think about that though. To make toys for children, under £10, what sort of corners need to be cut during the process? Wages? Factory safety? Waste disposal? Materials? Surely we don't need more plastic, synthetic shit in the system?

Think about what you're asking here, and keep an eye on the big picture. Ethical consumption. It's a losing battle, but surely you have to fight it anyway?

I used to love the pocket money toy stand in my corner shop ........I still remember a little doll with a highchair, bottle and teeny baby bath I had from there.

[quote lollipoprainbow]@luxxlisbon it's not cheap that's my point !![/quote]
In your post you complain that it is all plastic tat, but you also complain about the price. So you want better quality toys for less money which just isn't realistic.

When mine were young I used to take them to Poundland and tell them they could chose anything from the store! Unfortunately it wasn’t long before they started saying they didn’t actually want anything from there but they initially enjoyed the novelty of having a whole store to chose from.

I think OP is complaining that the plastic tat is so expensive. She doesn't mind buying the tat, at a reasonable price!

Asda does kids books and picture books for only £4 and Lego mini figures for £3. Also at Tesco they do tubs of play dough for £1 each, my 5 year old usually gets one with her pocket money they do a lot of colours. If you look about you can find cheaper treats.

@lollipoprainbow, I get the sort of thing you mean - take a look in places like Tiger and you find little wooden animals on wheels, wooden vehicles, flashing balls, mini cooking sets - things that won’t be broken and in the bin 5 minutes after you get home and all priced at a couple of pounds or so. They’re things that can be added to the toy box of make up part of a collection, can be handed down or safely played with by younger siblings (under supervision of an adult and with buying child’s approval). It would be nice if supermarkets carried such things as it would save trips into the city in the next county to find shops like Tiger/Hema etc - and not just for the child but for affordable fillers for party bags and stocking, lucky dips and rewards for star charts!!

What sort of thing are you after? You seem to say you don’t plastic tat but then moan that plastic tat costs £10. I’m confused as to what you’d actually like to be able to buy?

When I Was a kid it was stuff like those polystyrene fighter planes you put together and throw that usually lasted two flights before snapping or a slinky, or crappy joke stuff like stink bombs, whoopy cushions, fake blood etc

what you expecting for under a tenner, i think your kidding yourself.

Supermarkets are there to sell food first for foremost, not to sell unique toys you dont deem as rubbish..

This is the teason why sometimes we find out how factory workers' live... Because people want everything super cheap. That's also a reason for lower wages btw. Because higher wages would show on prices and customers would flip🙄 (personal experience of being threaten over 30p increase🙄).
It also just reminded me that Boohoo's sales soared last year....

Landfills are full. Plastic doesn’t go anywhere. I’m glad they don’t sell cheap plastic toys.

Good! We have enough plastic crap that breaks and ends up in landfill. Plus the workers who make these toys having awful working and living conditions. Just so that your child can play with some tat before they get bored after an hour...

Those little toys were typically sold at visitor attractions etc not supermarkets - in fact they didn't sell toys when I was a kid!

Supermarket toys are cheap, though? I've never seen anything more than £40 unless it's coming up to Christmas and even then, it's not many that are that price. Most are between £5 and £20 in my experience (which would make them a 'pocket money' toy? The whole point is they're cheap enough you don't overly hesitate about putting them in your trolley.

I absolutely hate B&M and Home Bargains for toys. I know people rave about it but every toy my girls have got from there (excluding the wooden musical ones and baby toys for 0+m) have been cheap tat that has literally fell apart within a few weeks. And quite dangerously, too. Lots of small parts I've had to frantically bin before my toddler chokes on them.

I really don't know what more you expect. More expensive/branded/household name toys tend to be better. Harsh, but it's true. The more expensive plastic ones tend not to fall to bits within a few uses, and Montessori style ones have always been eye-wateringly pricy at times. Unfortunately, you do get what you pay for.

That being said, Asda have a decent selection of toy cars, Peppa Pig merchandise and the like, all for affordable prices and have been made really well. Maybe it's worth looking at a different supermarket if yours isn't up to scratch.

Pocket money toys is tat

My sons both love a 60p when they have been good boys, why not start collecting these? Not much you can get for 60p these days.

The price of magazines now that’s a waste of money, £4.99 for crap!

No they should stamp out cheap plastic toys.
Judging by the amount of McDonald's plastic bits that end up in landfill.
I think McDonald's should go with paper toys full time too.

Demand for throwaway plastic crap has dropped. Lots of people choose to subscribe to toy lending services etc to enjoy new toys.

The trend is to own less cheap throwaway crap and focus on experiences instead.

Also these things used to be manufactured relatively cheaply to the UK market when economies like china were poorer and their labour costs were minimal.

These things now cost more due to higher wages, better working conditions, the relative weakness of the pound, the move to environmentally friendlier materials and manufacturing process, higher fuel costs to transport etc.

There are better options OP. Things like paper colouring books or magazines can be inexpensive and more easily recycled at least.

Also OP you can get lots for less than £10!

Sets of colouring pencils, sticker books, there are small lego models for £8.99 etc,

Also amazon has undercut everyone on the sort of thing you are after, theres no money to be made for supermarkets selling it.

Children dont need to be bought new toys "for being good" either. Mine only gets stuff at christmas and birthday, between the two I just top up basic craft materials that run out.

I think basically they take up too much shelving space and theres no profit or real demand for them anymore. The money is in food and clothing for the supermarkets.

They usually have cars, play dog pots at about £1.50, bubbles, but I would say the more girl bits are quite expensive and plastic. It's hard to pull out the nice bits from lots of the overpriced tut. Email Tesco and after for a pocket money display for £5 or under. Their own brand puzzles are lovely for toddlers I'm sure they could come up with something. If you don't ask you don't get.

@BooBahBoo

Supermarket toys are cheap, though? I've never seen anything more than £40 unless it's coming up to Christmas and even then, it's not many that are that price. Most are between £5 and £20 in my experience (which would make them a 'pocket money' toy? The whole point is they're cheap enough you don't overly hesitate about putting them in your trolley.

I absolutely hate B&M and Home Bargains for toys. I know people rave about it but every toy my girls have got from there (excluding the wooden musical ones and baby toys for 0+m) have been cheap tat that has literally fell apart within a few weeks. And quite dangerously, too. Lots of small parts I've had to frantically bin before my toddler chokes on them.

I really don't know what more you expect. More expensive/branded/household name toys tend to be better. Harsh, but it's true. The more expensive plastic ones tend not to fall to bits within a few uses, and Montessori style ones have always been eye-wateringly pricy at times. Unfortunately, you do get what you pay for.

That being said, Asda have a decent selection of toy cars, Peppa Pig merchandise and the like, all for affordable prices and have been made really well. Maybe it's worth looking at a different supermarket if yours isn't up to scratch.

£20 is NOT pocket money! That's present money. More like £1-3.

Maybe some pencils or stickers from the stationery section would be better value.
My daughter loves Frozen 🙄 but the stuff is ridiculously priced.