Fewer toy stores, but remaining ones are bigger amid online competition
The number of toy stores in the Netherlands has declined sharply over the past two decades, dropping from 1,048 in January 2005 to 571 in May 2025, according to new figures obtained by BNR from market research firm Locatus. While physical stores continue to disappear, those that remain have grown significantly in size, with average store surface area increasing by 45 percent during the same period.
In 2005, the average Dutch toy store measured 206 square meters. That has since expanded to 298 square meters. “Not only are toy stores larger on average, but you also increasingly see very large stores,” Gertjan Slob, director of research at Locatus, told BNR. In 2005, there were 24 toy stores in the Netherlands larger than 800 square meters. As of 2025, that number has nearly doubled to 44.
The Irish toy chain Smyths exemplifies the trend toward larger retail spaces. In October 2024, it opened its fourth Dutch location in a former supermarket building in Arnhem, spanning 2,500 square meters, according to retail industry website Retailtrends. The company previously launched a store in the former V&D location inside the Hoog Catharijne shopping center in Utrecht.
The sharp decline in the number of toy stores is primarily linked to the rise of online shopping, which has reshaped the retail landscape over the past 20 years. Toy sellers were among the first and hardest hit compared to retailers in other sectors, Slob noted. Additional pressure came from sector overlap, as non-specialist stores such as drugstores began selling toys.
While the decline appeared to stabilize in recent years, the number of physical toy stores has once again fallen in the past 18 months. Slob said one reason may be the difficulty many independent business owners face in finding successors. Others, still burdened by COVID-related debts, have opted to close their shops permanently.
The growth in average store size is a response to e-commerce. “You can get everything online. So a toy store needs to offer a wide and deep product range. That requires more square meters,” Slob told BNR. Toy retailers must now carry a wide range of brands and cannot rely on selling just a few boxes of Lego or Schleich animal figures.
Retail analysts have previously argued that brick-and-mortar toy stores can compete by offering a more engaging shopping experience. But Slob does not see this trend taking hold in the Netherlands yet. “You don’t see anything here like the Hamleys toy department store in London, where staff are constantly demonstrating games. I also think it would be hard to make something like that profitable,” he said.
One factor contributing to larger retail spaces, according to Slob, is the slight decline in rental prices since 2008, driven by increasing vacancy rates in shopping areas.
Another notable shift is the rise of branded stores owned by manufacturers. Lego now has four locations in the Netherlands, Märklin—known for model trains—has three, and Ravensburger, a game and puzzle maker, also opened three stores in the past year.
These manufacturers are bypassing traditional retail channels. “Online, these brands already have direct contact with their customers. That’s also the aim in the shopping street,” Slob told BNR. “Of course, it also serves a marketing purpose. A store like that helps build a community around the brand.”
These branded stores are not aimed exclusively at children. Slob pointed to specialized Lego sets, including one that allows adults to build a scale model of the Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris.
