Toy Prices Heading Into the 2026 Holidays: What We Are Watching
Freight is down, licensing is up, and the discount calendar has shifted about two weeks earlier.
Speed Champions sits in an unusual spot: licensed, cheap per set, and restocked often enough that patience actually pays.
We watched every set in the line for three months and logged the price every day. Two patterns came out of it.
First, the four-stud cars bottom out around 30% off and stay there for weeks. Second, the eight-stud sets move less often but drop harder when they do.
Freight is down, licensing is up, and the discount calendar has shifted about two weeks earlier.
Three decades of merchandise, and only a narrow slice of it is worth tracking as an investment.
Six titles that survive repeat play, sorted by how long they actually hold attention.
The number everyone quotes is useful inside a theme and nearly useless across themes. Here is why.