How a Chinese-made toy gets to a US retailer

On the underside of most children's toys on sale in the US you'll find the same three words – "Made in China".

Nearly eight in 10 toys (78.3%) imported into the country in 2024 came from China, according to US government figures. , external

Last year, toys imported from China were worth $9.8bn (£7.4bn), trade figures show. , external

With Christmas on the horizon, the toy industry in the US and elsewhere is about to have its busiest time of the year by far.

As retailers prepare their stocks for the festive rush, be they online giants or "mom-and-pop" physical stores, the BBC World Service's Follow the Money series traces how a toy gets from a factory in China to the US. And where the money goes.

Guangdong province, which neighbours Hong Kong in southern China, is the heart of the country's toy manufacturing industry.

In the city of Dongguan workers on the floor of the Mihox factory pop plastic toys out of steel moulds, and pile them into crates ready for painting.

The company says it employs more than 800 people and makes around 55 million toys a year for the American market, which represents half of its business.

Every toy starts with a design from a customer, such as an American toy company. The factory then makes a prototype, and builds moulds from which plastic parts and other components are formed.

Going from the first idea to finished toy takes one to two years, says Melanie Wang from the Mihox sales team. Much of that is the customer going back to the drawing board. "They modified the design again, again, and again to improve it."

Once the design is signed off, things move more quickly. A mould takes about a month to make, and the production run lasts about three months.

So, how much of the US retail price does the factory get? "About 20%," says Wang.