Shops selling AI-powered companion toys are drawing heavy foot traffic at the Yiwu Global Digital Trade Center in Jinhua, Zhejiang. Relying on Yiwu's mature small commodity supply chain, merchants are integrating large model technology into plush dolls, pushing the toy category from a manufacturing model toward a technology-enabled one.
Compared with ordinary plush toys, AI companion toys carry a higher average order value. Foreign trade orders continue to grow, with products selling to multiple countries across Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Europe, where overseas buyers are placing orders eagerly.
The DIY and craft category is also selling well overseas. At Yiwu International Trade City, merchants have turned commodity accessories into curated "cultural DIY kits". One seller assembles 3D pearl painting sets, which she initially sold as single plush toys before noticing customers were buying the kits for their own assembly. She now produces more than 10,000 units a day, which sell out almost as soon as they arrive. About 80% of her output goes to South America, the Middle East and Russia.
The model relies on Yiwu's accessory supply chain, where beads, fittings, tools and packaging can all be bought in small quantities starting from a single unit. Merchants can select materials in the morning and have samples produced the same afternoon, changing colors, themes or packaging to create a new product.
Marketing has shifted toward overseas social media. A seller of 3D pearl painting kits in the US market saw sales take off around the summer-to-Halloween seasonal window, as young consumers stretched out their Halloween purchasing cycle. Merchants responded with cute themed designs, and small creators are using AI to cut short production-process videos that reach millions of views without on-camera talent or paid promotion.
Observers note that the entry barrier to this kind of business has fallen sharply, as supply chain, AI tools and logistics can all be borrowed in Yiwu. The only thing a merchant needs to supply is the idea of combining beauty in a particular way.
Source: People's Daily Zhejiang Channel / Yiwu Business Daily / Sohu News
