How to sell toys on Zalando

Zalando’s newest product category is toys. These will be listed in the Kids' assortment. Zalando is expanding the category from wooden and soft toys to include further sub-categories, as detailed below. 

In order to onboard toys, partners will first be assessed from a compliance management point of view. When the partner compliance is assured, the products can move on to the product safety assessment. 

Here it is imperative that partners map the range of toys accurately and according to the Zalando image and content guidelines in order to complete the product safety assessment. 

The toy category is available in 14 of Zalando’s markets. They are currently not available in the UK, NO and CH. 

Partner/self-fulfilment is the only option available.

• The Zalando image guidelines for toys can be found here. 

• The image and content guide for toys and all other categories are available here.

You can find the mapping guide for toys here.

Zalando takes its safety commitments very seriously. That's why toys must go through our product safety process and be approved before they can be made available to sell on Zalando.

Toys must be deemed safe by law. The EU toy sector is regulated by the Safety of Toys Directive 2009/48/EC. This sets out safety criteria and essential requirements which toys must meet before being made available in the EU market. These requirements ensure products are safe and legal, as well as fit for purpose. All applicable products sold on Zalando must be safe in their intended and foreseeable mode of usage. To ensure the safety of articles for children, we implement a risk assessment on products offered by our partners. 

After partner approval via the Product safety questionnaire, a product list is requested from the partner for the risk assessment process. Some products or product documents such as labelling, test reports or technical files are requested and checked by the Product Safety team. 

Risk assessment results are sent to the partner based on the product and document checks. All products can then be onboarded after the product safety approval has been completed, and partner feedback on the findings has been received (if feedback is required).

A toy is defined as: “A product designed or intended, whether or not exclusively, for use in play by children under 14 years of age”.

Mandatory safety requirements must be followed for all products defined as toys. According to the EU’s Safety of Toys Directive 2009/48/EC, non-toy products are clearly mentioned which are not specifically designed for playing by children, such as playground equipment, decorative objects for celebrations, products for collectors, sports equipment (for example, roller skates for children weighing less than 20 kg), and puzzles >500 pieces. 

On the other hand, kids’ products with toy or play elements, such as luggage with riding features for example, should be handled as toys for the product safety assessment.

All products in categories from both new and existing partners are subject to a safety assessment. Once the Product safety assessment is completed, please send it to the Product safety team here.  

The product safety process will start after the contract signing has been completed

Will need to be reassessed when they extend their scope for:

• New markets

• New product categories

• New sub-categories (for example, a partner who has been approved for soft toys would like to sell wooden toys)

The stages of the product safety assessment are outlined as follows:

All safety assessments are done based on the partner declaration. The aim of risk assessment is to determine if products are compliant with the standards listed in the Zalando Partner Program Quality Assurance manual. If an article does not meet these standards, Zalando will reach out to inform you of any compliance gaps and how they can be resolved.

The assessment will be done after the Zalando partner contracts have been signed and the integration process has begun. All internal and external stakeholders will be notified by the Product Safety team about partner account and product scope approvals.

Proactive communication is required on the part of both Zalando and the partner to complete the safety assessment without causing any delay to the planned onboarding. The Product Safety team will notify the partner about the product safety approval, and will also contact the integration manager by email when the assessment is completed. Partner communication will be planned according to the weekly integration report. 

Please be aware that the expected response time to partners is up to eight working days. Please be aware that longer reply times could cause delays during brand readiness, so it is strongly recommended that any partner feedback is shared as quickly as possible. Please find further information on the product safety approval process here. 

Please note that all risk assessments and approval processes are done based upon the partner declaration. It is the partner’s responsibility to provide the requisite information for onboarding and to retain the original documents for the legally required time period.

If your query relates specifically to product safety, please contact the Product safety team directly here.

Find out more about the product safety regulations for toys:

• EU Safety of Toys Directive 2009/48/EC

• Non-toys definition in the Safety of Toys Directive 2009/48/EC