A GLASGOW toy distributor renowned for his ability to spot a trend early is hoping to see a sharp increase in profits after being “sharp off the mark” in the fidget spinner craze which has swept across playgrounds in recent weeks.

Martin Grossman, owner of the family-owned H. Grossman, said sales had been “absolutely fantastic”.

“It’s the best thing to have happened in the last few years,” he said, revealing that to date the business has sold about 2.5 million of the units. He expects to sell a further 1.5 million this year.

“About three months ago we saw some samples of the products and saw it was a good idea. We were sharp off the mark,” said Mr Grossman.

H. Grossman is an importer and distributor of toys established more than 70 years ago. The business was sold by Mr Grossman in 2015 but was reacquired nine months later.

Fidget Spinners, which easily fit in the palm of a hand, have three-prongs stemming from a central disc. To spin, the user holds the central disc and flicks a prong. The weight of the bearings inside the prongs means they quickly accelerate into a blur. They retail for between £1.99 and £19.99, depending on quality.

In addition to distributing to the likes of Smyths, The Works and The Entertainer in the UK, Grossman also distributes internationally. He said trends such as this last for just three to six months so ensuring stock is ordered and supply can meet demand is crucial.

But he added that he had some “short run” items that have been selling for 20 years. “It’s quite amazing. Alien Eggs came out in 1999 and we’re up to 17.5 million pieces sold and they are still selling well.”

His team visited manufacturers in the Far East to ensure the quality of the stock, insisting that high-quality bearings were used, to enable spinners to spin faster and for longer.

“When we went to factories, we insisted on brand new clean bearings, we insisted on them being treated with anti-rust oil and that the bearings were properly put into the unit. All these little things make a good spinner,” he said.

Mr Grossman’s aptitude in spotting toy trends saw him get in early on both alien eggs and loom bands.

“It is 46 years of experience and gut feeling, nothing else,” he said.

Mr Grossman said he wouldn’t be able to calculate how much profit he had generated from the sales because if demand decreases and leaves him with too much stock there will be no profit. “If I’m clever enough and I get it clean, then I’ll be smiling,” he said.

His parents founded the business in 1946. In 2015 Mr Grossman sold up, with his own children not interested in becoming involved.

But just nine months later he assumed control again. In the company’s 2015 accounts Mr Grossman wrote that the new owners “had overseen a decline in turnover and did not introduce new product lines”.

The company slumped to a £590,000 loss, following a £1.75m pre-tax profit in 2014.

Mr Grossman said it would take a year to get the business back to where it had been, but since taking back control “we have blossomed and are back up there on top again,” he said.

“The figures look really good, we’re back into running it properly. None of our customers dropped us because we sold the company. The [previous owners] just didn’t have the right stock to sell, but now we do and it is picking up fantastically.

“Not only are we going to be up on last year, we’re going to be in profit again,” he said.