Is black pencil profitable to sell on Amazon United Kingdom?

The niche generates £149K/yr across 19 tracked products. 90-day search growth is +6.3%. Flapen's verdict: Skip it (39/100).

How competitive is the black pencil niche?

6 brands and 87 sellers compete. The top 5 products take 64% of clicks and top 5 brands hold 99% of demand.

What do buyers complain about in black pencil?

Top complaints mined from reviews: Color, Advertised Vs Actual Product, Sharpness. The return rate is 0.6%.

When does demand for black pencil peak?

Demand peaks in Nov–Dec; the busiest month runs 2.0× the quietest.

What does it cost to enter the black pencil niche?

Listings span £3.08–£243.12; the average listing price is £40.48 (sweet spot $15–$100). The average incumbent carries 2,786 reviews — the moat a new listing must climb.

black pencil

Skip it

Brand-locked demand (top 5 brands take 99% of clicks) — this niche doesn't clear our bar today.

Returns

Incredible0.6%

return rate — above 5% kills the launch gate

Avg price

Incredible£40.48

avg listing price — sweet spot $15–$100

Review moat

Okay2,786.42

avg incumbent reviews — the moat a new listing must climb

Competition

Okay64%

top-5 click share — leaders hold, buyers still browse

Conversion

Okay2.8%

search→purchase rate — share of searches ending in a sale

Price range

Okay£3.08–£243.12

cheapest to priciest tracked listing — scored on the share inside $15–$100

Growth

Okay+6.3%

90-day search growth — must beat 0% to launch

Market size

Okay£149K

£149K/yr · 130K searches

Quality gap

Bad4.6★

avg incumbent rating — lower means beatable quality

Brand share

Bad99%

top-5 brand share — brand-locked demand

According to Flapen's Amazon United Kingdom niche tracking, black pencil is a £149K/yr Amazon United Kingdom market (130K searches/yr). The top 5 brands hold 99% of demand. Demand peaks in Nov–Dec. Verdict: Skip it — 39/100.

Data updated Jul 29, 2026 · scored weekly · How we score niches

black pencil market data

Units sold / yr: 4K–5K; avg 100–250/product
Revenue / yr: £162K–£202K; units × avg price
Conversion rate: 2.8%
Avg BSR: #217
Page quality: 0%
Prime: 100%
Sponsored: 42%
Out of stock: 1.7%
Avg brand age: 59 months
Avg seller age: 171 days

Competition & brand share

The top 5 products take 64% of clicks — established leaders, but buyers still shop beyond them.

Brands

6 falling

Sellers

Top-5 brand share

99%

Top 20: 100%

Top-5 click share

64%

Top 20: 100%

Open market

Faber-Castell88%
CRAYOLA6%
STAEDTLER3%
KALOUR PDAS2%
Peter Pauper Press1%
Ohuhu1%
Open — no brand owns it (0%)

Demand & seasonality

Weekly Amazon search volume, last 102 weeks — +6.3% search growth over the last 90 days.

Peak months: Nov, Dec · busiest ÷ quietest = 2.0×

Open Trend

Top black pencil search terms

faber castell polychromos46K/yr +22.0%2.3% conv.
polychromos colouring pencils31K/yr -6.7%1.6% conv.
polychromos10K/yr +28.8%1.3% conv.
skin tone pencils10K/yr +18.1%6.7% conv.
skin colour pencils9K/yr +10.8%6.7% conv.
polychromos pencils8K/yr -24.8%1.5% conv.
faber-castell polychromos6K/yr +4.3%3.0% conv.
faber castell polychromos pencils4K/yr -15.3%3.1% conv.
skin tone colouring pencils4K/yr -43.3%7.9% conv.
faber castell colouring pencils polychromos3K/yr +12.9%2.6% conv.

All search terms

Top black pencil products on Amazon

Each bubble is one product — market share against review moat; bubble size tracks estimated sales, color grades how beatable the incumbent looks.

Beatable (≤4.3★) Contested Strong incumbent (>4.7★)

All 19 tracked products in this niche — three views at once, no toggling.

Top sellers

by 90-day click share

Faber-Castell Art & Graphic Polychromos Colour Pencil Multicoloured Tin of 36 for Art Craft Drawing Sketching Home School University Colouring

Faber-Castell£40.734.7★607 rev

Faber-Castell Art & Graphic Polychromos Colour Pencil Multicoloured Tin of 24 for Art Craft Drawing Sketching Home School University Colouring

Faber-Castell£27.314.8★5,500 rev

Faber-Castell Art & Graphic Polychromos Colour Pencil Multicoloured Tin of 120 Art Craft Drawing Sketching Home School University Colouring

Faber-Castell£142.264.9★6,559 rev

Faber-Castell Art & Graphic Polychromos Colour Pencil Multicoloured Tin of 12 for Art Craft Drawing Sketching Home School University Colouring

Faber-Castell£14.204.7★3,233 rev

Faber-Castell Art & Graphic Polychromos Colour Pencil Multicoloured Tin Of 60 For Art Craft Drawing Sketching Home School University Colouring

Faber-Castell£62.804.8★4,332 rev

Newest

by launch date

Ohuhu Colouring Pencils 72 Blendable High Pigmentation Soft and Thick Core 4mm Oil-based Lead Coloured Pencils for Professionals Artists Adults Students Drawing Sketching Portrait - Halawa Series

Ohuhu£27.25873 rev

1y ago

KALOUR PDAS 36 Skin Tones Colouring Pencils Portrait Set Oil Based Prefabricated Drawing Pencils for Beginners Adults Artist Colouring Book Drawing Sketching Art Project with Light Fastness Ratings

KALOUR PDAS£8.05449 rev

2y ago

Faber-Castell Art & Graphic Polychromos Colour Pencil Gift Set Mixed Media Multicoloured Polychromos Gift Set Art Craft Drawing Sketching Home School University Colouring

Faber-Castell£56.5639 rev

2y ago

Faber-Castell Colour Pencils Black Edition - Skin Tones x 12

Faber-Castell£5.321,378 rev

3y ago

Peter Pauper Press Skin Tone Coloured Pencils (24 soft-core high pigment pencils for skin tones and faces)

Peter Pauper Press£7.4044 rev

5y ago

What buyers say about black pencil

What buyers praise and complain about, mined from review topics.

What buyers love

Color27%

“beautiful colours”

Quality-Overall16%

“The quality of that pencils is well worth the money”

Value For Money15%

“Value for Money”

Pen/Pencil Quality12%

“Great pencils”

Drawing Experience4%

“Thank you I love it Ohuhu Colouring Pencils, 72 Blendable High quality 💯 perfect and easy and soft I love it 💖 when I use my color book and sketchbook for my art I love it 💖💞🥰”

Soft Feel4%

“is very very smooth”

Durability3%

“Do not break as much as other pencils of wax”

Ease Of Use3%

“easy to use”

Grip2%

“Easy to use because they are easy to grip”

Advertised Vs Actual Product2%

“Just as described”

What buyers complain about

Color22%

“there aren't any colours that suit a dark skin tone”

Advertised Vs Actual Product8%

“I am happy with the product although I think the description is quite misleading when you look at the picture”

Sharpness8%

“These do not sharpen well at all”

Quality-Overall5%

“lacking diversity”

Display Colors4%

“But no names of colours on the pencils”

Nib/Tip Quality3%

“some of the pencils arrived with tips already broken even though they were very well wrapped”

Product Condition3%

“Pencils already been used”

Hard Feel3%

“A little hard”

Paper Quality3%

“Only used of cheap paper so far”

Ease Of Use2%

“the print on the pencil is extremely difficult to read”

Top return reasons

Quality-Overall14%

Value For Money13%

Color11%

Advertised Vs Actual Product10%

Display Colors8%

Size-Overall8%

Sharpness7%

Functionality-Overall5%

Scratch Resistance3%

Paper Quality2%

Common questions

Is black pencil profitable to sell on Amazon United Kingdom?: The niche generates £149K/yr across 19 tracked products. 90-day search growth is +6.3%. Flapen's verdict: Skip it (39/100).
How competitive is the black pencil niche?: 6 brands and 87 sellers compete. The top 5 products take 64% of clicks and top 5 brands hold 99% of demand.
What do buyers complain about in black pencil?: Top complaints mined from reviews: Color, Advertised Vs Actual Product, Sharpness. The return rate is 0.6%.
When does demand for black pencil peak?: Demand peaks in Nov–Dec; the busiest month runs 2.0× the quietest.
What does it cost to enter the black pencil niche?: Listings span £3.08–£243.12; the average listing price is £40.48 (sweet spot $15–$100). The average incumbent carries 2,786 reviews — the moat a new listing must climb.