Every over a century, all of the major players in the toy industry have gathered in New York City to hold their annual trade show, Toy Fair New York. This is where all of the big names in the toy industry showcase most of their new products for the next year or so, making major announcements about new toy lines and license acquisitions, and giving time for these toy companies to speak one-on-one with members of the press and with the vendors who actually stock their products in their stores. The show has been running annually since 1903, but this year, unfortunately, Toy Fair New York has been cancelled completely.
The Toy Association sent out a press release this week announcing that this year’s Toy Fair New York event would be cancelled outright. Toy Fair New York typically takes place in February but had already been pushed back to May 2021 due to the ongoing global pandemic. The Toy Association has wisely decided to play it safe as New York City is hardly a safe environment for any kind of large gathering as the global Covid-19 pandemic continues to ravage the world populace.
While this news is definitely disappointing for many, we do have a small silver lining! The Toy Association is still hoping to hold Toy Fair Dallas in October of 2021. This will obviously all depend on the state of the world come October and how well the recently released Covid-19 vaccine is working among the masses.
It is not currently known how many of the major companies in the toy industry are going to handle this recent change of events. While it is possible that some may simply hold off until Toy Fair Dallas in Fall 2021, it is also entirely likely that many of them may hold their own online events to announce their new upcoming products for the coming year.
Toy Fair New York is scheduled for a hopeful return to the Javits Center and some sense of normalcy in February 2022. As always, Toy Fair New York is not an event that is open to the public, and it will be restricted to toy industry people, vendors, and members of the press.
You can check out the full press release from The Toy Association below!
The Toy Association Sets 2021-2022 Trade Show & Marketplace Plans
Focus will be on Serving all via Toy Fair Dallas 2021, Toy Fair New York 2022, and Toy Fair Everywhere
January 7, 2021 | As COVID-19 remains insufficiently resolved, The Toy Association has announced that it will not conduct an interim trade show in New York for 2021, which was previously planned to take place May 1 to 4. Plans for Toy Fair Dallas remain on course for October 2021 and providing an ongoing mix of physical and digital business opportunities for the industry will be the Association’s focus this year.
“Our foremost consideration is the health and well-being of the global toy and play community and setting a clear path forward,” said Steve Pasierb, president & CEO of The Toy Association. “We want to provide our exhibitors, retail buyers, and the larger toy and play community with certainty on important destination shows and the ability to take advantage of immediate opportunities through our year-round buying and selling platform.”
As uncertainty about the pandemic persists, The Toy Association remains keyed into what is possible − concentrating on its digital business offerings; bringing the industry back together in person for Toy Fair Dallas 2021 from Tuesday, October 5 through Thursday, October 7; and looking ahead to Toy Fair New York 2022 from Saturday, February 19 through Tuesday, February 22 in a newly expanded Jacob K. Javits Center, which will allow for new exhibitors, new educational offerings, expanded networking opportunities, and more.
Toy Fair Everywhere digital market weeks held throughout 2020 successfully helped toy businesses forge ahead amid the pandemic and brought in more than 3,000 buyers from 60+ countries, proving the global potential of the platform for doing business despite travel restrictions and different time zones. This February, the digital B2B marketplace will further establish its position as the toy industry’s first and only year-round platform, making new business opportunities possible every day.
The Toy Association will also collaborate with additional prospective retailers throughout 2021 on virtual private product preview events, which in 2020 created new avenues for nearly 400 toymakers to get their products on shelves. The next virtual event with specialty retailer Claire’s is scheduled to take place February 4.
“These proven digital opportunities should continue to be a critical part of every toy businesses’ mixed sales and marketing strategy,” said Marian Bossard, executive vice president of global market events at The Toy Association. “As we look forward to our time together at Toy Fair Dallas 2021 and Toy Fair New York 2022, the proof is in the pudding as to the potential of these digital tools and events to serve our members in reaching new audiences.”
Are you bummed we won’t get our usual mountain of news from Toy Fair New York in February? Or are you more relieved that they have decided to cancel the event until next year? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below and be sure to stick around Geek Anything for all of the latest toy news!
