Fall Toy Preview® Event Brings Buyers and Toymakers Together in Dallas

Spirits were high at the Toy Industry Association’s (TIA) Fall Toy Preview® in Dallas last week as hundreds of exhibitors met with buyers from long lead and mass market retail outlets to strike business deals for the holiday 2010 shopping season.   Plans were also introduced for enhancements to next year’s show.

The third in an annual series, this by-appointment-only event is designed to give toy buyers from the mass retail sector a central marketplace in which to meet one-on-one with their vendors 12-15 months in advance of in-store delivery.  To participate, exhibitors must currently sell to mass market accounts; all products shown must be available for fourth quarter sales in the following year.  Buyers and trade guests from more than thirty countries and representing a very broad spectrum of the retail community were present.

“Reports from the show floor from Dallas were extremely positive,” said Marian Bossard, TIA vice president of meetings and events.  “Everyone we spoke to said that their meetings were very productive.”

During the show, Bossard and her team were joined by staff of ECRM® (Efficient Collaborative Retail Marketing) to conduct meetings with major retailers and exhibitors to discuss the planned introduction of ECRM technology and event support to further enhance buyer-manufacturer interaction during Fall Toy Preview 2010. 

ECRM business solutions facilitate the scheduling and conduct of highly efficient planning sessions scheduled between buyers and sellers to review new items, marketing initiatives and strategic direction.  Open meetings and one-on-one sessions were held during FTP ’09 to solicit input from buyers and toymakers about how best to incorporate the ECRM process into Fall Toy Preview.

“The input we received was exactly what we needed to help shape our plans for 2010,” said Bossard.  “We encourage everyone to ‘stay tuned’ as we announce details of this exciting new initiative to further enhance the Fall Toy Preview experience.”

Fall Toy Preview 2010 will be October 5-8 at the Dallas Market Center; additional information and registration information for booth space is available via the TIA event management team.