Target Program to Open Doors for Toy Inventors at Fall Toy Preview

August 6, 2018 | As part of a program launched in February at Toy Fair 2018, toy inventors and designers are once again invited to apply for an exclusive opportunity to present their ideas to Target decision makers attending The Toy Association’s Fall Toy Preview in Dallas, TX this October. 

Target’s Open Innovation Project creates a path for cutting-edge toy inventors and designers to present their new product concepts, even those in the early stage of development, via face-to-face meetings at the fall marketplace.

The application submission deadline is Thursday, August 23; all submissions must include both the completed form and a 90-second uploaded video. Applicants will be asked to provide information including the product’s target audience and whether the product is new to the toy and children’s product entertainment space. Additionally, inventors must answer whether they have done any market research, utility patent searches, engineering plans, cost analysis, and produced any prototypes, among other questions.

Selected applicants will be notified of their acceptance the week of September 10 (and no later than Wednesday, September 12), and will be asked to participate in a training webinar, “Perfecting your Pitch,” on September 20 from 2 to 3 p.m. (Eastern).

The in-person pitch session with Target buyers will take place Thursday, October 4 at the Dallas Market Center. (The Fall Toy Preview registration fee will be waived for those participating in the program; however, hotel expenses and travel to Dallas are the responsibility of the selected applicant.)

The Toy Association is not involved in the review and selection process and serves only in the capacity of sharing this opportunity with the toy and children’s entertainment community and through the facilitation of notices and on-site execution.