Countdown to Toy Fair ’17!

February 13, 2017 | The doors to the 114th North American International Toy Fair will open in just a few days and the Toy Industry Association (TIA) is reminding global buyers, exhibitors, and other play professionals to take part in several special events and educational sessions at the show.

Opening Ceremony

Toy Fair will officially kick off with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 8:55 a.m. on Saturday, February 18. The ceremony will include a parade of beloved costumed characters through the Crystal Palace of the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. More than 30,000 attendees from 100 countries will take over 443,000 net square feet of exhibit space for four jam-packed days of deal making, trend-spotting, and networking.

Knowledge Network

Toy Fair’s Knowledge Network offers both general educational sessions and ones tailored to manufacturers, retailers, inventors, digital media professionals, and more. These seminar highlights include: 

  • ICTI CARE’s Sourcing with Confidence - Supply Chain Opportunities & Risks (Sunday, February 19 from 8-9 a.m.) is a free seminar that will share best practices to reduce toy company supply chain risks and tips for capitalizing on responsible sourcing opportunities.
  • The Toy Trends Briefing (Sunday, February 19 from 4-5 p.m.), where attendees can get an exclusive first look at the top toy trends of 2017. TIA experts will use examples from the show floor to display this year’s trends;
  • TIA’s Global Market Research (Sunday and Monday, February 19 and 20) will cover India and the United States;
  • TIA’s in-depth Toy Safety Update (Monday, February 20 from 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.) will provide news and developments related to toy safety laws and regulations in the U.S. and abroad;
  • Toy Fair’s Creative Factor (Saturday-Tuesday, February 18-21) sessions will share expert advice for creative professionals and entrepreneurs on topics ranging from funding a project, negotiating agreements, innovative technologies and tools, protecting your inventions, and more;
  • The Licensing Content Connection (Saturday-Monday, February 18-20) will feature educational programming created specifically for the world of licensing;
  • Toy Fair’s Independent Thinking track (Sunday and Monday, February 19 and 20) will offer specialty toy shop owners expert-led sessions on how to increase sales by incorporating The Genius of Play initiative into store events and how buyers can connect with suppliers in a digital world.

After-Hours Networking

The Toy of the Year Awards will take place the night before Toy Fair opens, on Friday, February 17 at The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum. The annual gala will honor the best toys and games of the year and celebrate the induction of Peter Eio, former President of LEGO Systems, Inc., Ray Larsen, founder of RLA Marketing, and Sydney Rosen, former chairman of Rose-Art Industries into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame.

Other after-hours events during Toy Fair include TIA’s Young Professionals Network Happy Hour (Saturday, February 18);  Toy Fair’s International Welcome Reception (Saturday, February 18); the Great Canadian Play Date (Sunday, February 19); in addition to a number of activities being hosted by various organizations throughout the show.

Free Tools

Toy Fair Mobile is a free mobile app for all show attendees, allowing users to search exhibitor booths, navigate the show floor, browse educational sessions, locate meeting rooms, access special show promotions, and more. Search “Toy Fair 2017” in the Apple Store or Google Play Store to download the appropriate version for your device. 

The Toy Fair Online Press Room provides retail buyers and members of the media with 24/7 access to exhibitor profiles, press releases, the official Toy Fair event profile, show-related news articles, and live streaming of #TFNY-tagged Tweets and images.

Eager buyers who want to get ahead of the game are also encouraged to check out TIA’s online business-to-business marketplace for toys, ShopToys365.com, which enables registered Toy Fair buyers and exhibiting companies to connect and conduct business online before, during, and after the show.

Toy Fair will take place February 18-21 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City. Check out the show’s full calendar of events or download the free Toy Fair Mobile App.