Spielwarenmesse, the international toy fair in Nuremberg/Germany, the world’s biggest toy fair was wonderful this year. I am grateful to have been able to be there, to see this 2023 event first-hand.
I met with plenty of Aussie suppliers who were there as well as some people from businesses not currently in Australia. Some were visiting while others were in the stands of their suppliers.
The sheer size of this event is extraordinary – way bigger than any trade show in Australia. Think the big Melbourne gift fair and multiply that by 10 or more. Yes, it is that big.
But size is not everything. It’s the innovation on show that I loved.
It is interesting seeing toy retailers from the US who I met at the New York toy fair now making the trip to Nuremburg. It makes sense as it is the first big toy show of the 2023 year.
Product launches in Nuremburg will not hit Australia in many cases until late in 2023. having an advance insight into this is wonderful, useful. Early insights into the trends toy designers and makers see as important help too.
A couple of the trend highlights that interested me were the integration of tech, AI specifically as well as mobility products.
Getting around the event was extraordinary. In a day, 25,000 steps is nothing at this event. But in some halls, there were displays of delight and nostalgia. As is always the case at this trade show, the model train displays are a hit.
I appreciate not everyone can get to trade shows like Spielwarenmesse. I am here for newsXpress of course, to meet suppliers to the group, find new suppliers and to collect and share insights with group members. The trip has commercial value.
Thanks to better flight prices between Australia and Europe compared to flying two the US, it is economically valuable to be here, especially since in a week it can be a two trade show trip. But more on that another time.
That so many Australian suppliers are here speaks to the importance of this show in Nuremburg to their business back home in Australia.
Are there still toy brands out there that place restrictions on who can sell their products and how they can be sold? I know LEGO used to (and may still) have requirements that would make it basically impossible for any newsagent I have ever seen to range any of their products.
Jonathan it still happens. The lesson in, though, that the suppliers who do this are not worth having. The best way we can compete with mass retailers is to not stock what they have.