Event Focus: Spielwarenmesse 2022

TOY FAIR 2022

ONE FOR FUN

One for Fun is firmly moving into the preschool arena with the brand new BB Junior Range making its debut at Toy Fair 2022. This brilliantly designed range brings artistic style and great engineering together to create a unique concept in the nursery space. The key lines for this year are the Junior Drive & Rock collection, combining chunky robust colourful vehicles with a removable musical component. Made to withstand heavy duty handling from toddlers and helping with hand/eye co-ordination, this range is great for those 12 months and up.

Tel: 01603 397129 www.oneforfun.com Stand E39 HUFFY

With nearly 130 years in the industry, Huffy considers every detail when designing products. Its new Disney range includes the Disney Princess Kids’ bike which benefits from a steel split tube and steel unicrown with pressed dropouts. It has a Disney Princess 3D Heart translucent plaque, a rear resin fender and durable training wheels to add stability for young riders.

Tel: 01525 664041 www.unitedwheels.eu Stand B90

1 TWO KIDS

1 two Kids is a leading distributor in the baby and kids market. It all started with Sophie la girafe and now the team also work with BiOBUDDI, 3 Sprouts, Play & Go, nailmatic KIDS and Milestone. 2021 marked a special anniversary for Sophie la giraffe as the brand turned 60 years old and is still as popular as ever, with new products added to the range all the time.

Tel: 01383 735134 www.trade.1two.co.uk Stand F70 RAINBOW DESIGNS

Beatrix Potter’s much-loved Peter Rabbit is commemorating a momentous 120th Anniversary this year and in celebration Rainbow Designs is adding a beautiful new wooden toy collection to its bestselling and timeless Once Upon a Time range. There will be a playful Peter Rabbit and Flopsy Bunny PullAlong, a colourful Wooden Building Blocks Set, a five piece Wooden Shape Puzzle and a 28-piece Domino Set, all featuring the beautiful Beatrix Potter illustrations of Peter Rabbit and his friends.

Tel: 01329 227300 www.rainbowdesigns.co.uk Stand B21

TONIES

Brand partnerships with the likes of Disney, Peppa Pig and favourite CBeebies programmes have helped propel the Toniebox into every child’s orbit as the most coveted toy to get their hands on. The ever-expanding Tonies’ library includes well-known fairy tales, nursery rhymes and modern classics by the likes of Julia Donaldson, as well as a growing variety of engaging educational content.

Tel: 0203 1921492 www.tonies.com Stand C42

Inset: The dedicated Baby and Infant Articles area of the show will be returning for 2022.

EURO VISION

While Covid restrictions may continue across parts of Europe, the organiser of Spielwarenmesse 2022 is looking forward to welcoming exhibitors and visitors back to Nuremberg in February, and is confident it can deliver a safe and successful show. PPS finds out more.

While Covid regulations and restrictions across Europe are causing difficulties and mean that some companies have inevitably needed to change their plans at the last minute, the organiser of Spielwarenmesse 2022 is confident of being able to deliver both a safe and successful show.

Due to run from 2-6 February, Spielwarenmesse eG confirmed in December 2021 that preparations for the show were continuing apace. This followed on from a survey conducted by the organiser which found that the majority of exhibitors and trade visitors have ‘expressly backed’ the show going ahead at the Nuremberg Exhibition Centre. At time of writing, the rules laid out by the Bavarian government continued to allow events and focus on boosters rather than testing. Other trade fairs in Germany have successfully managed a relaunch since the start of the pandemic – with Spielwarenmesse eG saying that this proves that they can be held successfully under the restrictions in place.

Left: MV Sports will be focusing on licences and products which have the most international potential, says joint md Phil Ratcliffe.

For Christine Lawson, md of Eduk8 Worldwide, this will be welcome news as she tells PPS that Spielwarenmesse is “our chance to network with customers on a global scale”.

She comments: “Its sheer size also allows us to absorb trends and innovations in the industry in real life, which makes a huge difference. Seeing our customers and having the chance to meet new ones in person makes all the difference to long-term relationship building. It’s also a long-awaited opportunity to physically show our new products to target audiences, which is a very important part of the sales journey.”

The company’s key product launch will be the Alertz Electronic Noise Management System - an easy to understand traffic light noise warning system that can be used in a variety of applications such as classrooms, libraries, hospitals and special needs settings. With seven different sound level settings, adjustable from as low as 15 decibels, the product has been years in development.

In addition, the company will also be showing its exclusive Mark Makers range. Visitors to the stand will be able to view the activity and story books, which are an introduction to a fun prewriting programme featuring characters Lionel, Archie, Ziggy and Swirlo, who help children develop writing skills through making basic marks. Educationalist Rachel Fay created the award-winning programme, where children aged five months to five years are encouraged to make their mark through play.

Christine continues: “We believe that the increased time parents and children spent together during the pandemic will continue the trend for toys that can be played with together and that provide some kind of learning or exercise opportunity. We have actually already developed the new Rainbow Wave plus our Fitness Dice, where parents and children can play along together in a fun and fitness games.”

Meanwhile, for MV Sports, Spielwarenmesse gives the company a chance to expand its influence into Europe, as joint md Phil Ratcliffe explains to PPS: “We appointed new agents Spider in 2020 and this will be their first opportunity to bring their contacts to the stand.”

Phil says that the company’s Nuremberg stand will be a slightly scaled down version of its London Toy Fair stand, focusing on licences and products which have the most international potential. When it comes to preschool, it will be unveiling new licences which are already in high demand in the UK, such as CoComelon and Bluey, as well as new additions to the uMoVe range. These will include ride-ons, powered vehicles, trikes, bikes, scooters, skates and play tents.

Talking about the potential look and feel of the show, Phil says: “I’m not sure about look and feel, however certain categories such as outdoor are still in high demand. With increasing prices, shipping issues and longer lead times, buyers maybe on the lookout for new opportunities as we slowly emerge from the pandemic. I do think there will be less international visitors, most notably those from Asia and the Americas.”

THE UK PAVILION

Since the organiser of Spielwarenmesse 2022 reaffirmed in December that the event would be going ahead, Stuart Whitehall, account director at the Overseas Fairs Division of the Birmingham Chamber of Commerce – which handles the UK pavilion - says the team has been working “full on” to get things in place.

“We have the largest UK Pavilion since the Chamber started on this show back in 2004,” Stuart tells PPS. There are 30 companies exhibiting within the pavilion including nine newcomers.

Exhibitors in the area – which is in Hall 12.0 – include Brainstorm, Eduk8 Worldwide, First Celtic Toys & Learning, Kidicraft, Pyramid International, Sinco Toys, TTS and Whiz Kid Games among others.

Stuart’s aim with the pavilion this year is simple, he explains: “To attend, finally, a physical show where exhibitors meet as many buyers and customers as possible.”

Below: The 2022 UK pavilion will be the largest since the Chamber started on the show back in 2004. Inset: The Alertz Electronic Noise Management System will be a key launch for Eduk8 Worldwide.

Spielwarenmesse is due to take place from 2-6 February, 2022 at Nuremberg Exhibition Centre. For more information, you can visit www.spielwarenmesse.de/en/.