Touching Base - Toy Fair 2024 - Retailers

We’ll be there!

As Toy Fair celebrates its 70th anniversary this year, exhibitors tell Toy World what they are looking forward to and share their favourite memories of the show.

Dave Middleton - Midco Toymaster/Midco Toy Planet/Freak Treats

I’m taking a scattergun approach to Toy Fair this year – I’ve got appointments from 9 to 5 all three days with a huge range of people, from the big brands such as Lego and Hasbro to smaller companies with some really exciting stuff that we’re just getting started up with, like Heathside Trading and YuMe Toys. Us indies know we can’t compete with the nationals on volume or RRP – that much became very clear in the run-up Christmas - so we need to be searching for toy ranges that fly under the radar a little bit (but not so far under that they’re invisible) and offer us the chance to take them and run with them.

Even if they’re from big suppliers, we need those niche toys. We’re looking for the stuff indies do better than anyone else and that indies either aren’t doing or aren’t doing very well. When you’re dealing with massive brands in supercategories, you’re only able to take a tiny slice of a really big pie. I’m after a smaller pie, but I want all of it.

Pop culture lines were massive for us at Christmas, so we’ll definitely be looking at what’s new there. Anything fan-driven is performing well, so we’ll be after licensed ranges for gaming, anime, manga and movie franchises, no matter whether its collectibles, plush, figures, play sets. With the diary I’ve got lined up, I’m sure I’ll see plenty of new stuff worth a go.

Julie Logan - The Olive Branch, Castle Donington

London Toy Fair is a great opportunity to get away from the day to day and think about what we want to offer in the future. We will be looking for new and innovative wooden and sustainable toys in particular, as well as sensory toys for little ones and interactive toys for older children.

Tim Evans - Toys & Games of Worcester

Disney Lorcana has been a great success for us so I’m looking forward to seeing what is happening with that for 2024. I have no idea what Ravensburger will do next with it so I’m excited for the reveal.

Lego ranges are always really interesting; Lego never fails to give us very, very strong sales, so that’s a stand I always like to visit.

Hopefully I’ll find some surprises too. We like anything that stimulates repeat purchases to keep people coming into the store every week rather than only for one-off gifts. So I’ll be looking at more blind bag collectibles and things like that.

Julia Wingate - The Trading Post, Kingsbridge

At Toy Fair, we’re always on the lookout for new lines and new inventions. Any lines which are more ethically sources with less plastic and more recyclable materials will grab our attention, as this is what many customers are looking for. We also want to see what fun outdoor products we can find. Outdoor toys sell well for us because we’re the by the beach and the countryside and people are increasingly wanting to be outdoors and active.

Andrew Garthwaite - Rexys Reviews – The Dino Den, South Shields

We first attended Toy Fair in 2022 when we were in the process of taking Rexys Reviews to the next step. We were opening a brick-and-mortar store and moving from online only to a permanent home where dino fans of all ages could come and visit us.

As I entered the show, my eyes lit up and I was once again like an excited child being taken to their favourite toy shop for the first time, surrounded by character mascots and toy stands as far as the eye could see. It was at that point I knew my journey had really started. As I explored every aisle, one stand after another, hunting for the best dinosaur products the toy world could offer, I distinctly remember the shocked look on each rep's face when I explained who we were and that I was only going to be selling dinosaur product. I won't lie, some were very apprehensive about it at first but that gave me the chance to explain my vision and only made it all the more exciting for me. Our strategy has worked - we have become an established destination store for all things dino.

Now, as I prepare to attend our 3rd Toy Fair, I will once again be on the hunt to find the newest and most exciting dinosaur-themed products from around the globe. I’ll be meeting up with existing suppliers to see what we have to look forward to throughout 2024 as well as hopefully finding yet more new suppliers so we can continue to grow and bring our customers the newest products in the market. Through attending Toy Fair, we have been lucky enough to be involved in assisting a number of new manufacturers and suppliers to introduce their products to the UK market for the very first time, which is exciting

For anyone that hasn't attended Toy Fair yet, what are you waiting for? It's exciting, mesmerising, overwhelming (in a good way) and thrilling, as well as a great networking opportunity all at the same time.

Stephen Hartfield - Kids Stuff, Sussex & Surrey

This year, I’ll be looking at non-licensed pre-school ranges which is an area we’re planning to expand. As prices from suppliers have gone up, we’re looking for new lines at good prices where we can still make margin.

We are keen to check out Lego’s new lines for 2024. We have already placed an order for the January launches which will be coming in early this month. Pokémon sales have declined a bit, but we’d like to see what’s new for the brand for its big anniversary year.

I’ve been going to Toy Fair for 24 years now. It’s a good place to meet new suppliers and people in the trade to chat about what’s gone well, future lines and what’s new. It’s always a nice way to start the year. opportunity all at the same time.

Ciaran Fitzpatrick - Banba Toymaster, Dublin

At Toy Fair, we’ll be looking for bargains, deals and discounts!

Our next-door neighbour is ‘Mr Smyths’ and we try to offer more than he has. We still stock the major brands but focus on having a wide range; where Smyths will focus on the bestsellers of a range, we can provide a much wider selection – for example they carry around 80 Sylvanian Families products while we stock over 200. We also look at products and brands that our competitors won’t have at all.

Lego is always an interesting stand; they show you black boxes with no pictures on them as they can’t reveal them yet – that’s always a funny one. Ravensburger’s Disney Lorcana has been selling well so we’ll see what’s new there, and we’ll also be checking out Asmodee’s new Star Wars trading card game.

Toy Fair is an important show. It’s a great way to start the year as we meet up with other retailers and suppliers and talk about the previous year and what we learned from it. We do most of our buying at the Toymaster show, but it’s good to see what’s new and what’s coming up before we actually place orders.

Brian Buckly - Blewetts of Hayle, Cornwall

One of the things we’re most looking forward to seeing at Toy Fair is Bayblade X. We’ve been in business for 40 years and stocked Bayblade the first time when it was a massive craze. Now that the new version has been announced, lots of customers have been asking for it so I’m excited to see what happens with that.

It’s always good to be able to build on a successful range with new stock; customers know what they’re getting and, if they enjoyed it, they want more of it. Craft Buddy’s Crystal Art is a range that has been growing with us over the last year, so we will be checking out that stand to find fresh lines we could bring in. We’ll also be seeing what’s new with Keel’s Keeleco plush range, which has been a strong seller.

Karen Haynes - Framlingham Toy Shop, Suffolk

At Toy Fair this year, I’m looking forward to placing a pre-order with Lego which is one of our best-sellers. We are also on the lookout for more arts & crafts type products; we did very well with Craft Buddy last year so we could do with bringing in something else of that type that our customers will enjoy. I’ll be keeping my eyes open for anything different that I think will stand out and can’t wait to see what’s new and exciting this year.

Dan Lovett - The Toy Box, Suffolk

I’d like to find a new craze at Toy Fair; a decent one, not just one which lasts a couple of months. A lot of innovation took a pause when Covid hit and last year, everything was a bit same-y, so I hope this year suppliers will return to creating truly interesting product. I understand it’s difficult now that many things have become so digital, but there must be some ideas out there.

I’m looking forward to seeing what’s new with Pokémon as that’s our top seller. Our collectibles offering is very strong so it would be great to discover something new that we could bring in to build on that range. If we can stock items that the big boys don’t, all the better.

Carol Glennon - Fagan Toymaster, Westmeath, Ireland

Our best-seller last year was Soccer Bot which we put up on TikTok and reached about 4.5m views. It was the first innovative toy for that category and age group we had seen in a long time. Older boys are difficult to cater for unless they’re into collectibles or craft, so we will have our eyes out for sporty and innovative toys along the lines of Soccer Bot. Using TikTok really helped us to push particular lines, and Biggies was another range which took off after we posted a demo on social media.

Toy Fair is always a great experience. All the new things you see in January stick in our heads and help us to plan and stock for the rest of the year. It’s always preferable to see the products in person and find out what newness is coming.

Joseph Yap - QT Toys and Games, London

We attend Toy Fair for two reasons –to see our existing suppliers and what’s new with them, and to look out for any new companies we haven’t worked with before. There seem to be fewer new companies emerging at the moment though, but we still go with an open mind.

Best-sellers for us at the moment are Lego and Squishmallows so we will be very interested to see any new collections, and fidget toys from Character Options – most recently the Tap Tap Smart Fidget – have sold well, so we’ll see if we can add any new lines in that area.

Last year’s Toy Fair was extremely positive. After Covid, it was the first year that things felt back to normal. The show felt really busy and stands were much bigger; now everything has settled down, I’m looking forward to seeing the turnout this year.

Debbie Maloney - Austins Department Store, Devon

We’ll be visiting the Lego stand to see its new launches which are always exciting and kick off our year of new stock. We will also be looking to expand our store’s offering of gifts so we will have our eyes open for gifting products for older teenagers and adults.

Usman Ahmed - Toys 4 You, Sutton Coldfield

At Toy Fair, I’m hoping to see something innovative, interactive and different which could become a trend. I feel like there wasn’t a lot of innovation in 2023 launches. It’s essential as an independent toy shop surrounded by big competitors to stock things that no one else has - or be the first in the market before a line hits the big guys like supermarkets.

We also want to build on our party range, to offer more variety and shopping for special occasions, so I will also be looking at fun party bag fillers and party ranges.

Andy Tipping - Bagatelle Toys, Henley

This January, we will be looking for some niche and new toys which are interactive. A good price point and good margin are also very important. A lot of toys get tested in the US before releasing into the UK so we also like to hear what the response was in the US and have evidence that they will do well here. One range which we’ll be targeting is pre-school. We already stock VTech, so we will see what is new for them, although the Toot-Toot Drivers range is always going to sell because they continually bring out different variations. We’ll also be looking for anything we can add to our pre-school wooden toys offering; this always sells well because customers know they are getting longevity at accessible price points.

Katharine Butcher - Wigwam Toys, Brighton

I’ve never been to Toy Fair, so I don’t know what to expect. I’m hoping to be absolutely blown away. We stock a lot of art & craft lines and I find that much of the packaging is quite feminine and can put boys off, unless they are particularly artsy. I’d like to see some more gender-neutral packaging. We don’t seem to have quite as many options for boys in our shop so I would love to build some relationships with suppliers who can help us expand this offering a bit more.

Sarah Borastero - Kids Stuff Toymaster, Wells

It’s our first time back since 2020 so we’re excited to see people face to face again. We recently took on Big Potato Games and Kluster has been our most popular game along with Herd Mentality, True Crime Stories and Colour Brain. It will be brilliant to meet them and see what other games they have. We also stock Asmodee games, and Pokémon is a best-seller, so we will be visiting thatstand, along with Orchard Toys which has been an amazing company for us for the last 8-10 years.

Amanda Alexander - Giddy Goat Toys, Manchester

Based on our demand at the moment and what we think will continue this year, we will be looking for fun and interesting lines under £20, as big-ticket items really haven’t been selling. We have booked appointments with Orchard Toys, which is always a good supplier for us; Character Options, which has a great range of new pocket-money items; Lego, always a bestseller and AB Gee. The latter has such a variety of products to see, the stand is always worth a visit.

I really enjoy Toy Fair. We will meet with current suppliers and see their new lines and check out new potential suppliers too. It’s always better to see products in the flesh rather than online or in a catalogue, and events like Toy Fair remind us of the strength of the toy community which is really important for independents. It gives us a lift and sense of belonging.