Talking Shop

Talking Shop Shelf life

At Toymaster, Rachael, Caroline and Gabriela made the most of every minute, and grabbed a selection of indie retailers for a catchup on their time at the show and how business is going for them. Thank you to all those who made time to speak to us.

Jack Strachan - Strachans Inverurie, Aberdeenshire, Scotland

I love the Toymaster May Show. Up in the northeast of Scotland, we don’t see that many reps or agents, so it’s great to come down here, meet everyone face to face, see the products and get some inspiration. I make the trip every single year. Our trading is built around this show, so it’s vital we come here and take advantage of everything it has to offer.

There have been some brilliant deals at this year’s Toymaster show. It seems like a lot of companies have focused on enhancing the margins for us indies, so if you chose to miss the show then unfortunately you’ve missed out on some cracking offers. Mainstays such as Pokémon, Lego and Spin Master remain really strong, but we’ve placed a lot of focus on finding newer, smaller companies to work with. I’ve been chatting with the lovely people at Ditty Bird Books, they have a lovely range and were really keen to help us out.

As retailers, you have to take a gamble on untested ranges here and there. You can’t stay stillwe all need to be moving forward. Certainly, that’s what my customers expect. In Inverurie, we’re lucky to see the same faces most weeks, so offering something fresh and new puts a smile on those faces and introduces some excitement to the shopping experience. When you find little quirky companies and brands, they become another incentive for consumers to come and shop with us.

I am always optimistic, regardless of what’s going on out there, and the Toymaster May Show does nothing but bolster that optimism. It’s a springboard for the rest of the year. OK, January to May has been tough, but it’s the same every year, then you come to Harrogate and you realise how much there is to play for in the second half. Bring it on.

Mary and Marcella Creedon - Mary’s Toymaster, Macroom, County Cork

The show has been busy and really good for us. As usual, the atmosphere is wonderful and it’s a great opportunity to network. We didn’t do much buying at Toy Fair in London, but we’ve come here with the intention to place plenty of orders. We already knew which ranges we wanted, but at a show like this you always come across a few surprises too. We prepare a business report prior to the show which tells us our stock levels for each supplier, what they did for us last year and so on, and we take that spreadsheet with us to each meeting so we can all see at a glance what worked and what didn’t. This system works well for us. Of course, there are plenty of new, untested lines that we may not have seen before, so it’s down to our discretion whether or not we give those a go. Lego is always a best-seller, and we really like Reydon Sports too. We’ve placed an order for the first time ever with Skillmatics, which has some lovely products on show.

A lot of people here, suppliers and retailers alike, have been talking about the state of business at the moment. Although some companies aren’t doing as well as they were this time last year, there remains a lovely sense of camaraderie. It feels like we’re all in it together, and that if you are experiencing issues, Toymaster is there to support you. I’m going to come away from this show feeling much better about things.

Ciaran Fitzpatrick and Maurice Doyle - Banba Toymaster, Dublin

MD: It’s been a really good show so far this year. The Toymaster Show is one of the most important events of the year for us. We’ve come over from Dublin and we’re staying for the whole three days.

CF: Our best-selling item of the year has been Littlest Pet Shop; we have sold huge amounts of them. We’ve also done well with the Asmodee Star Wars cards. We are looking forward to seeing the Lego Simpsons Mini Figures, because there seems to be demand for them.

MD: We’re looking at prices and trying to get a bit of extra margin, like everybody else, due to the current economic climate. Mattel has been helping us out with this quite a bit, which we greatly appreciate.

CF: We’re trading up so far this year. April was a bit of a rough month, probably due to the early Easter break, but for the rest of the year we’ve been doing quite well; we’re a couple of points ahead. Dublin city centre has changed a bit as the streets have been pedestrianised; this has worked in our favour as a lot of people are now walking by the shop and coming in.

MD: The way the Toymaster Show is set up, with the social side and the business side melding into one, makes it a really positive and enjoyable show. There are a lot of offers here, so a lot of business is done, and many Christmas orders are placed. The show itself is built on positivity.

Brendan Will - Will’s Toy Shop, Aberdeen

Despite this year being quieter than previous Toymaster shows I’ve visited, I’ve had the chance to speak with many new suppliers about upcoming ranges and networked with plenty of trade experts, which is always a positive. The information we exchange is invaluable.

I’ve enjoyed visiting the stands of companies I haven’t worked with for a while, including Canal Toys, which has a really interesting slime range. The So Slime 1kg Giant Bucket for £10 looks fantastic value and I think would sell well in my shop, as kids tend to enjoy messy play and getting their hands on slime. We see strong sales from plush toys, especially from brands like Ty, so visiting that stand was a must, with lots of new lines to investigate.

Although I have found the last 12 months to be quite slow in terms of sales, the show has given me the chance to see lots of new products from all different categories and price points. Seeing product ‘in the flesh’ is always inspirational and it has given me ideas on how to be a bit more competitive. I will leave the show ready to make an action plan on the ranges I fancy stocking, which should help turn things around in our store for the later part of the year.

Emma Dadswell - Toys N Tuck, Southend-On-Sea, Essex

We actually arrived in Harrogate on Sunday, had a lovely breakfast at Betty’s and a sneak peek around the show on the Monday before it opened. Everyone seems pretty positive even though trade has been down recently – we all know Christmas is coming!

For me, this show is about planning ahead. It almost doesn’t matter what’s happening at the moment, because it’s the festive season that’s make or break for us, so we’ve got plenty of time to get ourselves sorted and ensure we’ve got the best toys on the shelves come autumn/ winter. I came to Toymaster knowing that I’d be ordering the half-price catalogue lines, getting those done and filed away. I also knew which suppliers are offering window displays and demo days, so I’ve been making sure I see them. It’s very much a mixture of pre-booked meetings and just walking round the whole event in case there’s anything new I haven’t considered.

I’ve not seen any one thing I simply can’t wait to get in the store, but newness is definitely coming and that’s exciting. Pick-up lines are doing well so it’s great to see new lines like those from Brainstorm’s Eugy range and there’s lots of hype around

Things are quite tough at the moment, but I don’t like to be negative and if I end up flat year-on-year, I’ll be happy. We’ve had two really good years, in 2022 and 2023, and it’s hard to anniversary that: flat is the aim. For the most part, everyone here seems to be just looking ahead and focusing on what we can all do to improve things. Better months are on the way, I’m sure of it.

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

This was our third year attending the Toymaster May Show. Even though we’re not Toymaster members, independents are always made very welcome by the team, which is lovely. The overall atmosphere of the event was positive and optimistic. Speaking to other business owners and reps, it’s quite apparent that everyone within the industry is finding trade a little flat right now, but we can all take comfort in the fact that we are weathering the storm together. We were pleased to see some new names appearing on the exhibitor list and showcasing some great new products. Although there were no new highlights for us in the dinosaur world, it was still a productive visit. Our trip to Harrogate has allowed us to catch up with our fellow retailers and suppliers while restocking for the months ahead and expanding some of the current ranges that are performing well, from manufacturers such as Mojo Fun.

It's always nice to be able to network with others within the industry and to help reassure each other that we’re all going through a challenging time at the moment. It can feel a little bit lonely to be an independent. For the rest of 2024, we have decided to power through the lull and, in true dinosaur fashion, stomp our way through to the other side. Yes, it will require a bit more effort and thinking outside the box, but I would much rather do that, and work harder, that than sit back and do nothing. It's going to be an ‘interesting’ second half to the year, that’s for sure. Let's see what it brings.

Mihir Patel - Woodley News, Reading

The Toymaster 2024 May show has been great. There was so much for us to see, and multiple ranges from various companies caught our attention. We’ve already placed orders with companies such as Mattel, Hasbro, Kayes of Cardiff and DKB. Lego is one of the most popular brands we stock at our shop, and it was great to have the opportunity to visit that stand too.

We have found it useful to attend Toymaster as trade shows always teach us new things that will potentially benefit our business. We get to speak to different buyers from other indie stores and see what they do differently, which gives us ideas on how we can improve our store.

Attending Toymaster has made us realise the high demand for tech toys this year, as many of the new toys coming out incorporate technological aspects to keep up with the trends. Many of today’s children are interested in playing on phones and tablets, and we have seen that some companies are introducing toys that will make playing with these devices more enjoyable by encouraging kids to create fun videos for social media or download an app that will enhance playtime experiences.

The new Real FX Disney Stitch from Wow! Stuff is another impressive product offering distinctive features; we had heard about it and were interested to see how it works during the show. Viewing all these new products has inspired us to stock new tech toys that will appeal to teenagers and tech-savvy children, as we think this is one of the main target audiences for our store.

Deirdre and Sean Reilly - The Hobby Shop, Sligo, Ireland

It’s been a really great show so far. This is our second time visiting the Toymaster May Show, and it’s been just as fun this time around. We’ve come over from Ireland and have found it to be well worth the trip.

There are several different lines that we’ve seen at the show that we’re planning to bring into our store. There are the Wasgij puzzles from Galt, which my husband and I were both a fan of, and there have also been new Lego and Professor Puzzle lines that we’ve liked. We’ve also seen a lot of hobby and collectible products, and some arts & crafts lines that we’re really interested in getting into The Hobby Shop as well.

We are looking forward to the rest of 2024. We will be expanding our range in-store, including a number of lines that we’ve seen here at the show. We used to sell a lot of schoolbooks and educational products, but a change in Ireland recently means the government supplies books to schools – so we now have a lot more space and scope within the store to diversify into other areas, which we are very excited about.

Amelia Winkhof and Neil Mitchell - BargainMax

NM: It’s been a very productive show, with the opportunity to see almost 100 suppliers in one day, and we’ve had lots of interesting meetings with a range of companies. This is our second Toymaster, and it feels like there are more suppliers and more products this year, which is great.

AW: Thinking about the ranges that we’ve seen today, the Terror Fried range from Character Options looks fantastic - we were impressed with that.

NM: We also had a meeting with Micro Scooters; it has a really strong premium range of scooters and accessories. I think Basic Fun’s Care Bears and the retro ranges are also going to be popular. We both agreed that MGA had the strongest ranges. L.O.L. Surprise! and Rainbow High have a lot of innovation and great looking products. Miniverse also looked really strong as well. That was a standout stand for sure.

AW: I think it’s really important to see suppliers and catch up in-person. Work can be done over the phone or on Zoom calls, but face-to-face interaction and seeing where we can seize opportunities to grow with suppliers is unbeatable. It’s probably the main thing that we’ve taken away from this show. It’s also put us at ease a bit in terms of where the market stands and how other retailers are doing.

NM: The event is well timed, as we’re heading towards the winter season and Christmas is on the way. The Toymaster Show gives us a chance to see lots of new brands and products with innovation coming through, and puts everyone into a more positive frame of mind going into the second half of the year.

Sarah Gooding - Gullivers Toys and Gifts, Edinburgh

I’ve found this year’s Toymaster show to be very informative, with the personal touch. I like that the event offers a much more intimate setting, compared to bigger trade fairs. Harrogate is a brilliant location, and it is always a well-hosted event that lets you view products in a relaxed manner. You can enjoy a cup of tea and have deeper conversations with representatives. I personally find it more effective when there are fewer, select products on display, as this allows more room for discussion to take place and is less overwhelming, especially for smaller retailers like us, who are not working on a mass scale.

The new blasters from Hasbro’s Nerf brand are one of the products that have particularly caught my attention. We stock a lot of Nerf products, and I’m thrilled that the company has now introduced a new streamlined dart that goes faster. I also enjoyed the Basic Fun stand; the company always has plenty of great licensed toys that bring nostalgia, including My Little Pony and Care Bears. It was wonderful to see and handle some of its newest lines.

We have a traditional store based in the centre of Edinburgh, and our primary buyers consist of parents, kidults and tourists, which is why we have focused on recognisable, nostalgic items featuring classic licences; we can be confident that brands like Winnie the Pooh and Peter Rabbit will appeal to this kind of audience. Mattel’s Fisher-Price brand has relaunched its classic, nostalgic range, which previous generations enjoyed playing with, and this is another collection that we believe would do well in our store. Sylvanian Families is always popular with customers, so we made sure to check out the latest lines on the Epoch stand.

Attending the show has changed my outlook on the coming year. Seeing products faceto-face and getting a feel for them has given me ideas on what to order for this summer to reinvigorate the store. It’s also fantastic to be able to speak to reps and suppliers in person and get proper demonstrations of the toys to helped me decide the best items to order.

Donald Nairn - Toys Galore, Edinburgh

At this year’s Toymaster, everyone is commenting upon the tough market conditions we are currently facing, but it’s been helpful to take part in conversations with others from the trade which have confirmed I’m not the only one going through it. The show has been a very useful experience; it’s been nice to interact with other people and get their opinions.

Networking is a big part of the show, finding out from other retailers their take on lines we’ve never stocked before. Speaking with other indies and the Toymaster team has given us lots of ideas on new lines we could try in our store - and what we could do differently to improve our offering.

We have placed a few orders, not restocking ranges we already have in our store, but focusing on new lines from companies that we haven’t dealt with in the past. The rest of the orders with existing suppliers will be done once we’re back at our shop. Casdon is one of the new companies that we’re considering working with, we liked the look of some of the ranges it has to offer, so we’re looking into giving that a shot to see if its products will appeal to our clientele.

Jon Callingham - Malletts, Cornwall

It’s been a busy show this year. We’ve come all the way up from Cornwall, so it’s a long way to travel, but I think it’s well worth the trip. It has been a bit of a tough year so far. As I’ve been walking around and chatting with suppliers, I’ve been trying to find new products that are strong sellers and have been making sure to order all of the basics as well. There are a few new products that have caught my eye.

Mostly though, I come up to Harrogate to look at brands that I’m familiar with and that I know will perform well in the store. I concentrate on brands like Lego, Playmobil and other family favourites. With Lego, we do well with ranges like the Speed Champions and Star Wars. The bigger sets are popular, especially with ‘kidults’.

I’m expecting a challenging rest of the year, and will concentrate on the brands we know will perform well, such as trading cards, and capitalise on that kidult market as much as possible.

Katrina Signey and Lucy Kingsley - Sugacane Toys - Pwllheli, Macclesfield, Bakewell, Beaumaris and Trentham

We arrived on Monday night, ready to crack straight on first thing on Tuesday morning with an appointment with Character Options. We’ve had appointments back-to-back every day, and I still don’t feel like I’ve seen everything.

People’s attitudes this year seem mixed. Most people are looking for Christmas stock, whereas we’re entering our busiest season, as Pwllheli, where our flagship store is located, is a seaside town. We’re looking for anything new and a bit quirky, including outdoor toys and pocket money pick-up lines. Character has some excellent ranges coming through for July and August including refreshed Goo Jit Zu and some strong licensed ranges for Sonic and Angry Birds. Moose Toys’ new Despicable Me range is fab, especially the Fart Blaster, and the Mr Beast range for August looks great too.

I think if you’re a regular toy shop, business is going to be quite challenging right now, but as we have our own Sugacane confectionary brands, that provides a bit of a buffer. A lot of people just don’t have the money at the moment for larger purchases, which is why we’re looking for lower priced toys instead of big-box play sets and ‘main gift’ type toys.

We feel pretty good about the rest of the year, and with our busiest season just about to kick off, we’re looking forward to some exciting weeks ahead. We can’t wait for summer, hopefully it’ll be a busy one. Oh, we do ice cream too – that always tempts in the shoppers.

Carl Blatcher - JAC Stores, Ramsey, Isle of Man

The show has been great, with more new products on show than I expected and loads of great deals. Spin Master and Lego spring to mind, in terms of the calibre of deals on offer, so a big thank you to them for recognising what indies need right now.

Surprisingly, everyone is upbeat – even the suppliers, who arguably were expecting retailers to hold back a little, seem really pleased with the amount of orders they’re taking. I’d say we’re all fairly positive about the outlook for the rest of the year. Everyone understands the nature of fluctuating market conditions, and as long as you control your purchases, it’s all rosy. You just have to work through things.

I did my ‘window shopping’ at Toy Fair and at a number of the previews and came here to place orders with a strongly margin-focused approach. I’m obviously still seeing the bigger brands, even though we might struggle with the margins a bit, but I’m also looking at new categories and smaller suppliers that can offer gifting margins, as opposed to toy, such as Usborne Books and Ditty Bird Books, the latter of which has a lovely stand. It’s a new path for me, but I’m still being open minded. Sometimes you come across something really random at this show and just think: “That’s the one for me!”

John Adams’ Go Viral game, Mattel’s Wednesday Monster High Doll, SpongeBob Miraballs from Bandai and Squishalongs from Jazwares all stand out as strong lines. Mr Beast from Moose is one licence I’m keeping my eye on as well, and the Story Dream Machine from MGA Entertainment really caught my attention. With the success of Tonies, which admittedly is a slightly different concept, I think that might be a winner.

I’ve said for a number of years that sales would level out (even though we haven’t been down so far this year), so I’m not shocked that things have been tricky lately. But I’m feeling positive. There’s always something that turns things around and Christmas always comes. If you can control your costs and purchases, it’ll be fine.

Lindsay Henry - Harry’s Department Store, Lerwick, Shetland islands

This is my first ever Toymaster (in fact, my first ever toy trade fair full stop!). It’s certainly been a learning curve: it was all a bit overwhelming on the first day – so many people, so many products, and so much to see and do - but now I’m thoroughly into the swing of things and really enjoying it. I’m so used to seeing everything on price sheets so to see all the new toys and games in person has been brilliant.

It’s also been really nice to find out how other retailers are trying to counteract the tough trading conditions we’re all experiencing. Everyone has been so friendly and willing to share their knowledge and advice.

Mehak Rauf - Toys4You, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands

It’s been a really busy Toymaster Show this year. It’s nice to see new products coming in for Christmas and getting us prepared for Q4. Most of the suppliers are providing delayed delivery times, so that we can bring stock in closer to the holiday season, rather than having to order here at the show for immediate delivery. This is a huge advantage for us as a business. The suppliers are also giving good margins and special deals, like half-priced lines which go into the Toymaster catalogue. It all helps.

Before coming to Toymaster, we set ourselves a budget for our orders at the show - but we’ve now exceeded it as we’ve seen so many things that we’re interested in. It was exciting to see new products; I wish I could have a lot of them in-store right away. Unicorn Academy from Spin Master was a highlight for me. The product range is really appealing, especially the fashion dolls with the unicorns. I know those will be very popular and I’ve ordered the core range which I’m looking forward to seeing in-store.

Everybody seems to be facing the same issues this year, including the suppliers, and we appreciate those that have dropped the prices on some of their products, which will help us get more stock in. Offers like this are really helping retailers to move forward during these times of struggle.

Deirdre Johnston - Toytown Toys, Longford, Ireland

This year’s show has been interesting, it’s given me the chance to preview all the exciting new lines set to come out in autumn/winter and meet other Toymaster members. All in all, it makes for a very enjoyable and positive experience.

My primary focus is farm-related products, which generate the most interest among my customers. Visiting Toymaster has allowed me to see new farm toys from companies like Tomy’s Britains and Bruder in person and get ideas on new ranges that I should be stocking. There were also some interesting products on Baby Republic’s stand which caught my eye.

While I haven’t yet placed firm orders with suppliers, the show has made me feel more positive about the coming year, and I am now in the process of researching some of the things I have seen before deciding which new products to stock.

Will Osborne - Osborne’s Sports and Toys, Rushden, Northamptonshire

I’ve been coming to the Toymaster May Show for many years and this year is as good as ever. I find it a useful, friendly and professional event, and one we look forward to every year.

At some of the earlier trade fairs, many companies tend to show mock-ups, or lines that may or may not actually make it to shelf, whereas here the product is final, available, the price is set and you can order it knowing it will arrive. It’s a much more concrete- and useful - experience, I find.

We do a lot of homework before arriving in Harrogate, so we know what the offers are in advance and put hypothetical orders together based on what we’ve already got in stock. When we get here, sometimes we find even more new lines we weren’t previously aware of, so we might then adjust the order to cater to those.

The ranges at the show this year have been very, very good, ranging from what you’d expect to some that have made me think “Good god, that’s cheap”. We’re a general toy store in a small town, so we’re not easily swayed by the glossy, bells and whistles of the hyped-up stuff – if it’s good product and it looks like it’ll sell, then we’re interested.

Business is fluid at the moment. We had a strong January and February, but March was problematic, and now footfall fluctuates between very busy days followed by very quiet days, which unfortunately don’t follow a pattern. Trade used to follow a pattern: you were busy at 9am because the mums had just dropped the kids off at school, then at 4pm, you were busy because they’d picked them back up again. You were always busy on Wednesdays too (though no one ever knew why). Now, there’s no pattern, no rhyme or reason to it - except on Saturdays; we’re always busy on Saturdays! The same unpredictability applies to picking products, to an extent. Sometimes what sells the best is a line you didn’t place much stock in, and vice versa. It’s a funny industry, toys, but isn’t that why we love it?

indie viewpoint

Mark Buschhaus and Stephen Barnes Toy Barnhaus

Under my umbrella, …ella, …ella

The Toymaster show is always one of our favourite events of the year, and it did not disappoint. We purchased lots of toys, but to be honest the best line we picked up was umbrellas to cope with the rather inclement weather on the Wednesday. We have never seen conditions this wet in our many years at Harrogate. Many thanks to Peers Hardy for our umbrellas – Mark definitely rocks the Peppa Pig look!

The weather certainly did not seem to dampen spirits, although for the first time, the marquees were actually a bit cold. We went into the show with some cautious optimism; given the current trading climate, we were looking carefully before buying. However, we did spend more than we expected, thanks to the high volume of fantastic deals on offer. We found some great clearance offers at IMC, and really enjoyed seeing Sambro for the first time, along with Gift Scholars, who also had some attractive deals. It was noticeable that suppliers are looking carefully at price points, and the prices of a lot of the key lines for later this year are lower than in previous years. We picked up a couple of new suppliers that we have never dealt with before. We still haven’t spotted anything that really stands out for Christmas so far, but hopefully there will be a line that comes out of nowhere and surprises us.

The show was very well-organized by Yogi and the team at Toymaster and did not disappoint in terms of products and suppliers. The social element of the show is a big part of it, and the evenings were once again a huge success. The catering at the Majestic has definitely improved, and at the Wednesday Toymaster awards, which was a great evening, the meal was so good, Mark even asked for seconds (with no success, unfortunately!). Later, he missed out on the bacon rolls too, as they seemed to go very quickly. But we were too busy enjoying ourselves: the entertainment was fantastic, and we met several Toymaster members we had not spoken to before. It’s great to see the diversity in the toy industry. Even with all the eating, drinking and merriment going on, business is always discussed too; one evening we did a deal to take on the Luke Littler dartboard range from Target Sports, which should really help with the uplift that we have experienced this year.

We were pleased with trade overall in May, and sales during the half term were particularly strong. June has started steadily. However, as you well know, we like to do a rain dance to help with sales in our malls, which benefit from higher footfall when the summer sun fails to make an appearance. We have not brought in too much summer stock this year, having carried over plenty from last year’s washout summer – particularly paddling pools. So, we could do with some warm weather to clear through some of this stock, but bar one warm weekend and a few nice days, there is no sign of a heatwave yet. Let’s hope we won’t be sitting on the stock for another year!