After the “restart” that was the post-pandemic Spielwarenmesse earlier in 2023, show organisers are getting ready for the 2024 edition.
Christian Ulrich, a member of the Spielwarenmesse executive board) and media manager Sebastian Wendl were in London this week to talk to TnP about the show, due to take place in Nuremberg from January 30 to February
Ulrich said: “We are now entering the ‘hot phase’ for 2024, it’s exciting to see how it develops.
“This year was a restart and it was actually more successful for us than we expected, We’ll be back next year with even more exhibitors and more space,”
“This year was a restart and it was actually more successful for us than we expected, We’ll be back next year with even more exhibitors and more space”
Christian Ulrich
The numbers from 2023 certainly look impressive – 2,142 exhibitors from 69 countries, with 369 brand new exhibitors among them, a figure organisers hope to best this year, and 58,000 visitors.
And it’s a buoyant mood that organisers take into the key build-up to next yea;s show.
Ulrich said: “We are rock solid, we.are keeping our venue and keeping our dates.” (Well, marginally, as next year’s show is eschewing a Sunday opening, instead going from Tuesday to Saturday,
He also outlined some of its plans for 2024, (more of which will be featured in a forthcoming issue of TnP), including the planned focus on toys for adults, kidults, kidsters and so o, under the banner of Life’s A Playground.
He said: “We’re trying to give some ideas for the industry, how big this market is and how big it can be.” Hew also noted how 25% of toy sales in the US are for those deemed to be adults – those over the age of 12 – and is worth $9 billion. It will break the kidult world down into four groups – collectibles, premium collectibles, tabletop games and creative fantasy (trading card games, Dungeons ad Dragons and the likes).
