For toy retailers from across the world, the 72nd edition of the Spielwarenmesse is the key event of the year. From February 2 to February 6 at Nuremberg Exhibition Centre, visitors will once again have a live opportunity to discover new trends.
With a wealth of new products and ideas, the theme-based and target group-specific special areas will help visitors to orientate themselves and will provide inspiration for the new commercial year. At next month’s event, the themed worlds will also provide a setting for innovations from all of the product groups.
Sustainability in focus
Visitors will find a special highlight in Hall 3A, where the Spielwarenmesse will bring the topic of sustainability to the forefront with a special area devoted to the Toys go Green megatrend. Here, buyers can experience relevant products on four themed islands. ‘Made by Nature’, ‘Inspired by Nature’ and ‘Recycle & Create’ each focus on specific materials, while in ‘Discover Sustainability’ the topics of environment and climate are portrayed through toys; this one is all about the educational value of play. Specialist presentations at the Toy Business Forum complement the portrayal of this topic at the fair.
The new Service Providers’ Areais worth a visit too. Not only test institutes but also suppliers from the field of marketing, for example, can be found here. Creative agencies such as Die roten Reiter (a subsidiary of Spielwarenmesse eG), together with their partners, will present their services on a shared stand under the slogan ‘Future of Exhibition’ which will address the issue of how technical opportunities will shape attendance at trade fairs in the future. Also in the Service Providers’ Area will be the DigitalMobil Handel, presenting an experiential zone for various retailing innovations, and ideas for point-of-sale and the ideal customer experience.
Discover trends and supplementary product ranges
For innovations and new products, theStartupArea in Hall 8 is the place to go. This is where young innovative businesses from Germany and international startups will present their creative product ideas. You can find more new products and ideas next door in the TrendGallery. In its new location, this special area will bring innovations together in a compact space, as well as displaying the nominees and winners of the highly regarded ToyAward – the award for new products at the Spielwarenmesse. Toy retailers who are seeking to supplement their range with stationery products should take a look at Hall 4, where the Insights-X Area will provide not only information on the trade fair of the same name but also product presentations, in particular from the Back to School sector. In addition, artists’ events will tempt visitors to stay around.
A popular meeting point
On the Friday of the fair, in Hall 11.1, the Internationale Spieleerfindermesse – Game Inventors Convention will be held for the first time for a specially selected group of participants. At this event, games authors will present their prototypes to editors from around the world. Moreover, the popular GamesCafé will again be the meeting point for the board games sector. Games innovations can be tried out in a relaxed atmosphere in the foyer of Hall 11.0. The Tech2Play activity area in Hall 4A has been an audience magnet since 2017. It presents a broad spectrum of electronic toys in the categories of ‘Robot Toys’, ‘RC Toys, ‘Virtual Play’ and ‘Electronic Learning’.
Christian Ulrich, spokesperson of the executive board of show organiser Spielwarenmesse eG, said: “With our special areas, we provide active support for retailers in putting together their product ranges, and offer them fresh stimuli and ideas that will continue to have an effect even after the Spielwarenmesse is over.â€
