Top marks for the 2016 Spielwarenmesse

Events

Innovation, information, and interactions – the Spielwarenmesse presented retailers with a broad programme and was able take into particular account their desire for genuine product innovations. The ratings of what was on offer there were higher than ever before. A total of 71,000 trade visitors (2015: 70,084) from 125 nations appreciated the creative ideas of the manufacturers and ordered more than in the previous year. The 2,851 companies (2015: 2,857), who had travelled to Nuremberg from 67 countries to expand their business worldwide, certainly noticed this.

This year, there were more trade visitors from Asia, America and Africa. But many European countries, such as the UK, Italy and the Netherlands also scored highly. The length of stay of foreign visitors averaged 2.5 days and thus remained constant. Likewise, the number of German visitors remained gratifyingly stable. “On the first three days of the fair, the flow of visitors to our booth was so great that it was hard to deal with,” said Uwe Weiler, COO of Simba Dickie Group. In the view of Florian N. Lipp, Marketing & Business Development of the Craze company, the quality of the visitors has also increased significantly: “A high proportion of decision-makers from all the major international retailers attended the fair.”

The manufacturers also welcomed the growing number of orders placed at the Spielwarenmesse, which hit record figures in all surveys conducted over the period. 78.8 per cent of the visitors (2015: 76.9 per cent) and 83.1 per cent of the exhibitors (2015: 81 per cent) were extremely satisfied with the overall impression of the event. The trade fair ran without a hitch and the mood in the halls was excellent. Representatives of trade and industry were also in agreement on the issue of re-attendance. Of them, 91 per cent (2015: 90 per cent) of the exhibitors and 81.2 per cent (2015: 80.2 per cent) of buyers are planning to take advantage of the marketing platform in 2017 to ensure the success of their business.

Because in no other toy fair in the world are so many innovations and trends showcased as in Nuremberg. The products exhibited in the TrendGallery – which are associated with three trend currents: Train Your Brain (mental gymnastics for children), Everyday Hero (playful everyday heroes) and Design to Play (toys as a design object) – were in huge demand. Among the manufacturers was Winzki GmbH & Co. KG, which benefitted from the presentation area in Hall 3A. “Everyone knows that you can do business with games here – and now I’ve seen that doing business here is also child’s play,” said first-time exhibitor Rainer Brang.

The Spielwarenmesse’s award also helps to give retailers find their way around the veritable jungle of products on offer. “For us, the ToyAward is a heaven-sent miracle,” said Splash Toys’ Managing Director Marcus Abt, who, as the German distribution partner of manufacturer Zuru, also basked in reflected glory and benefitted from the profits. “The company is proud to have received the first award in Europe, and in Germany of all places.” A total of four products in four categories received the coveted award. They prevailed against 616 fellow competitors (2015: 601) – a new record participation.

The model railway industry, which was in a celebratory mood, also went full steam ahead at the Spielwarenmesse. “The highlight was the Model Railway Enthusiasts’ Party, where representatives of trade, industry and the press came together and enjoyed some good conversation without the hustle and bustle of the trade fair,” emphasized Jörg Vallen, CEO of Busch GmbH & Co. KG, one of the sponsors of the event. In cooperation with the exhibition team, the model railway exhibitors invited visitors to NCC Ost and welcomed around 500 guests.

Ernst Kick, Chief Executive Officer of Spielwarenmesse eG, draws a positive overall conclusion: “For us, as the organiser, it was one of the best toy fairs ever, because the quality and quantity were just right. We look forward to more of the same next year.” The industry event will then take place from 1 to 6 February 2017.

Trade fair schedule: Spielwarenmesse® Wednesday to Monday, 1 Feb. – 6 Feb. 2017