14 DAY TRIAL // The American International Toy Fair is one of the most important trade shows related to the toy industry, and the 111th edition of the event is taking place these days at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York.
Manhattan turned into an enchanting playground on Sunday at the opening of this year's four-day trade show, touted as the biggest fair of this type held in the Western Hemisphere and operated by the Toy Industry Association (TIA).
According to the organizers, the fair is expected to draw more than 30,000 attendees from 100 countries. Thousands of innovative toys and games, for all ages and tastes, are exhibited on a 410,000 net square feet space by more than 1,150 toy companies from all over the world.
"New York Toy Fair is the only show in the world that provides the international toy industry with direct access to the tremendous creativity and talent of North American toymakers. The diverse Toy Fair marketplace offers something for everyone – including niche buyers, mass retailers, licensing executives, and many more – all of who consider the show to be a 'must-attend' stop on the global buying circuit," says Carter Keithley, President of TIA, as cited by CBS New York.
Grammy-winner Alicia Keys cut the ribbon at the opening ceremony to the trade show and gave a greeting speech. “That’s a lot of toy fairs, a lot of toys and a lot of happy kids,” she mentioned.
Today at 4 p.m., TIA will hold the Toy Trends Tea, an event where trend experts from the organization will present this year's top six toy trends, with live demonstrations on the floor.
The hottest items presented during this edition of the fair include remote-control toys, robots, zombies and monsters. However, even the toys designed to help children learn have caught the attention of the visitors.
Among the latest innovations, we should also mention toys that interact with your smartphone or tablet. “You have toys that you can play offline with, but you can also connect to your iPad and respond to the surge in technology,” says Isabel Carrion of TIA.
Moreover, this year, the Association introduces ShopToyFair365, a free electronic tool which allows buyers and sellers from all over the world to communicate online before, during and after the show.