The sales generators of tomorrow – Spielwarenmesse and three strong trends for 2023

• Promising trends: Discover!, Brands for Fans and MetaToys
• Redesigned: the new ToyTrends area in Hall 3A

Spielwarenmesse, the world’s leading trade fair, stands for product variety, new products and innovations. For the next event, its international Trend Committee has identified three trends: ‘Discover!’, ‘Brands for Fans’ and ‘MetaToys’. Trade visitors can find out all about them at the Nuremberg Exhibition Centre between 1 and 5 February 2023. In the redesigned ToyTrends experience covering an area of some 400 (square meter) in Hall 3A, relevant products will be available to try and to explore. And in the neighbouring Toy Business Forum, presentations of the trends will complete the picture.

Discover! – explore new worlds

The three trends will help to guide retailers as they select a range of goods with high sales potential. With ‘Discover!’, the name says it all. Here, everything ultimately revolves around the opening up of new worlds and themes. Other countries, cultures and languages, the wonder of nature or unknown galaxies – once the spirit of discovery is awakened, the answers to all the hows, whys and wherefores are there to be found. The products in this trend engender a curiosity for the unknown and encourage children to research new worlds intently so they can understand them.

Brands for Fans – excitement for young and old

The basis for the second strand is licences and retro products: ‘Brands for Fans’. The Rubik’s Cube and the game of Ludo are classics in the world of games. Comic figures and well-known characters from film and TV are enjoying as much popularity now as ever. Often the fascination endures well beyond childhood, to be passed on to succeeding generations. New and recurring licensing themes reflect this trend; just like retro toys, they are capable of triggering fan-hypes among young and old.

MetaToys – toys in new dimensions

Innovative approaches and technologies for play are the focus of the ‘MetaToys’ trend. The digital world marches ever onward, holding out the prospect not only of advances in daily life but also of scope for new creativity in the toy industry. These opportunities are being picked up by the sector with products that are played out in Web3 or make use of technologies such as augmented reality. The trend also includes products that offer an understanding of the emerging metaverse and associated concepts.

Trends and knowledge

In the experiential environment of the ToyTrends in Hall 3A at the Spielwarenmesse, each trend has its own area. These areas provide information alongside relevant products, which themselves offer a live experience and invite the visitor to try them out. In the neighbouring Toy Business Forum, experts give daily presentations which, alongside current industry topics and future challenges for the trade, also cover the ToyTrends. Their presentations are available in German and English, and are streamed on the business platform Spielwarenmesse Digital.

Full information on the trends can be found at the website www.spielwarenmesse.de/en/trends.

Note for editors: Reprint free of charge. Images are available at www.spielwarenmesse.de/media. Please provide us with a voucher copy on publication.

Spielwarenmesse(R)

The trade fair and marketing services provider Spielwarenmesse eG is the organiser of the Spielwarenmesse(R) – the leading international trade fair for toys, hobbies and leisure. This B2B fair creates a comprehensive communication and ordering platform for national and international exhibitors. Its presentation of innovations and comprehensive overview of the industry represent a valuable pool of information for specialist retailers from around the world, guiding them through the market every year. A new addition for 2022 is the multifunctional platform Spielwarenmesse Digital, as a complementary service to the Spielwarenmesse. Since 2013, the term Spielwarenmesse(R) has also been a protected word mark in Germany.

Fair date: Spielwarenmesse(R), Wednesday to Sunday, 1 – 5 Feb 2023

SOURCE: Spielwarenmesse eG