ORGANIZE HOW TO
TOY FAIR
AN INTERNATIONAL PART 2: FROM THE INITIAL SPARK TO THE MARKET The Toy Fair annually attracts the toy industry’s main players worldwide to Germany. The organization team of Spielwarenmesse eG spends the whole year preparing for the occasion to ensure that the fair is a memorable experience. In a three-part series, The Toy Book takes a look behind the scenes at the Toy Fair 2014. The first part focused on project management activities. Part 2 is devoted to the marketing team and its preparations.
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ust a few weeks after Toy Fair 2013, the 40-strong organization team of Spielwarenmesse eG started brainstorming for the 2014 fair, taking place from January 29 to February 3. Now it’s time to turn the results into reality. This is not an easy task by any means, as key themes have to be defined and implemented for not one, but two target groups: exhibitors and trade visitors. As Christian Ulrich, head of marketing for Spielwarenmesse eG says, “Thanks to our longstanding experience and worldwide network, we have our finger on the pulse of global markets. Luckily the industry trusts our intuition.” And he’s right. The reattendance rate for Christian Ulrich, head of marketing, exhibitors is 90 percent. Spielwarenmesse eG
16 • THE TOY BOOK
Visitor figures are quite steady—a sign of how well the industry and fair makers work together. The Toy Fair team establishes cooperation at an early stage by involving its exhibitors and visitors in the process of choosing themes. “During the current fair we conduct surveys to find out where the toy industry’s interests lie. It’s the only way to provide effective support,” says Ulrich. This is a huge undertaking given a fair area of 170,000 square meters, 2,700 exhibitors, and 72,500 visitors. The latest survey revealed that manufacturers and retailers were interested in trends, so the fair team will stage the TrendGallery to display the toy trends for this year, as spotted by the global TrendCommittee. With its promotional areas, know-how offerings, and events, Spielwarenmesse eG demonstrates that it is capable of more than allocating exhibitor booths. The organization team has continuously developed the fair program and has created both a network and know-how program with which it can provide support to exhibitors and visitors year round. “We keep in touch with retailers and the industry after the fair by means of newsletters, mailing campaigns, or personal visits,” says Ulrich. His team of 12 also manages several websites, two Facebook accounts, a Twitter page, and a YouTube channel. The marketing pros also take care of the daily industry news bulletin and the YourToyCom global network. “Our social media activities keep the industry up-to-date with what’s going on in the global market, and help us to keep in touch with one another. If you like, it’s an all-year extension of the fair,” says Ulrich. “Networking is vital in any industry
DECEMBER/JANUARY 2014