The Big Easy is no match for the Big Apple.
The Toy Association revealed plans earlier this month to move its annual Toy Fair convention from New York City — where it has been held for more than a century — to New Orleans for a three-year stint beginning in 2026 — until it faced a backlash from toy manufacturers.
Toy companies found about the surprise move on Oct. 2 — and swiftly pressed the trade group to reverse it.
Eleven days later, the Toy Association caved in and issued a mea culpa.
“We were swiftly reminded of our industry’s passionate bond to a place that no amount of research, conversation and learning had sufficiently surfaced,” the letter stated. “As a board we have heard clearly that his change was the wrong choice for our members.”
The annual event, which has traditionally been held at the Javits Center in February, took place this year between Sept 30 and Oct. 3 – a timing switch that was also reversed after members complained and some of the largest toy companies, including Mattel and MGA Entertainment, snubbed the show, as The Post reported.
Toy Fair will remain in NYC, but will skip 2024 and is exploring “ways to support” an event in Los Angeles – where Mattel, MGA and dozens of other major toy companies are headquartered – in August and September of 2024, according to the letter.
The LA-based companies hold fall previews for buyers like Walmart, Target and others and have long wanted to move Toy Fair permanently to the West Coast, say industry experts.
Toy Fair didn’t take place in 2021 and 2022 and the timing of the most recent show was also seen as a misstep to give manufacturers and buyers more time to bring goods to the US from overseas.
“We went three years with Zoom meetings so getting back to normal is a process,” said Jay Foreman, chief executive of Basic Fun, which specializes in retro toys like Tonka trucks, Care Bears and My Little Pony. “In the end we went around in circles and came back exactly where we started.”
Toy Association, for its part, said it has learned its lesson.
“In retrospect, we recognize our shortcomings in the communication and decision-making process,” the letter from board said. “We’re committed to learning from these lessons and ensuring, clearer, more inclusive dialogues in the future.”
