After reiterating its resolve, as recently as January 5, to go ahead with an in-person Toy Fair New York on February 19–22, the Toy Association canceled the 2022 edition last night. It is the second year in a row the fair canceled the in-person event.
The Javits Center-based gathering had 700 exhibitors committed to this year’s event at the time of the cancellation, according to the organizers. That compares to about 1,000 in a typical pre-pandemic year. Some key toy companies, including MGA Entertainment, the marketer of top toy brands such as L.O.L. Surprise!, had already said that they were pulling out of this year’s show before the official cancellation was announced.
Toy Fair attracts about 40 publisher-exhibitors each year. They show a variety of front and backlist titles, often with a focus on franchise-based, bestselling, licensed, novelty, and book-plus titles, to independent toy stores, special markets buyers, and a range of national retailers. Many more walk the show looking for trends, new technologies that may lend themselves to books, and potential licensing and promotional opportunities, as well as meeting with retailers, IP owners, and other trade partners. Toy exhibitors across the show also highlight book-based products and bookstore-friendly sidelines.
The Toy Association has approximately 900 members that drive $32.6 billion in annual retail sales in the U.S. It has been hosting Toy Fair New York for 117 years.
