Four Hong Kong fairs attract close to 120,000 global buyers
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Gathering some 3,300 global exhibitors, the HKTDC Hong Kong Toys & Games Fair, HKTDC Hong Kong Baby Products Fair, Hong Kong International Stationery Fair and HKTDC Hong Kong International Licensing Show – attracted a total of close to 120,000 buyers, up two per cent over last year. The Toys & Games Fair, Baby Products Fair and Stationery Fair concluded today, while the Licensing Show closed yesterday.
More than 46,000 buyers visited the Toys & Games Fair; the Baby Products Fair attracted over 30,000 buyers; the Stationery Fair welcomed close to 21,000 buyers; and over 21,000 visitors came to the Licensing Show.
HKTDC Acting Executive Director Benjamin Chau said the four concurrent fairs at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre attracted a record number of exhibitors and welcomed more global buyers, creating a vibrant atmosphere at the venue. "For the Toys & Games Fair, Baby Products Fair and Stationery Fair, the number of buyers from mature markets such as the United States, Canada, Japan and Korea recorded growth, while those from Belgium, Spain and Taiwan recorded a double-digit percentage increase. Meanwhile, buyers from emerging markets including Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Israel and Iran also recorded a double-digit percentage increase, and there is steady growth in the number of buyers from the Chinese mainland."
Mr Chau also said that in response to buyers sourcing in smaller lots, the hktdc.com Small Orders zone returned to the Toys & Games Fair and Baby Products Fair featuring more than 120 showcases with around 1,200 products for buyers to place orders of between five and 1,000 pieces. More than 6,500 buyers visited the zone and over 12,000 business connections were generated during the four days.
High-tech products and smart living trend
A wide range of innovative products was showcased at the Toys & Games Fair, Baby Products Fair and Stationery Fair to meet the sourcing needs of buyers. The Toys & Games Fair featured the Smart-Tech Toys zone, which showcased various toys and games applying innovative technologies, such as the increasingly popular augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) technologies as well as products operated via mobile apps.
Bartosz Machonski, President of Malis from Poland, said the company imports four to five containers of toys every month for their customers, who are mostly hypermarkets and retailers. During the fair, he found some innovative smart toys such as toys that incorporate smart devices, 3D pens and DIY paper houses. He was considering placing an initial order of between 200 and 2,000 pieces per item.
Local exhibitor Global Manufacturing Partners (Holdings) Limited specializes in smart toys. During the Toys & Games Fair, they launched a new smart breed game that combines interactive and AR elements. Linda Cheung, Senior Operation Manager of the company, said that the new product had attracted the attention of many buyers including those from the Chinese mainland, India, Japan and Korea.
In response to the increasing demand for STEM toys, this year's Toys & Games Fair introduced a new STEM Toys Products Display to help visitors check out the latest educational toys designed to strengthen the learning of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Growing Fun, a Singapore retailer and distributor, has four retail shops in Singapore. Ng Kee Guan, Managing Director of the company, has visited the Toys & Games Fair for three years. This year, with the help of the HKTDC's business matching service, he found seven potential suppliers of educational and construction toys from the Chinese mainland, Europe and Hong Kong. He expects to place a first order of at least US$100,000.
Over at the Baby Products Fair, the Baby Tech zone drew a lot of interest from visitors. Hong Kong exhibitor Binatone Electronics International Ltd is the official licensee of Motorola Mobility products and is launching a Smart Nursery series this year. Joey Cheung, the company's Sales Director – Asia Pacific, said that the fair attracts a lot of quality buyers every year and is a great place to promote new products and enhance relationships with customers worldwide. He added that they had met with customers from Japan, Sweden, Russia, the Middle East and Southeast Asia. They also expanded their business relationship with a Japanese buyer whom they first met at last year's fair.
Exhibitors exploring new market
Hong Kong exhibitor Eastcolight (Hong Kong) Ltd. has joined the Toys & Games Fair for many years. This year they exhibited a smart galaxy tracker telescope. Johnny Sze, Director and Vice General Manager of the company, said that they connected with buyers from the US, Russia, India and Southeast Asia. He expects orders received from the US at this year's fair to increase 10 per cent compared to last year.
Specializing in quality cots, strollers and highchairs made in Italy, Pali S.p.A. from Italy joined the Baby Products Fair for the first time. The company's Research & Development Manager, Claudio Biferali, said that they had concluded five orders with new buyers from Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, Lebanon and the Chinese mainland, each involving one container of products. He believes this is a "very good start". The company will exhibit again next year and consider taking up a bigger booth to attract more buyers and expand their markets.
Exhibiting at the Stationery Fair, Bosser International Co Ltd from Taiwan provides paper trimmers and paper cutters, with its major markets being in Europe. They aimed to expand to Asia by exhibiting at the show. Company representative, Michael Wu, said that they had met importers from over 20 countries and regions and received a number of orders on the first two days of the show, amounting to a total of around US$100,000. They would be joining the fair again next year, he said.
Diversified events explore virtual toy opportunities and market trends
During the fair period, a series of events were organized to build industry connections and exchange insights into the toys and games market. At the seminar "The New Epoch of Virtual Toys", industry experts spoke about opportunities offered by VR and AR technologies. Ned Ward, Head of Sales and Marketing of VR Entertainment Ltd., thought that the increased immersiveness of AR and VR brought about a "double wow effect" for games and toys. He said the increasing variety of themes including fishing, baseball, racing, and joystick control will make these high-tech products more attractive to consumers. Other speakers at the seminar included Christopher Byrne, EVP Content Director of TTPM and Gary Man, Founder of Hedgehog Design.
Under the theme "Grasp the Chance: What's New in the Market and Our Industry?", the Hong Kong Toys Industry Conference 2017 featured a number of international experts from Euromonitor, Hong Kong Toys Council, JD Worldwide and Alpha Group, who explored the market trends and opportunities around the world, especially those related to the Chinese mainland.
Fair: HKTDC Hong Kong Toys & Games Fair
Edition: 43rd
No. of Exhibitors: Over 2,100 from 42 countries and regions
No. of Buyers: More than 46,000 from 126 countries and regions
Fair: HKTDC Hong Kong Baby Products Fair
No. of Exhibitors: Close to 540 from 27 countries and regions
No. of Buyers: Over 30,000 from 118 countries and regions
Fair: Hong Kong International Stationery Fair
No. of Exhibitors: Over 250 from 18 countries and regions
No. of Buyers: Close to 21,000 from 114 countries and regions
Posted by Global Editor
0March 2, 2017
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