The Toy Association has cancelled the Toy Fair scheduled for May 1-4, 2021 in New York, due to COVID-19. They are still planning to run the Toy Fair Dallas event on October 5-7, 2021, with a mix of on-site and digital opportunities. Next year, Toy Fair will return to the Jacob K. Javits Center in New York City on February 19-22, 2022.

“Our foremost consideration is the health and well-being of the global toy and play community and setting a clear path forward,” Steve Pasierb, president & CEO of The Toy Association, said. “We want to provide our exhibitors, retail buyers, and the larger toy and play community with certainty on important destination shows and the ability to take advantage of immediate opportunities through our year-round buying and selling platform.”  

In 2020, they held Toy Fair Everywhere digital events as a platform for business opportunities around the world. They have planned the digital B2B marketplace for February 2021. Additionally, they are working with prospective retailers on virtual private product preview events. The next virtual event will be with Claire’s and is set for February 4.

“These proven digital opportunities should continue to be a critical part of every toy businesses’ mixed sales and marketing strategy,” Marian Bossard, executive vice president of global market events at The Toy Association, said. “As we look forward to our time together at Toy Fair Dallas 2021 and Toy Fair New York 2022, the proof is in the pudding as to the potential of these digital tools and events to serve our members in reaching new audiences.”