In Texas, 'T' Is Now for Toys

TIA moves fall show to Dallas Market Center for at least one year

By Rachel Wimberly -- Tradeshow Week, 3/19/2007

The Toy Industry Assn. will try out the Dallas Market Center as the new site for its American Intl. Fall Toy Show, Oct. 8–11, but the much bigger American Intl. Toy Fair will stay put at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center of New York at least through 2010.

"We listened very closely to our buyer audience after the show last October, and they felt it was inconvenient to have showrooms spread across New York City and then have the (trade)show component at Javits," said Carter Keithley, TIA's president. "The goal was to get everyone under one roof."

Unlike the Toy Fair, which focuses on specialty buyers, the fall version of the show is appointment-only and caters to mass merchandisers, such as Wal-Mart, Target and Toys "R" Us, which have different buying cycles.

Keithley said over the years the merchandisers' buying cycle started shifting to before the holiday season so they could have a say in merchandise coming out the following holiday season. As a result, TIA launched a fall show a few years ago to fit their needs.

Running around the city was just one complaint, Keithley added. High costs were another.

He said Dallas' geographic location midway between the two coasts was a benefit. "For our West Coast friends, it's closer now," he added.

Tim McGuinness, executive director of NYC & Co., New York's tourism, marketing and events association, said TIA's decision to move was a disappointment.

"We understand it's a business decision, and we do have a great working relationship with the association, which is based in New York," he said. "The fall show was extremely successful, and we are sorry to see them go."

New York has walked a tight-rope with TIA and its shows since the spring of 2005, when the Intl. Toy Center, the market center anchor of the toy events, was forced to look for a new home after its building was sold to a private developer. The slow pace of Javits' expansion plans didn't help.

The 100-year-old-plus Toy Fair, which usually runs in February, translates to big bucks for New York. It ranked 61st on the most recent Tradeshow Week 200, spanning 326,772 net square feet with 1,318 exhibitors and more than 25,000 attendees. The estimated economic impact is $55 million.

"We hope they keep the large show in New York City into the future," McGuinness said.

According to Keithley, McGuinness can relax. TIA doesn't plan to move the Toy Fair out of the city after its current contract is up in 2010.

"Pretty soon we'll be sitting down with Javits to talk about securing more dates," he said. "We have no intention of leaving."

Meanwhile, the Dallas Market Center is thrilled to have the fall show, which draws more than 3,000 attendees, coming its way. "Our goal is to create a dynamic sourcing event that is highly cost-effective and convenient for the buyers and sellers," said Cole Daugherty, vice president of marketing communications.

The DMC is made up of four buildings, three of which are connected, with more than 5 million sq. ft. of showroom and exhibit space. Besides the lower cost and convenience, Keithley said TIA liked the fact that the mart had successfully hosted other big toy industry events, including some for Toys "R" Us.

"Dallas has a long history with the toy industry," he noted.

Keithley said DMC was "an efficient marketplace to conduct business, a two-hour plane ride from either coast, (where) travel and exhibition costs are very low."

Obviously, the marketing message worked for TIA, because it cited the exact same reasons for choosing Dallas.

However, the show is only signed on for one year as of now.

"The fall show booking was only made for 2007, based on feedback from attendees who wanted to try it out first," Keithley said.

Daugherty hopes they like what they see and decide to stick around. "We hope to provide an event that will work to everyone's advantage," he said.

And McGuinness was left to be philosophical about it all: "(Losing a show) happens in the industry, but we move on."