First Four HKTDC Fairs of the Year Attracted 6% More Visitors Than Last Year

12 January 2018 – Featuring more than 2,940 exhibitors from around the world, the Hong Kong Toys & Games Fair, Hong Kong Baby Products Fair and Hong Kong International Stationery Fair concluded successfully yesterday. Together with the Hong Kong International Licensing Show, which closed on Wednesday, the first four fairs organised by the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) this year attracted around 126,000 buyers, up around six per cent over the previous year.

More than 49,000 buyers went to the Toys & Games Fair, while close to 33,000 and around 21,000 buyers visited the Baby Products Fair and Stationery Fair respectively. In addition, more than 22,000 visitors attended the Licensing Show.

Benjamin Chau, Deputy Executive Director of the HKTDC, said the four fairs have successfully attracted buyers and suppliers from around the world and further bolstered Hong Kong’s role as an international exhibition and sourcing hub. He said: “As the global economy stabilises, the four fairs have achieved satisfactory results. Buyers from such emerging markets as India, Malaysia, Russia, Poland and Turkey, and those from developed markets including the US, Canada, Netherlands and Sweden recorded satisfactory growth. Besides, there was a double-digit percentage increase in the number of buyers from the Chinese mainland. The HKTDC will continue to provide an international trade and exchange platform for industry professionals to generate more business opportunities for all.”

This year’s Toys & Games Fair, Baby Products Fair and Stationery Fair featured an assortment of new products, designs and educational toys, as well as smart baby products and creative and eco-friendly stationery to cater to the buyers’ different needs.

Johnny Sze, Director & Vice General Manager, Eastcolight (Hong Kong) Limited, a Toys & Games Fair exhibitor from Hong Kong, said his company started producing STEAM toys, which strengthens the learning of science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics, four years ago. The toys are designed to improve children’s logical thinking, observation and concentration skills and nurture their creativity. He said the Fair is an important platform for the company which had generated 70 per cent of the annual sales turnover. The company is keen to develop emerging markets. On the first day of the fair, he met with several buyers from India with strong purchasing power. One of the buyers, representing an amusement park in India, was interested in setting up a shop there to sell Eastcolight’s products. There was also a Thai buyer who expressed interest in bringing the brand’s products to his market.

Italian exhibitor Pali S.p.A. joined the Baby Products Fair for the second consecutive year. Claudio Biferali, the company’s Research & Development Manager, said Pali is a leading baby products brand in Italy that provides a wide range of quality wooden cots, strollers and highchairs. He said the company doubled its booth size this year with more products on offer, and the response was better than last year. It attracted strong interest from existing customers and new buyers from different markets, like Australia, Malaysia, Singapore and Ukraine. He expected to conclude more business deals this year.

At the concurrent Hong Kong International Stationery Fair, a buyer from a Thai book store Asia Books found three new vendors that include a Japanese stationery brand Kokuyo and sourced some licensed stationery items by famous brands. Gesarin Anek, the company’s Marketing Manager, said the Stationery Fair is a place for sourcing high quality, innovative and unique products. Also, the concurrent Toys & Games Fair offered additional business connections.

During the Fairs, multiple thematic seminars, talks and a large-scale conference were held to facilitate industry exchange. Events included the Hong Kong Toys Industry Conference 2018, where global industry experts examined such topics as the future development of toys retailing, the opportunities brought by e-commerce, big data applications and toys licensing.

To encourage suppliers to leverage online-to-offline (O2O) promotional opportunities, the HKTDC has enhanced the sourcing function of its trade fair websites by launching the new year-round “Exhibitions Online” platform at the Toys & Games and Baby Products fairs. In addition to featuring fair updates and the latest industry sourcing information, the platform allows suppliers to connect with global buyers anytime and buyers to source industry-specific products from dedicated fair websites.

Also, with the prevalence of mobile technologies, the HKTDC has launched the e-Badge for buyers to enhance their fair experience.

For more comments from exhibitors and buyers: http://bit.ly/2mgyIqk

About the Fairs

Media Enquiries:
Please contact the HKTDC's Communications & Public Affairs Department:

Sam Ho                                   Tel: (852) 2584 4569                           Email: sam.sy.ho@hktdc.org
Katherine Chan                       Tel: (852) 2584 4537                           Email: katherine.cm.chan@hktdc.org  

About the HKTDC
Established in 1966, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) is a statutory body dedicated to creating opportunities for Hong Kong's businesses. With more than 40 offices globally, including 13 on the Chinese mainland, the HKTDC promotes Hong Kong as a platform for doing business with China, Asia and the world. With 50 years of experience, the HKTDC organises international exhibitions, conferences and business missions to provide companies, particularly SMEs, with business opportunities on the mainland and in international markets, while providing business insights and information via trade publications, research reports and digital channels including the media room. For more information, please visit: www.hktdc.com/aboutus.