A Celebrity in Our Biz

It's time to say goodbye to the old year and retrospect all the people, events, and accomplishments during the past 365 days which lead to selection of the Top "this", the Best "that", or the Worst "whatever".  Thanks to Richard Gottlieb and the great job he does with Global Toy News, our industry now has the first annual "Global Toy News Person of the Year". Nice going, Richard, to initiate such an award. And certainly a well deserved congratulations to the energetic and creative recipient....http://tinyurl.com/6vb7ptr

Creative Factor at Toy Fair

Promoting the session to Bob Fuhrer: inventor, agent, and strategist for Ken-Ken

My co-author, Richard Levy, and I did an encore of 2009 at the Creative Factor resource center this past Toy Fair on February 15. We were pleased to be part of a knowledgeable group of specialists brought together by Brett Klitsch and sponsored by the TIA to "focus attention of inventors and other creative professionals on the intricacies of working in the toy and game industry".


















Explaining an intricacy of working in the Toy Industry

In this information age when one can stare at a monitor and be linked in various degrees of separation, the three day Creative Factor trumped digital texting and comments by putting high profile personalities and real experiences into the highly relevant sessions. There could be no substitute to hearing industry realities from such experts as Nancy Zwiers of Funosophy, Steve Zuloff of Can you Imagine Corp., Richard Gottlieb USA Toy Expert supreme, Stephanie Azzarone of Child's Play Communication and on and on. Hopefully, the TIA will make the series of topics available in recorded format as part of its continued commitment to the industry's creative sector.


















Standing room only of hopeful inventors

No question the attendees at these sessions have dreams of participating in future Toy Fairs through hopefully licensing ideas so they can join the annual display of 100,000 products. And why not continue to try and create new products for the toy and game industry when this year's billing said there were "7000 products never before seen." With that kind of target to shoot for, it's a great incentive to generate a never before seen gidget or gadget? Who wouldn't want to be the originator of the Toy of The Year? Dream on.....