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Two Stage, Hybrid Fair Counting Days
After the pandemic in Turkey, which will give a new generation of trade show experience for the first time in Istanbul 3rd International Toy Fair will be held as a two-stage hybrid. The first part of the fair will be held on the digital platform on September 16-17, 2020 as B2B Networking Days. The second part will be held as a face-to-face fair on the traditional fair dates, 18-21 March 2021, in line with the demand of the industry. Thanks to its hybrid model, the fair will bring together professional buyers who do not want to travel due to the pandemic and personal preference and the leading companies of the sector, and will contribute to exports.The 3rd International Istanbul Toy Fair, postponed due to the pandemic, will be held for the first time in a hybrid model this year. The fair, which will be organized by TÜYAP (Tüyap Tüm Fuarcılık Yapım A.Ş.) in cooperation with Turkish Toy Industry Association (OYDER), will be held in two sections in line with the demands of the industry. The virtual part of the fair, which is one of the distinguished meeting points of the toy industry in the world, will be held on a digital platform between 16-17 September 2020. The second part of the Istanbul Toy Fair will be held between 18-21 March 2021 at TÜYAP Fair and Congress Center in Istanbul Büyükçekmece as a face-to-face fair.
The Countdown has Begun
Providing information on the subject, Assistant General Manager of TÜYAP Yeşim Ulusoy said, “This year, B2B Networking Days will be held on 16-17 September 2020 on the digital platform with the infrastructure we have developed in parallel with the physical fair at the Istanbul Toy Fair, which we have built for the first time in a hybrid model. In this process, we aim to contribute to the export by bringing together professional buyers who cannot visit the fair due to the travel disability and personal preferences with the leading companies of the sector ”.
900 Buyers will Participate
Approximately 900 buyers are expected to attend the B2B Networking Days, 600 from abroad and nearly 300 from domestic. Ulusoy stated that they moved the procurement delegation program carried out by TÜYAP through its foreign offices to digital with B2B Networking Days before the pandemic, and gave the following information: “With the Istanbul Toy Fair B2B Networking Days, we are bringing our purchasing delegation organization to the virtual environment. At the event, which will last for 2 days, hundreds of qualified buyers we selected within the scope of our target visitor program will have the opportunity to establish network and hold video meetings. Thus, our participating companies will be able to establish business connections with qualified buyers selected from their target markets and start trading before the fair date. I would also like to emphasize that our B2B event is free for the participants of the 3rd International Istanbul Toy Fair. "
Create Your Profile, Get Ready For the Meeting!
Underlining that the business world should get used to such digital business applications more after the pandemic, Ulusoy explained how they prepared the participants for B2B Networking days as follows: “With our B2B Platform provided by Deal Room Events, we offer the opportunity to create profiles for both participants and visitors. On the platform, which will be opened 1 week before the start of the event, all registered visitors will be able to access the profiles of the participants and view their products / countries / fields of activity, etc. They will be able to filter according to their characteristics. The platform makes it easy to connect with the most suitable buyers thanks to its learning matching algorithm. In the first week of the platform's launch, participants can now respond to meeting requests from buyers and set appropriate meeting times. It can also send meeting requests to the recipients they want to meet. Meetings approved by both parties are recorded in the agenda on the Deal Room platform. On the days of September 16-17, when the fair takes place, the platform sends reminders to both parties via SMS and e-mail before the meeting hours. The meetings listed in the calendar can be started with a single click and video conference is switched when the time comes. Anyone can invite his teammates to the meeting. "
Buyers Around the World Are Following
Emphasizing that they decided to organize the fair with OYDER in two stages and as a hybrid due to the intense demand from the sector, Ulusoy gave the following information about the physical fair to be held between 18-21 March 2021: “The demand of the industry that the second part of the fair will be held in its traditional history. 3rd International Istanbul Toy Fair, as one of the most important industry fairs in our hinterland, is closely followed by international procurement committees and professional suppliers. Despite all the difficulties in world trade, we believe that the fair will make a significant contribution to the trade volume of the producers and exporters of our country and will strengthen our global competition.
Turkey in the 'new generation fairs' experience to be had for the first time thanks to intelligent 3. B2B matching system manufacturers at the International Toy Fair in Istanbul participating in the fair to meet with buyers from all over the world. Thus, business people will be able to continue their business throughout the year without getting caught in travel barriers, this year for the first time at the 'international' title and supported by KOSGEB, the fair will bring together all stakeholders of the sector from domestic and international toy retailers and wholesalers to stationery retail and wholesalers, baby products and children's textile stores to educational institutions. Over 3 thousand visitors registered online for the fair, where the participation of 154 brands and 88 companies from 6 countries and company representatives was finalized. With the digital applications developed in the new period fairs, participants will be able to easily communicate with domestic and foreign buyers online.
Year-round Uninterrupted Trade
Thanks to the matching algorithms developed in the new period, TÜYAP brings together thousands of buyers and participating companies and offers business connections throughout the year. Yeşim Ulusoy explains the services they provide in the new period as follows: “The exhibitor guide on all digital platforms enables our producers to exhibit their products to the world throughout the year and to establish export connections. Thanks to our smart B2B matching system with the networking application and video meeting infrastructure, we instantly meet our producers participating in our fairs with buyers from all over the world. Thus, trade does not hinder travel obstacles and continues uninterrupted throughout the year. We allow our exhibitors to display their products and services with our web and mobile platforms. With our smart B2B matching system, we recommend them to relevant buyers at home and abroad and offer communication channels that are not limited to the duration of the fair. Our websites, which carry the business connections at the fairs to the virtual environment, directly bring our participants together with millions of buyers from all over the world.
The Largest Business Fair
The changing trends of the toy industry will also mark the 3rd International Istanbul Toy Fair, which is the largest specialized fair in the region of the toy industry. President of the Turkish Toy Industry Association (OYDER) Esin Yürür says that the digitalization trend that has accelerated in the sector after the pandemic will have reflections on the fair. Turkey, indicating that the toy market grew 5 percent per year between the years 2013-2017 walks, "in TRY terms in 2019 over the rack rate with an increase of approximately 20% to a market size of around £ 3.2 billion has been reached. On the $ basis, there was no increase due to exchange rate increases. The growth came from price increases and exchange rates. However, in 2019, when imports dropped a lot, significant increases were seen in domestic production and this increase was reflected in exports at the level of approximately $ 40-45 million. Close to 100 domestic toy manufacturers in Turkey show activities. The current trend in the toy industry; Toys that integrate traditional toys with the digital world ... For example, it is possible to play games on the internet with Lego Ninjago products and cards. The digitalization trend is seen as important for the future of the domestic toy industry. We estimate that this trend will be reflected in our fair, ”she says.
Game and Puzzle Sales Tripled
Stating that parents spend more time at home with their children during the pandemic process, Yürür says that the demand for educational toys, games, and puzzles that can be played together is increasing. Yürür continues his words as follows: “According to the research conducted by the global digital advertising technology company Criteo, with the start of the quarantine process with the Covid-19 outbreak, many parents had the opportunity to spend longer with their children. The same house functioning as both a school and an office has resulted in children having access to offices without any restrictions, with a particularly high increase in the category of educational toys and game products that can be played together. Because many parents turn to these products to concentrate on work when they are at home. "