International Toy Fair | 2014

by Rachel McGrath on 21/02/2014

With almost 2800 exhibitors from around the world, Nuremberg’s International Toy Fair is by far the largest of its kind. In the 12 halls, exciting new designers stand alongside familiar brands, all showcasing their latest, gorgeous designs and innovations – the very things we will all be parcelling up beneath the Christmas tree come December.

While the likes of GEOMAG and Janod have been creating fantastic toys for quite some time, plenty of new brands were enjoying their inaugural trip to the 2014 Toy Fair, including eeBoo, from the USA, who brought their quirky puzzles, board games and puppets along for us to test out.

After a hugely successful 2013, Polish brand Wooden Story were back with the award-winning Peace & Love puzzle blocks and a wonderful selection of eco-friendly wooden teethers, while French brand Les Jouets Libres had us swooning over their kooky graphics on everything from Tik Tak board games to the Kaput Nightmare Game, which should be top of the list for any parent tackling the tricky topic of mythical monsters and big, bad wolves.

The Trend Gallery highlighted themes that look set to prove popular in 2014, placing a strong emphasis on educational toys and games, as well as retro throwbacks and all things technology.

Our full report covering the trends, award winners and stand-out products will be coming in the next few weeks, but in the meantime, here are 12 (very difficult to choose…) favourites from the Show.

Note This is a Show Report preview. Full reviews will be coming in the next few weeks. You can still pin these images to your moodboards, but the general details will not appear in your Moodboard caption area.