Results of the 9th edition of Playtime new yoRk August 2

illustration : Philip Giordano
The international children's trade show
Results of the 9th edition of Playtime New York
August 2 - 4, 2014 • Metropolitan Pavilion
Organized around the theme of ‘Luna Park’, the international
rendez-vous for professionals from the children’s universe
attracted 1648 visitors, for an increase of +17% over August
2013. This means that the 9th session of Playtime was the most
successful summer edition of the trade show since its launch.
More than 100 international brands gathered for the first time ever at the
Metropolitan Pavilion, where will be organized all Playtime New York summer shows, whereas the March show will take place at the Metropolitan
West, on the 46th street.
Fashion, accessories, shoes, stuffed animals and soft toys, layette, décor
and gift objects; a selection of brands with original and complementary
universes, attracted by the unique promise of being part of a complete
and coherent selection of merchandise in an environment that is both
inspirational and dynamic. A choice that paid off for many brands, however some of them exhibited for the very first time. Good news in a stillfragile international economic context, in which the United States came
out ahead, with its renewed economic activity.
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A turnkey organization for those exhibitors who came from the United
States (52%) as well as from abroad (48%), in order to show their Spring/
Summer 2015 collections to buyers and press (respectively 85% and 15%
of visitors).
More and more, a taste for beauty and uniqueness is what attracts the
sector’s professionals. 65% of them attended the show for the very first
time, motivated primarily by a desire to discover collections that were
creative and original.
Department stores, concept stores, e-shops, written press and blogs
alike appreciated the care the organizers put into the decor and the different services offered.
Three trend spaces set out the main themes for Sprint/Summer 2015.
Cotton candy: sheer yumminess was in the spotlight thanks to pastel colors
and light materials.
Freak show: visitors had fun getting startled by dark colored clothes and
unusual shapes.
Quirky carrousels: thrills were guaranteed by a parade of colors and patterns.
The original creations of artists Hannah Xenakis & Rose Wong, Kathryne
Hall and Louise Kim & Michelle Yoon, echoed various exhibitors’ pieces.
To create a link between trends and business, KidStyleSource held, for the
2nd time, its TrendHotSpot at the entrance to the fair. A unique installation
whose goal was to present a résumé of the main colors, materials and styles
of the season, a precious tool to highlight exhibitors’ pieces and guide buyers
in their choices.
In partnership with Earnshaw’s magazine, on Monday August 4, Playtime
held a conference on brand strategies which was open to all.
Noelle Heffernan, Publishor of Earnshaw’s, Audrey Kingo, Editor-in-Chief
of Earnshaw’s, Jennifer Cattaui, Director of the Babesta boutique, and
Sophie Demenge, the designer behind Oeuf NYC, shared their knowledge
and answered audience questions.
www.earnshaws.com / www.babesta.com /www.oeufnyc.com
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There were some relaxing moments as well: the entire Playtime community
got their individual portraits taken by the Kid’s Wear photographer against
backgrounds illustrated by Colorium.
www.kidswear-department.com / www.colorium.net
THE DETAILS
Total number of visitors
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Breakdown by day
Saturday, Day 1
33,4%
Sunday, Day 2
33,6%
Monday, Day 3
33%
Geographical breakdown
The Americas
Rest
of world
88,9%
11,1%
of which the USA
84,9%
Zoom on the USA
New York
68,3%
New Jersey
8,4%
California
4,9%
Other states
12,3%
The complete list of exhibitors is as follows:
1+ in the family, akid brand, alvakids, amelia, ashira, atsuyo et akiko,
axl brand, bacabuche, be lucky, beau loves, bobo choses, bonheur
du jour, bouton, boy+girl, búho, caramel au sucre, caramel baby and
child, coq en pâte, de salitto, devon’s drawer, dizzy dress, doodle do,
douuod, etiquette clothiers, everbloom, fanny belette, florence fancy,
frankie & sue, gold, golf for kids, gro, hazel village, herschel supply
co, ike behar boys, je suis en cp !, ketiketa, kids the frog, laingo, lately
lily, les petits carreaux, le petit coco, liho , littl by lilit, little gabies,
little ghost, little lux, loud apparel, lucky fish, luisa et la luna, lulaland,
luna + stella, maá, manuela de juan, maan, mon marcel, mon
petit atelier, moon et miel, moskiddos, motoreta, mundo natura, my
little baby rock, naaya by moonlight, nancy vuu, nellystella, love by
nellystella, neon rae, niconico clothing, oaks of acorn, odette williams,
oeuf, omamimini, one black egg kids, paisley magic, pepe’, plantoys,
poeme & poesie, project five, rosalita senoritas, rose pistol kids,
roundabout, salt city emporium, shorteez, sonatina, stesha, sunchild,
suoak, tiny bitz, troizenfants, tuchinda, ultra violet kids, urban kids los
angeles, velveteen, violeta e federico, white + warren baby, zaikamoya
A selection of the principle buyers:
Abigail’s Children’s Boutique, Acorn toy shop, Anthropologie, Babesta,
Baby crossing, Barney’s, Bellini, Bergdorf Goodman, Bloomingdale’s, Born
Yesterday, Bringing Up Baby, cabbages & kings, Chasing Fireflies, Cottontails,
Dottie doolittle, Eggy, Elegant Child, Eloise At The Plaza, Estella, Fred segal,
Garnet Hill, Giggle, Harvey nichols, J seitz & co, Koh’s Kids, La Di Da, Les
Petits Chapelais, Lolli, Lucky Wang, Marcia’s Attic, Miller’s Hobbies, Over the
Moon, Petit Ami, Pippen Lane, Pitti Bimi, Poppy Store, Pride and Joy, Prince
& princess, Shoofly, Sprout San Francisco, Sweet William, The Monogram
Shop, The picket fence, The Red Balloon, The Wooden Soldier, Three Monkeys
Children’s Boutique, Thumbeline, Tuesday’s Child Boutique, Whimsies, Yoya, Inc.
NEXT EDITIONS
PLAYTIME TOKYO will close the summer trade show season with its 11th edition taking place August 26 - 28, 2014.
www.playtimetokyo.com
PLAYTIME PARIS will present its largest edition ever, from January 31 - February 2, 2015, which will bring together over
400 brands.
For the past 2 years, the winter session has also presented PlayWithDesign, the newest addition to the Playtime show. This
time,10 designers will work around the theme of rattan.
www.playtimeparis.com • www.playtimeparis.com/playwithdesign
Finally, PLAYTIME NEW YORK will be back from March 7-9, 2015 at the Metropolitan West.
www.playtimenewyork.com
Playtime New York Organizers: Picaflor Inc • 34 West 33rd Street, New York, NY 10001, USA • E-mail [email protected] / Press [email protected]
For all photo requests, kindly e-mail: [email protected]