Toyshop of the World

October is the peak sourcing month to tap into next year's industry trends and in the run-up for last orders for Christmas, toys and gifts are on everyone's mind. That's a prime factor behind the runaway success of the 12th Hong Kong International Toys & Gifts Show. Held at the HKCEC from 21 to 24 October, the Show is now Asia's largest trade fair of its kind, attracting participants and visitors from all over the world. This year, international visitors accounted for an astonishing 78% of all attendees, a figure that bears witness to the truly international scale of this event. Organiser Kenfair International (Holdings) Limited utilised every inch of available exhibition space at the Centre, presenting 4,666 booths by the 3,049 exhibitors. Drawn by the scale and renowned quality of this annual fair, the four days of this year's event saw over 60,000 visitors pass through the Centre, an increase of over 3 per cent on last year's record-breaking figures. Significantly, numbers of both exhibitors and visitors from Mainland China showed increases too (of 11% and over 6% respectively), again providing evidence of how increasingly important the economic and manufacturing might of China is becoming for international business. Children, friends, colleagues and families the world over will be eagerly awaiting gifts this Christmas, and thanks to the 12th Hong Kong International Toys & Gifts Show many of them will get what they were dreaming of. Businesses the world over have learnt there's no need to go to the North Pole when the Hong Kong International Toys & Gifts Show is around!