Show welcomes the world’s top toy and game brands and more than 30,000 consumers.
Now in its 16th year, the Chicago Toy and Game Fair (CHITAG) takes place annually the weekend before Thanksgiving, with tens of thousands of families kicking off their holiday shopping season with a visit to the show.
This year’s ChiTAG Fair will debut new elements such as a beer garden for adults, celebrating the rising trend of grown up gaming, while a baby and toddler playspace offers the perfect stop for the fair’s youngest attendees. Characters from favorite games such as Greedy Granny will come to life for photo opps, Etch-a-Sketch fans can meet one of the medium’s premier artists and participants might even get the chance to play a round of Jenga with the iconic game’s inventor.
Before doors open to consumers, ChiTAG Week begins on Thursday 16th November with events focused on the toy and game industry, including the world’s largest inventor conference. Over 50 companies have product acquisition executives or teams attending looking for new ideas. Professional and new inventors, product acquisition executives, retailers and distributors from the biggest names in the industry gather to learn from each other, pitch their ideas and play.
On Friday evening, the Toy and Game Innovation Awards, better known as the TAGIEs highlight the very best in the industry. During an evening of elegance and entertainment, awards are given in several categories including Innovative Marketing Team, Toy Innovator of the Year and Game Innovator of the Year.
CEO and founder Mary Couzin commented: “ChiTAG Week gets bigger and better every year. The dedication and creativity of the inventors and the toy and game companies that keep coming back year after year demonstrate the power of experiential play that only Chicago Toy and Game Week can bring to consumers.”
These events are supported by key sponsors including Goliath, Hasbro, Lego, PlayMonster, Spin Master, Oxford Games, Target, Mattel, Razor, TIA, ASTRA and The Michael Kohner Corporation.
