Page 21 - Toy & Hobby Retailer Magazine May-July 2019

stood long-time Spielwarenmesse attendee Peter Madner and his wife Elizabeth on the Geo Australia stand. Attending the show for his 27th time Madner said that it was more important for Geo Australia to be at the show for consistency and exposure rather than for signing orders.
Over at the Green Rubber Toys stand, Lou Papaleo highlighted the new bath toys and puzzles the business had to offer. I also – embarrassingly – learned that rubber is derived from a plant, one of which was sitting on the Green Rubber Toys stand.
Australians making their debut at the world's largest toy fair included family-run costuming company Statmart/PartiLicious. The costumes are all designed in Australia
by Nicky Rogers, daughter of owners Barry and Anne Rogers. Speaking to Nicky and Barry on the stand, they said that they
place a heightened focus on the packaging
of the costumes, aiming to give each
costume a backstory and context through detailed background images, rather than using just a generic picture of a person wearing the costume on the front.
Also attending the fair for the first time
were Daniel de Gaye and Jason Koch from Skate Innovation. They were showcasing the Ookkie skateboard – the world's first, dedicated children's learning skateboard, complete with
a long handle for parents to push their little ones along and a smaller handle for kids hold on to. The Ookkie gets kids skating at a young age – as young as two – and assists with balance and coordination, while also helping to break down any fear barriers children – and parents
– may have around skating. Once children are comfortable on the board, parents can begin
to remove the handles so kids can eventually skate completely independently.
MAY / JULY 2019 TOY & HOBBY RETAILER 21