President’s Report

It’s a new beginning…

Long Beach, June 12-15, ASTRA’s Marketplace & Academy 2022.

Yes, we did it.

Yes, we were back to our full schedule.

Yes, it was great.

And yes, we are still dealing with the variants of COVID and in many ways, things will never be exactly as they were before. While some of the attendees did return home to discover they had COVID, for the most part they were back in their groove within a reasonable amount of time. Traveling to the show, dining out and attending the show – all were opportunities to contract COVID. It was a personal decision for those that chose to attend or not to attend. The decision was what was right for each person.

As we look to future gatherings, it is inevitable that we will continue to see cases arise. This will be our new normal for quite some time. With that said, the response from the vast majority of those that joined us in Long Beach was that we were finally able to be together and enjoy the full schedule of Marketplace & Academy, and it felt fantastic!

As we look to the future to see how we can improve all ASTRA gatherings, specifically Marketplace & Academy, I want to call out some very amazing volunteers that have given hours of time in meetings over the last four-plus years to look forward and consider how ASTRA can be the innovator within the toy industry.

The Innovation Council was formed after focus groups of retailers, reps and manufacturers were held in 2017. Amongst the current volunteers, all major member categories are represented – reps, retailers, manufacturers and affiliates. While some in the group have left and new people have stepped in, there are many that have been active since the very beginning.

When 2020 hit and COVID reared its ugly head, their focus had to change. The board of directors tasked the group over the last year to look at what the future of gatherings should look like to best serve our members and our specialty toy industry. Weekly – yes weekly – meetings have been held over the past year and in the last six months, this group put together a very detailed list of questions to ask our members. Round-table discussions were held via Zoom; each was facilitated by Jillian Lakritz. These were the seven groups that each had a 90-minute session: - Experienced, long-term retailers - Newer retailers - Experienced, long-term manufacturers - Newer manufacturers - Inventors - Regional Rep Group Principals - National Rep Group Principals

Questions asked included these and so many more. • What is the first word that comes to mind when you think of ASTRA? • What’s working/not working with

Marketplace & Academy? • What does success look like to you for

ASTRA? • If you had a chance to sit down with the ASTRA board and give them a few words of advice about what they should do to create the ultimate trade show experience for you, what would you say?

The answers were invaluable.

The Innovation Council took the notes from all the sessions and met for an entire day working through the answers to come up with an amazing list of innovative ideas to put into action at future Marketplace & Academy gatherings. Some of these will be implemented in 2023 in Columbus, and many more in 2024 and beyond.

In addition, as staff, we always listen to what we hear from participants that attend, as well as what we know we need to improve upon from our experience at the show as we plan our next gatherings (including the Toy Boat Experience).

It’s a new beginning. New staff, new ideas, new world. Things will never be the same, but in change is growth and opportunity. Continue on the journey with us!

The ASTRA staff at Marketplace & Academy (from left-to-right): Ashlee Cammack, Michael Foldeak, Sue Warfield, Jenna Stirling, Briana White.