BY JUSTIN DISCOE
In an age where most of us spend our days staring into grids of faces on Zoom or Teams, you’d think the toy industry could move along just fine without in-person shows. After all, we’ve got decks on the cloud, PDFs, and prototypes that can be spun around in 3D on a laptop. Why bother hauling samples, sales reps, and ourselves across the country?
Because the truth is: in-person previews still matter—deeply. And for those of us leading innovation in toys, the L.A. Fall Toy Preview remains one of the industry’s most critical touchpoints.
Relationships First, Always
If you’ve worked in toys for more than a week, you already know: this business runs on relationships. Buyers don’t just buy products—they buy into people they trust. Reps count on your support. Colleagues become lifelong friends (or at least reliable partners for a late-night drink when your prototype breaks).
And one of the coolest things about this industry? Peers across companies often go out of their way to make connections for you. You’ll be walking the hallway when someone says, “You know what? You really need to meet so-and-so—let me make an intro.” That kind of serendipity doesn’t happen on a Zoom call. It’s part of the culture of collaboration that keeps the industry fresh and makes shows like the L.A. Fall Toy Preview so valuable.
That trust isn’t built through pixelated calls where someone’s Wi-Fi cuts out mid-sentence. It’s built by bumping into a buyer in the hallway, walking them through a showroom, or swapping war stories over a couple of pints after hours. In person shows are where those connections happen, and they’re the glue that holds our industry together.
Ideas Need a Pulse
I’ll admit it: I get wound up about my ideas. That’s part of being a neurodivergent product developer. My enthusiasm comes alive in person in a way that just doesn’t translate over video. When I’m standing in front of a buyer, prototype in hand, explaining why I think this toy has soul, my energy transfers. They can feel it and it’s not the coffee talking.
Because toys aren’t spreadsheets. They’re emotional. Tactile. They have a pulse. A PowerPoint slide can show you dimensions, but it won’t make you smile. Being in a showroom surrounded by physical samples—you can feel the white space in the market. That kind of insight doesn’t pop out of a virtual deck, even in a world filled with AI substitutes.
Proof of Progress
Fall Toy Preview is also where we prove we’re serious. If you teased a sketch or rough model back in spring, this is the checkpoint where buyers expect to see progress. The shows keep everyone honest.
Are the prototypes closer to production? Do the landed costs line up with reality? Did tariffs throw a wrench into your margins? This is when all those questions get answered.
At ERA Group, where I serve as Head of Innovation & Design, we’re an ODM partner—so our credibility hinges on proving that we can deliver, not just dream. Fall Toy Preview is the moment where “cool idea” becomes “serious contender.”
The Controlled Chaos of Show Prep
Ask any designer, marketer, or sales rep, and they’ll tell you: getting to L.A. Fall Toy Preview or any toy show, is a production in itself.
There’s the mad dash to finish prototypes (hoping the paint dries before it goes in a buyer’s hands). There’s a showroom setup that feels more like staging a Broadway play than arranging toys. Pricing sheets, sell sheets, tariff debates, landed costs—it’s a circus, and everyone’s juggling flaming pins and spinning plates behind the scenes.
And then, of course, the eternal designer’s fear: that the sales guy will accidentally break the prototype five minutes before the meeting. (Tongue firmly in cheek, but every designer reading this knows that heart-stopping moment.)
Yet when the doors finally open, and buyers step in—that’s when all the chaos feels worth it.
Beyond the Showroom
What happens outside the showroom is often just as valuable. A quick coffee with a buyer you’ve been chasing for months. Talking shop with a fellow designer who “gets it.” Or the text check in with your teammate to see how everything went with the buyer and what’s the feedback. These aren’t bullet points in a deck—they’re the real connections that make the toy industry special.
Digital Has Its Place
Don’t get me wrong, I rely on digital tools every day. Living in Colorado while my ERA Group team is based in Montreal means Teams and Zoom keep me in the loop. They’re lifelines for the day-to-day.
But for the big moves—the gut checks, the handshake deals, the sparks that change the direction of a line—you need to be in the room. Digital keeps us moving; in-person keeps us believing.
Why It Still Matters
So why does Fall Toy Preview remain critical for innovation leaders? Because innovation isn’t just about showing ideas—it’s about transferring energy. It’s about the spark when someone “gets” your concept, the unspoken cues in a conversation, the showroom buzz when prototypes finally meet daylight.
Toys are, at their core, about play. And play is social. It’s emotional. It’s human. You can’t replicate that with a screen share.
That’s why, even in this hyper-digital age, the L.A Fall Toy Preview isn’t just surviving—it’s thriving. It reminds us that behind every great toy is a messy, passionate, people-driven process. And the best way to honor that process? Get in the room.
Justin Discoe has spent more than 25 years bringing toys and consumer products from sketchpad to store shelf, blending creativity, purpose, and practical design know-how. With over 20 patents and hundreds of products in the market, his career has taken him from designing at Mattel to co-founding the award-winning Sprig Toys and consulting for Hasbro, Spin Master, Jakks Pacific, and other leading brands. Today, he heads up Innovation and Design for Montreal-based ERA Group, creating preschool, educational, and mass-market products for retailers in markets around the world. Justin holds a BFA in Industrial Design and an M.Ed. in Leadership.
