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ASTRA holds record-breaking event

Playthings Staff -- Gifts and Dec, 6/16/2010 4:39:00 PM

CHICAGO - The historic New England seaport of Providence, R.I. may be known for its world class seafood, but it just reeled in an entirely different sort of catch: a record-breaking crowd of specialty toy retailers attending the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association's annual Marketplace & Academy.

Over the past three years, this event-the year's largest gathering of the specialty toy industry-has broken its own attendance records every year. Its exhibit hall has sold out every year weeks or months in advance of Marketplace and the number of retailers attending the event has more than tripled. While final counts will not be available until Marketplace & Academy is over, early indications are that this year's crowd was 25% to 30% bigger than last year.

"What we've been seeing at Marketplace & Academy speaks to the spirit and resilience of the independent toy retailer," said Kathleen McHugh, president of ASTRA. "Even in the midst of an extended economic downturn, ASTRA members continue to tend to the basics of their businesses. These are not business owners who sit around and wait for things to get better. They show up, they invest in new products, and they get money-saving ideas from ASTRA's top drawer speakers and from each other. They work hard and they work smart, and taking full advantage of ASTRA's Marketplace & Academy is part of that equation."

Next year's ASTRA Marketplace & Academy will be held in June in Anaheim, Calif. Dates will be announced later.

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