Spielwarenmesse 2025: I was there, too!
Yésika Zuzunaga was working as a TV presenter when she met her friend Andrea Lanas from Chile, who had founded “Caramba – juguetes inteligentes” in 2007. “Her daughter was very gifted and was always on the lookout for a very special kind of toy – and that’s how everything began,” says Yésika Zuzunaga from Peru. She got on board later, which is how Peru became a new market for the company. “Life is for playing” is the message that the brand wants to convey to customers. “We want to fire children’s imagination and foster their ability to learn through play, using high-quality games from all over the world,” says daughter Fabiana Monteblanco. Now working in the company’s marketing department, she accompanied her mother to Nuremberg. Children’s books, board games, high-quality wooden toys and toys for schools are all found on the home page of the firm, whose customers are primarily department stores and chain stores. “The Spielwarenmesse is one of our most important market barometers; this is where we discover new products and trends,” Fabiana explains.
Verena and Dominik Müller
Drachenstark-Coaching, Heidelberg, Germany
Dragon-strong coaching might be what they actually do, but the official name of their company is “Müller-Hoch2”. Although Verena and Dominik Müller are brother and sister, they didn’t grow up under the same roof. Only as young adults did they find each other again, and it may be that such a path in life has given them special powers, which they need to make children strong. They may have different qualifications, but together they’ve developed the knowledge they need to coach people – in schools, one to one and in families. Children are always at the centre of their activities. As they know from personal experience: “Cyberbullying is a major issue.” Even the second division women’s handball team HLZ Rhein-Neckar-Pfalz relies on their expertise. Games, board games and some toys can help with the job they do. “When they play, children can explore new worlds and blockages disappear,” Verena says. The Spielwarenmesse is now their playground for a few days, one where they can discover new games and develop new approaches.
Gustimops and Maxchromatica
The Funko flatshare
The Spielwarenmesse is a veritable Eldorado for collectors – and makes Funko figure collectors go crazy. “Funko, they’re like…figures with a small body and a large head,” says collector Roxy with a smile. The Funko company describe their products as “fascinating collectible figures that bring the world of pop culture to life in your hands. There’s a Funko Pop figure for everyone, whether you’re a fan of Demon Slayer, Naruto, Star Wars, Harry Potter or Marvel.” Roxy and Max met – on TikTok, where else? – because they both collect Funkos. In the world of Funko collectors, each of them is a star in their own right with 42,000 and 260,000 followers.
Here’s the video from the fair.
Iris Neußner and Szabolcs Szilágyi
Winkler Schulbedarf, Karlstetten, Austria
Winkler Schulbedarf is the market leader of school supplies in Austria. The company’ main catalogue for the 2024-25 school year has a print run of 250,000 and contains more than 10,000 articles with “great design suggestions, crafting tips and the latest trends spread across nearly 700 pages.”Their catalogue is still analogue, says Iris Neussner, “printed paper, because that what our target group in classrooms are used to.” Winkler specialises in crafting materials and kits that children can use to decorate, paint and assemble things. The most popular kit is a chewing gum machine. “Nowhere is the selection for our requirements as large as it is here in Nuremberg,” Szabolcs Szilágyi says.
Ruth Gomez
Mattel, Barcelona, Spain
Mattel is – note well! – the second largest toy manufacturer in the world after Lego. Barbie and Ken, Fisher Price, Match Box, Superman and numerous other greats from the world of toys are all at home under the same roof. Ruth Gomez is a market expert and works in the licensing department of Mattel Barcelona: “I look for suitable products from all categories, like clothing and books, and I keep an eye out for ‘new business’. This year, my main focus is on ‘Kids and Adults’. Overall, consumer behaviour is changing. ‘Arts and Crafts’ are also very much in demand. I can find everything I need here!”
Philippe Guggenheim
Pakatoys, Geneva, Switzerland
The Swiss family-run business originally sold garden furniture. It was only when the son, Philipp Guggenheim, joined the company that the reseller switched its focus to high-quality toys. “Our bestseller is a digital camera for children, with all the functions,” he says. Guggenheim has been a regular visitor to the trade fair for years. This year, he’ll be staying until Friday, as usual. “I have about ten or more appointments a day,” he says, before excusing himself in his rush to get to the next one.
Dr. Thomas Jung and Horst Müller
Lord Mayor of the city of Fürth and economic consultant
“The annual Spielwarenmesse in Nuremberg is a kind of ‘home game’ for me,” says Fürth’s Lord Mayor Dr Thomas Jung, who has held this office since 2002. He is aware that this statement is a bit provocative, but he has good reasons for it: “Fürth is a town famous for producing toys: Simba Dickie in Stadeln, Bruder in Burgfarrnbach and the Zirndorf-based manufacturer Playmobil were all originally here.” On his morning visit to the Simba Dickie stand in Hall 6, senior executive Michael Sieber is joined by his son Florian, who now runs the business. “My favourite toy was always the Bobby Car,” Dr Jung says enthusiastically, aware that it was taken over by the Simba-Dickie Group after the death of Ernst A. Bettag in 2003. “The Bobby Car is the best-selling car in Germany,” Michel Sieber adds with a smile. “And the Bobby Car is the epitome of durable, long-lasting toys,” says the Lord Mayor. In the meantime, things have shifted at home, because his granddaughter (4) loves puzzles. Dr Jung was accompanied by Horst Müller, economic consultant of the city of Fürth, who states, “I’ve attended the trade fair every year since I’ve been in office, since 1996.”
