Games

The year opened with a flurry of activity for the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) as the first events held after the reopening of the border with Mainland China and easing of COVID-19 restrictions on overseas travel drew heavy traffic.

Like many parents of young children, Australian expatriates Jade Poon and Natalie Chow found their Hong Kong homes were becoming cluttered with toys – many of which their toddlers no longer even played with. Friends since their schooldays and keen to live more sustainably, the pair decided this was wasteful. So in April 2019, Ms Poon, a human resources executive, and Ms Chow, a marketing executive-turned-entrepreneur, came up with the idea to establish Happy Baton, Hong Kong’s first toy rental subscription service.

Making good use of intellectual property (IP) licensing can help companies boost their brand promotion as well as expand their customer base. Some trendy brands, including tea companies, have developed crossover cooperation with other brands, to increase brand awareness and sales by leveraging both online and offline promotions.

The HKTDC Hong Kong Toys & Games Fair provides an excellent platform for exhibitors to showcase an extensive array of innovative and smart tech toys, creating brilliant business opportunities for buyers to explore. Spotlights include the Brand Name Gallery, which highlights renowned brands. Kidult World features hobby goods, magic, action and war games and models that appeal to grown-ups. Smart-Tech Toys showcases hi-tech games and toys featuring virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and app-controlled functions. Green Toys presents high-quality toys that are made from eco-friendly and recycled materials.

Toy industry leaders will air their views on the market recovery in Shanghai as well as the latest sourcing trends and supply chain developments in Mainland China. They will also explore online marketing trends and strategies for promoting toy products.

Play-to-earn games, where participants accumulate tokens that can be exchanged for cryptocurrency while playing online, are taking off globally. One of the leaders in this trend in Hong Kong is Animoca Brands, which owns several play-to-earn titles including Crazy Defense Heroes and Benji Bananas, and has also invested in other games such as Axie Infinity.