Zeitgeist has been rediscovering the very tradition which a wooden toy conveys to many consumers. “Wooden toys are currently experiencing a genuine renaissance”, says Michael Hopf, Sales and Marketing Management Habermaaß, Germany. “This is even more so the case abroad than it is for our domestic market.”

Return to traditional values

Haba enjoys an international reputation for quality wooden toys. In 2017, the company will once again take up classic toy themes with its Ritterburg motor skills toy castle, a first steps baby walker, various pegging games and toys for grasping. Haba is also clearly expanding its successful Kullerbü marble run for children aged 18 months and older, adding new runs, vehicles and balls (Hall 3 / A-13, C-12). Gollnest & Kiesel have also been recording a trend towards simple toys made of wood. Press officer Helmut Roloff: “Today’s generation of parents between 30 and 40 years of age favour toys which they grew up with. We are experiencing a return to traditional values.” That tradition still leaves room for creative advancement shows GoKi with its interpretation of an architype topic. The pull-along lobster toy whose claws clap is a reference to its home and a contribution towards innovative playing and motion equipment (Hall 3 / A-12). And whenever high-tech enters the playing field such as, for example, with the Smart Blocks by Zhejiang Hexin Toys (Hall 3 / A-07), traditional wooden blocks are not far away or wooden toys are turned into robots which help children to learn programming basics, as Cubetto by Primo Toys shows (Hall 5 / A-87). Spielwarenmesse: Trade fair innovations 2017: Wooden Toys and Craftworks