New Inventor & New Business Conference Track
In our 12th year, formerly known as T&GCon, this is a forum for advocating, educating and bringing together the inventor community in the toy and game industry; with unrivaled opportunities for private/confidential meetings, knowledge sharing, discovering new trends, pooling resources and generating new business. Space is limited! Register to attend here!
NEW INVENTOR AND NEW BUSINESS CONFERENCE AGENDA
Wednesday, November 15th
If you arrive on Wednesday, Timothy O'Toole's , 622 N. Fairbanks Court, is where Conference participants end up at some point in the evening. It is across from the DoubleTree, our Conference hotel.
Thursday, November 16th
8:00 Registration Near Room 326
8:00 Continental Breakfast in Room 329
9:00 Welcome
All Tracks meet in Room 325/326
Mary Couzin, Introduction to Catherine McMillan Gill and Richard Gill of McGill and Associates, Moderators of the Conference
9:00 Opening Keynote Speakers
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Rich Mazel, Senior Director Global Product Acquisition Hasbro
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Gary Swisher, SVP of Inventor Relations and Head of Gaming, Mattel
10:00 Professional Inventors and Product Acquisition Executives leave for Room 324
10:00 Basics of the industry – Who, What, Terms, Acronyms and more
10:30 Coffee Break
10:45 Protecting Your Ides: Perspectives for Individuals and Companies
11:15 Self-Producing Your Game Idea – Manufacturing, Testing
Steven Schoenmaekers (Cartamundi)
11:45 Networking Chicago-Style Lunch (All Tracks) Rooms 328 and 329
1:00 Self-Producing Your Toy Idea – Manufacturing, Toy Testing
Matt Nuccio (Design Edge)
1:30 Working with Retailers, Reps and Distributors
Best Way to Approach Retailers, Reps and Distributors; Be a Partner
Katherine McHenry (Building Blocks), Carle Wunderlich (WunderReps), Megan Hinterman (PSI)
2:00 Alternate Distribution – DRTV
Rob Yusin (Product Counsel)
2:30 What a Major Manufacturer Looks for in Licensing a Product
Dave Harris (Fisher-Price)
3:00 Coffee Break
3:30 Global Market Perspective, International Trade Shows
Worldwide experts address the challenges and opportunities of accessing international markets and international trade fairs in NYC, Hong Kong, London, Nuremberg, Essen, Shanghai, and Tokyo.
Richard Gill (McGill Associates) and Emile Kalis (Identity Games)
4:00 Public Relations and Marketing Strategy (Digital and Traditional)
With So Many Options Today, Where Do You Put Your Money?
Kathleen Tomes and Clark Nesselrodt (Brilliant PR and Marketing)
4:30 Real World Trends That are Affecting the Kids Biz, AI and Smart Learning, AR and VR, Voice Activation, Coding/Robot Mania and the Privacy/Fake News
Robin Raskin (Living in Digital Times)
5:00 Presenting and Licensing Your Idea to Companies and Retailers
Pitch Perfect in One Minute – Getting Your Idea Across in 30 seconds
Advice on how to catch their interest in 30 seconds or less. You’ve heard less is more, it is true!
Tanya Thompson (Hasbro)
6:00 – 10:00 Inventor Night - Networking Dinner & Fun with the Experts/Speakers
Networking Dinner (open bar and dinner) at D4 Irish Pub. It is a short walk from both Navy Pier and Doubletree Hotel (only a block from Doubletree).
Friday, November 17th
8:00 Registration and Continental Breakfast, Exhibit Table Set-up for Pitch Perfect
9:00 Keynote Speakers – Room 325/326
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Richard Barry, EVP, Global Chief Merchandising Officer, ToysRUs
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Brent Bushnell, CEO of Two Bit Circus
10:00 Professional Inventors leave for Room 324.
10:00 New Inventors and Product Acquisition Executives Leave for Lakeview Terrace.
10:00 One Minute Pitch – Room Lakeview Terrace
Companies will spend 1 minute at each inventor table and will give you their information or take yours if they are interested. Prior to Conference, please put together your Product Overview Sheets and read the White Papers (link from website).
1:00 Networking Lunch – Rooms 328 and 329
2:00 – 3:00 Finding and Working with Investors Track – Room 325/326
Moderator: Garnet S. Heraman, Managing Director, Investments at FUTURES NYC Innovation Fund
Panelists:
Gerri Kahnweiler, InvestHER Ventures
Krissa Watry, Dynepic, Inc.
Pavel Sokolovsky, Nameless Ventures
Mark Kennedy, CoWorkattheMall.com
Topics on How to:
Find investors
Present to investors
Know investors’ expectations
Work with them
Select board members
Manage BOD/ BOA effectively
Manage investor/board updates
Follow on investment from participants in previous rounds
Leverage your investors' network to access more resources
4:00 Wrap-Up Conference - Speaking Portion Concludes, But Networking Picks up Again at Evening Events (included in your ticket)
If you have exhibit space at the weekend ChiTAG Fair, you have until 6pm to enter the Hall (Festival Hall A&B) in order to set up your booth or table. Once in the Hall, you may stay until approximately 9pm. See ChiTAG Exhibitor Manual for details.
6:00 to 10:00pm Toy and Game Innovation Awards (TAGIE) Awards – a playful, celebratory and elegant event! (included in your ticket – do not miss!)
This is 'THE' Event to Attend!
"ChiTAG is “THE” event for the Toy Industry, it is a who’s who of Toy & Game Inventors and Toy & Game Companies. The Conferences, Gala and Fair are unmatched for Educating, Celebrating and Playing in our industry. I’m very excited for this year’s event - it is timed perfectly for seeing the best of the best toys and games right in the heart of our biggest selling season!" - Gary Swisher, SVP of Inventor Relations and Head of Gaming, Mattel Inc.
"ChiTAG is a high point of the year. I am able to meet and speak with inventors from around the globe in an amazing, innovative and supportive environment. It is the only toy and game fair that offers this combination of new and experienced inventors, learning and networking opportunities, and an event that is literally and figuratively built around an open-to-the-public Toy Fair set on Chicago’s historic Navy Pier. It is a great place to experience every part of the toy industry, from the inventors, colleagues, and business partners, to watching the children’s reactions to the toys and games on the show floor to wrap up the week.” - Rich Mazel – Head of Global Product Acquisitions, Hasbro, Inc.
"If you’re truly serious about getting into the toy & game industry, whether it be as a designer looking to license your ideas or start producing your own products, I can’t recommend enough attending this Conference. I first attended T&GCon in 2014 and have since licensed several toys and games, all to companies that I met at the conference (Spin Master, Marbles, Mindware & Fat Brain Toys). Although I’m a newbie to the industry I’m confident in saying that you would be very hard pressed to find any single event that new (and experienced) toy & game inventors can attend that will be as helpful to your aspirations. " -Brady Peterson
Conference Registration Includes...
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Two days of customized conference sessions designed to give you a broad exposure to the toy & game industry, expand your business and save you from making costly mistakes.
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An exhibit table with a "Speed Meeting" opportunity to pitch your toy, game or app prototypes, products, and ideas to dozens of companies for licensing and feedback.
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Unparalleled opportunity to network with peers, speakers, toy and game product acquisition executives as well as consultants and others that can help you succeed.
- Opportunity to meet with toy an game companies
- One ticket to D4 Pub Night - great food, great space, great networking!
- One ticket to the Toy & Game Innovation Awards (TAGIEs) on Friday night (same night as PlayCHIC)
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Two-day admission to the Fair on Saturday & Sunday
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Discounts on exhibition space at the Chicago Toy & Game Fair - A $300 discount on a 6 feet inventor table space or a $500 discount on a 10 x 10 square feet or larger booth space. This is separate from the table you receive at this inventor conference.
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Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner for both days
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Coffee, tea & networking breaks for both days
Exhibit Tables and "Speed Meeting"
Attendees with prototypes, inventions, products, and/or services receive a 6 foot exhibit table in our mini show room (near the conference rooms) which allows you to present product during the conference on Friday.
During the "Speed Meeting and Pitching" period on Friday morning, all conference speaker/experts have agreed to take time to walk through the Walkabout room to see product, and listen to the "elevator pitch" at each table. The schedule permits at least one minute with each company, and then take advantage of the networking opportunities to have deeper discussions with the people who are interested in your products.
There is no additional cost for reserving a table at the conference, Contact us to reserve your table. All materials being displayed must fit on top of the 6 foot table. Table coverings are acceptable. No items may be placed adjacent to the table (i.e. banners or display racks).
Register for the 2017 Conference!
Conference Hotel
We reserve a block of rooms at the Doubletree Magnificent Mile (a five-minute taxi ride to the Pier) with a discounted room rate if you make your reservations through our travel agent - Kate Hennessy at Milne Travel American Express.
Call Kate at: +1 802 735 1316 (or +1 802 862 2200) or email: Kate.Hennessey@milnetravel.com
Availability is limited! Book early!
Past Attendees Recommend Attending!
"What an excellent introduction to the toy and game profession! I met acquisition execs, license brokers, experienced game designers and newbies like myself. And I learned a lot from each group!" - Luke Fischer, Gamefish LLC
"The CHITAG Innovation Conference was a great opportunity for me. I walked away with a deeper understanding of the industry and met many inspiring people. Their passion was motivating and provided an excellent experience that I will hang onto as I follow my dream." Steve Rolland, Game Creator of Yes, and…you are the Comic!
"CHITAG is the best conference and networking experience I have ever had!" -Heidi Larson, Hb's Toys & Accessories
"The Chicago Toy and Game conference was a great opportunity for me. I walked away with a deeper understanding of the industry and met many inspiring people. Their passion was motivating and provided an excellent experience that I will hang onto as I follow my dream." -Steve Rolland, Game Creator of Yes, and…you are the Comic!
"Thank you for all you do, one word describes my experience "Phenomenal". -Susan Polodna
"I had been trying over the last 6 months to figure out how and who to license my toy idea to (Evolvems reversible dino plush if you had a chance to see it on the table). I got not only a ton of great info... but I think I made a deal yesterday with a great company, all through the network of folks who were generous enough to share their insight and make connections. know there is some saying about chickens and hatching but regardless I think this is the best money I ever spent." - Avram Kaufman, Evolvems
"T&GCon was amazing and I highly recommend that any and all budding toy and game inventors invest in this opportunity to learn every aspect of the toy and game industry! Not only do you get to network with the top experts in the industry, but you can get a one-on-one meeting to discuss "your" toy or game with them! It's a rare and golden opportunity for toy and game inventors!" - Barbara Jenkins, J Links Enterprise
"Thank you for putting on such a wonderful conference. It definitely exceeded my expectations! As someone who is interested in getting started in the toy and game industry, I found this conference invaluable. The great variety of session topics and quality of presenters helped me gain a better understanding of the industry as a whole. I would recommend it to anyone who thinks toy or game design is something they want to do." - John Berube
“I just licensed BrainSpin to Winning Moves! I learned so much at the Conferences and Fair and could not have gotten this deal without the work you do supporting newbies like me. I came to understand the value of licensing versus self-publishing; learned the important terms, conditions and gray areas of legal deals; met a Hasbro executive and played my game with him (he later connected me with Winning Moves); and a colleague of his, who kindly offered his advice on who to work with and what I could expect in a deal; and I boosted my credibility by selling more than a hundred copies of BrainSpin at the Fair. Thank you so much!” - Frankie Abralind
"You can spend years trying to figure out the ropes of a new industry, or you can spend two days at T&GCon and meet those that know, listen to those that know, and then you can move forward with your idea. We listened. When we left we had orders and we had a vision. We went from being a nobody to a somebody. Thank you so much!" - Bill Witt, Founder, Pajaggle, Inc
"I attended T&GCon and ChiTAG for the first time in 2012 as a newbie inventor looking to gain feedback on our party game, Schmovie. I received invaluable insights from seasoned industry folks and consumers alike, and we ended up making key changes to both our game play and box design as a result. I’m excited to return this year as we celebrate Schmovie’s official launch!" -BryanWilson, Partner/Creative Director, Galactic Sneeze
“T&GCon was first class - ample venue, fine food/beverage, well-credentialed speakers, awards dinner, impressive and well-connected industry execs attending. Your event far exceeded my expectations! A great experience! The face-to-face contact with industry folks is invaluable. I heartily recommend this for anyone hoping to break into the business. Even if a person does not find the news to be good about their proposed toy or game, then they at least know that they gave themselves the very best chance for success. Thanks to T&GCon 2013, my game “Choice Words” was picked up by MindWare.” - Bob Kamp
“We launched in 2012... We went to a Toy Show, and it happened to be the Chicago Toy Fair, and within the first hour we got offered a license agreement.” — Dustin "Red Dragon" Berk, Ninja Cards on Shark Tank
