ASTRA Reveals 2020 Excellence Award Winners

2020 ASTRA Retailer of the Year, The Toy Maven | Source: The Toy Maven

The COVID-19 pandemic put an end to plans for this year’s Market Place & Academy, but the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA) is continuing its yearly tradition of honoring the best in the specialty toy industry. The winners of the 2020 ASTRA Excellence Awards have been revealed, and while the in-person celebration is canceled, a virtual celebration will take place next month during the first-ever ASTRA Camp.

2020 ASTRA Excellence Award Winners

Retailer of the Year: The Toy Maven (Dallas)
Manufacturer of the Year: Smart Toys & Games (San Francisco)
Sales Rep of the Year: Jeff Saad of Jeff Saad & Associates (Seattle)
Innovator Award: Ryan Hamilton of Plus-Plus USA (Greenville, SC)
Rising Star: Kyle Cosgrove of Crazy Aaron’s (Norristown, PA)
Humanitarian Award: Crazy Aaron’s (Norristown, PA)

Related: Tough Times, Tough People: ASTRA Members Take on COVID-19

Jeff Pinsker, president of Amigo Games North America is the 2020 ASTRA Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient. Over the past 30 years, Pinsker has founded, managed, and sold several businesses involved in kids and family entertainment, toys, and games. His experience includes time spent as president of University Games, CEO of JP Kids, CEO of Infinitoy, president of Klutz, president of Pressman, and general manager at Cardinal Games. He recently shared insight into his career on the ‘Power Kid Podcast.’

This year’s winners will be honored during ASTRA Camp’s Awards Night, August 5 at 6 p.m. via Zoom.

About the author

James Zahn

James Zahn, AKA The Rock Father, is Editor-in-Chief of The Toy Book, a Senior Editor at The Toy Insider and The Pop Insider, and Editor of The Toy Report, The Toy Book‘s weekly industry newsletter. As a pop culture and toy industry expert, Zahn has appeared as a panelist and guest at events including Comic-Con International: San Diego (SDCC) Wizard World Chicago, and the ASTRA Marketplace & Academy. Zahn has more than 30 years of experience in the entertainment, retail, and publishing industries, and is frequently called upon to offer expert commentary for publications such as Forbes, Marketwatch, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, USA Today, Reuters, the Washington Post, and more. James has appeared on History Channel’s Modern Marvels, was interviewed by Larry King and Anderson Cooper, and has been seen on Yahoo! Finance, CNN, CNBC, FOX Business, NBC, ABC, CBS, WGN, The CW, and more. Zahn joined the Adventure Media & Events family in 2016, initially serving as a member of the Parent Advisory Board after penning articles for the Netflix Stream Team, Fandango Family, PBS KIDS, Sprout Parents (now Universal Kids), PopSugar, and Chicago Parent. He eventually joined the company full time as a Senior Editor and moved up the ranks to Deputy Editor and Editor-in-Chief.