ASTRA Wants Members to be Media-Ready this Holiday Season

With the holiday season just around the corner, the American Specialty Toy Retailing Association (ASTRA) wants independent toy stores to be “media-ready” for their season in the spotlight.

On Sept. 16, ASTRA will present an exclusive webinar meant to help toy store owners secure media coverage and to be better prepared on what to say when press comes calling. Toys “R” Us, Tariffs, and Neighborhood Toy Store Day: Get Ready for Your Next Media Moment, will take place at 10 a.m. CST, with a recording set to be archived on ASTRA Academy for ASTRA members to reference throughout the upcoming season.

“Toys are in the news this fall, and it’s beyond the usual interest created by the upcoming holiday season, as important as that is,” says ASTRA President Kimberly Mosley. “The impact of tariffs is top of mind and the changing retail landscape — including the effort by Toys “‘R” Us to re-enter the market — gives toy store owners lots of angles for getting their business into local news stories this fall. ASTRA’s webinar will provide both general tips for getting coverage as well as specific ways to talk about tariffs, the importance of locally-owned businesses that create jobs, Neighborhood Toy Store Day, and more.”

Julie Stern and Lindsey Hall of Brilliant PR & Marketing will lead this webinar, which will include valuable tips on how store owners can engage with the media via press release examples, pitch letter techniques, and social media tips.

The event is complimentary for ASTRA members. Registration is open at via the ASTRA Academy website.

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.