ToyFest has named its 2024 Western Toy & Hobby Representatives Association (WTHRA) Hall of Fame inductees.
Previously a regional toy show for specialty retailers based in Pomona, California, ToyFest has since evolved into a national show in Las Vegas that utilizes both permanent showrooms and temporary booths at the World Market Center Las Vegas.
The 2024 ToyFest Gala will introduce four members of the WTHRA Hall of Fame: Jan and Ken Hatch from The Erin Griffin Group, Tad Kato from Wildthings, Sandy Lepire and Andrea Peterson from Sunshine Sales, and Bruce Reynolds from Toyology. The Retailer of the Year will also be awarded to Dinosaur Farm in Pasadena, California.
Jan and Ken Hatch are recently retired sales representatives who worked at The Erin Griffin Group. Jan started as a sales rep in Oct. 2003 in the Arizona and New Mexico territory, while Ken started shortly after in Feb. 2004 representing Utah and the South Idaho territory. They both worked hard to provide the best service and increase business year after year. Jan retired in May of 2021 and Ken retired shortly after in April 2022.
Tad Kato started in the toy industry during the holiday season of 1979 as a part-time employee for Michael’s Toys at the Santa Anita Fashion Park in Arcadia, California. He returned the next summer and continued to work there full-time. In 1983. Don Frankel purchased the store and made Kato the store manager until its closure in 1993. From there, he worked for Linda Frankel as a sales rep for three years until Linda sold the company to Doug Carson, who changed the name to The Toy Sellers Group. He simultaneously started working for Wildthings and in 1998 switched to working exclusively there. Kato still works at Wildthings today.
Sandy Lepire started her toy career with Russ Berry right out of college in 1988 in Orange County, while Andrea Peterson worked for The Gap in the Bay Area. They both joined Henry Unger and Associates in 1990 and were together from that day forward. On Nov. 1, 1994, they started Sunshine Sales. This company, which covered California, Nevada, and Hawaii, was started with a handful of manufacturers and three salespeople. They grew into a team of 14 salespeople, expanding to the Pacific Northwest in 2014 and now over California, Nevada, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Northern Idaho, and Arizona. This year marks the 30th anniversary of Sunshine Sales. On July 9, 2023, Peterson lost her short battle with ALS. Although she is no longer with Lepire and the Sunshine team, they carry her positive spirit with them.
Bruce Reynolds got his start in the toy industry in the early ’90s working at Talbot’s Toyland in San Francisco. In 1997, he became a sales representative with Brio and in 2002, he moved to Rod Porter and Associates in Seattle. Toyology purchased Rod Porter in 2011 and Reynolds continued as an independent sales rep for the remainder of his career. He had many achievements in the toy industry, including awards with Alex, Squishable, and many others. Toy knowledge was his biggest passion. Reynolds lost his battle with cancer on June 12, 2022.
David Plenn and his wife Shelly opened Dinosaur Farm in South Pasadena in 1994. Shelly was running retail stores for the National History Museum of Los Angeles, and they used her knowledge and connections to help get Dinosaur Farm up and running. They listened to their customers, creating a special room for dinosaur toys when it was decided they didn’t have enough. The Plenns also found that carrying books separated them from the big box toy stores, so they curated a special book section for their customers. Over the years, the store has received recognition from Forbes Traveler, USA Today, BuzzFeed, LA Parent, and Pasadena Weekly. There are no signs of extinction yet for these owners.
The ToyFest Gala will take place at the Resorts World Lily Ballroom on March 3, 2024. To learn more about the Hall of Fame honorees, click here.
