Manufacturers Gear Up for Annual Toy Fair

Toy manufacturers such as El Segundo-based Mattel Inc. and Hasbro Inc. of Pawtucket, R.I., are gearing up for the annual American International Toy Fair in New York this weekend, hoping to turn buyers on to their games, dolls and gadgets.

After a year of toy store closures and bitter price wars, more than 20,000 buyers will troll the trade show in search of a marquee toy, more anxious than ever to spot what will be hot for the all-important holiday season.

The show is expected to have more than 1,200 exhibitors.

Toys are a roughly $20-billion-a-year industry, according to NPD Group, a New York-based market information company.