Toki recently delighted hobbyists and enthusiasts at TOYCON

Toki, the first and only social commerce platform in the Philippines dedicated to collectibles, recently delighted hobbyists and enthusiasts at TOYCON, the biggest annual gathering for collectors held last June 14 to 16 at SMX Manila, to bring the leading niche destination in front of the passionate crowd and let them experience what the digital marketplace has to offer. 

As the pioneer of livestream auctions in the Philippines, Toki hosted several directly from its booth at TOYCON, engaging those remotely navigating the platform and bringing the same vibrant energy from the convention to wherever they were.

With over 100,000 certified authentic collectibles on its platform, Toki showcased an exciting array of items at the three-day event, including exclusive Art Toys, Funko, rare Lego sets, and sneakers. Exclusive branded merchandise was also up for grabs at the Toki booth, where through simple but fun games, attendees had the chance to win exciting items, ensuring that no one went home empty-handed.

One of the main highlights from Toki was its daily giveaway of PhP 10,000 worth of vouchers, awarded to one lucky winner on each day of TOYCON. To make a splash at their first appearance at this major collector event, Toki encouraged attendees to join the special giveaway, where winners could use their prizes to explore the platform and acquire their favorite collectibles through Toki’s seamless end-to-end buying journey.

In addition, the actor, collector, and top buyer on Toki, Kokoy de Santos, also visited the booth, joining in the excitement and fun Toki is bringing to the convention. 

TOYCON has been the premier convention for collectors for 20 years, with the 2024 event marking its 21st year. As Toki makes its foray into the industry event since its launch in November 2023, the platform curated its booth to officially unveil to the collectors' community in the Philippines the only end-to-end digital marketplace ever created for collectibles. 

“As collectors ourselves, the Toki team knew just how important the TOYCON event is, especially for those who seize the opportunity to maintain and enhance their collections. Even though we launched Toki last November, we couldn't resist making this official debut at the one and only TOYCON Philippines. It has been an absolutely incredible three days, filled with connections, engagement, and meeting so many amazing members of the Toki community,” said Frederic Levy, one of Toki’s founders and the social commerce platform’s CEO. “During this event, we were thrilled to see how Toki has rapidly become a central hub for all collectors in just six short months. As Toki continues to grow as the leading marketplace for collectors, we are beyond excited to amplify the energy at TOYCON next year and in the years to come.” 

The fun doesn’t stop at TOYCON Philippines. Toki, in partnership with Secret Fresh, is bringing back the weekend gathering for collectors - ‘Beyond the Block’ - taking place at Ronac Lifestyle Center in Magallanes, Makati, this 30 June. Through free admission, passionate and would-be collectors can join in the fun for an engaging day of food, games, and geeking out on the top collectibles. Learn more here. 

ToyCon 2023: Two Decades of Playful Celebration

From its humble beginnings to becoming the annual spectacle in the Philippine events landscape  that everyone looks forward to, the Philippine TOYCON is recognized as the biggest pop culture  convention in the country. This year, TOYCON PH celebrates its milestone 20 years as a  destination event, also making it one of the longest-running pop culture events in the Asian region.  

With each iteration, the Philippine TOYCON has gotten bigger and better, establishing itself as a  cultural juggernaut and one of the most anticipated events of the year, as thousands of con-goers  take part in a weekend of fun, nostalgia, and fabulous finds! 

With this year’s TOYCON happening from July 7-9 at the SMX Convention Center Manila, this  year’s edition promises to raise the bar again for pop-culture events as it returns back to form as  the collectors’ mecca and an ultimate destination for pop-culture fan engagement. TOYCON this  year will feature almost a hundred toy exclusives from partner exhibitors, with top toy brands like  Funko, Lego, Bandai, Hot Toys, Pop Mart, JoyToy and many others. We will be featuring the top  toy designers in the country, from the region and from the US. World-renowned toy designers  like Quiccs, Wetworks, Creon Chknhead, Arman Kendrick and more, add to the hype with their  limited edition TOYCON releases.

TOYCON also partners with international brand and licensing giant, MINDstyle, to bring you the  FanXperience, where con-goers can sample the latest trends in upcoming art toys and purchase  Pop Asia exclusives. Fans also get to interact with top creators and designers like Punk Drunkers and Reen Barrera. You also get to check out the Secret Fresh merchandise and exhibits. And  one the most anticipated toys of the convention brought in by MINDstyle is the very first ever  Philippine Convention exclusive in the form of TOYCON’s brand mascot, TC-02, as an official Funko Pop collectible! 

Globe is this year’s event co-presenter and they are bringing in the Globe Playboxx Booth where one can unleash their inner child. They also bring the Globe Premium and VIP Passes loaded  with awesome toy exclusives, merch and vouchers. Avail of these VIP passes to be the first to  own these much sough-after toy exclusives like Creon Chknheads CCW Buck Philippine  Colorway, and Punk Drunkers convention exclusive Pops.  

Still very much a highlight for the event is the ongoing live-action adaptation of the beloved Robot  Romance Trilogy anime known as Voltes V. This Philippine production, known as Voltes V:  Legacy with GMA TV, has received rave reviews for its cutting-edge special effects and attention  to detail, clearly serving as a love letter from its makers to the source material. The cast of Voltes  V Legacy and its show-runner, Director Mark A. Reyes will have a fan interaction on the TOYCON  stage. GMA will also bring in other stars to grace the event. 

But that’s not all, because from our homegrown talent taking on a much-beloved Japanese  franchise, we also get to welcome some special guests from the Japanese Tokusatsu (“live-action  special effects”) universe. First up, we have Tetsuo Kurata, aka Robert Akizuki, as he was locally known when he played Masked Rider Black and Black RX. With him of course is Ryosuke Kaizu, who played Red Mask in Hikari Sentai Maskman. All those who grew up with these 90’s heroes  will have a blast to see them up close and personal along with their props and vehicles in the  Toku Spirits booth.  

Cosplay also returns to TOYCON in a big way with arguably the most entertaining and most  talked-about cosplay competition in the country. The Cosplay KO heightens the excitement for  individual cosplayers on Saturday with a P20,000 cash prize for the best anime and the Anime S  Cosplay World Stars local qualifiers in the Duo Category and the Cosplay Pop Duo Contest liven  up the TOYCON stage on Sunday. Celebrity Cosplay photographer, Jay Tablante, also conducts  a Cosplay Photography workshop sponsored by Canon.  

Movie fans will celebrate in the immersive cinematic displays as Warner Brothers sets up for  Barbie the Movie and the highly anticipated DC superhero movie, Blue Beetle. Paramount  Pictures also joins the fray with a booth for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem. 

TOYCON also brings to the fore the top local and international creators with not just one but three  Creative Zones: the Comics Zone powered by Komiket, with top comic book artists and  illustrators, and two Toy Designer Alleys with the best local and international toy designers  including Hot Actor, Pucky, Chino Lam, Unbox Industries and more! Enjoy more than 80 toy  exclusives to be released by more than 40 toy designers around the world!  

And of course, the heart of the event is the TOYCON Collectors Gallery where around 80 toy  collector groups will display their collections with exciting panel discussions and competitions for  Custom Toys, Toy Photography, Best Display and Awards for the Best Toy Collectors Group  sponsored by the Philippine Toy Groups Association. And definitely, the shopping and collectibles  hunting is unsurpassed in TOYCON with more toys, comics, collectibles to be found in more than  250 vendor booths!, And even bigger fan experiences than you could possibly imagine await you  over this epic weekend! 

An absolute epic experience awaits all fans this July 7-9 at the SMX Convention Center as we  celebrate 20 years of TOYCON with the TOYCON MINDstyle FanXperince. The only question is:  will you be celebrating with us, or will you be missing out on one of the hottest events of 2023?  The choice couldn’t be clearer - see you there! 

The 20th TOYCON Philippines and MINDstyle FanXperience is presented by Globe, in partnership  with Great Toys Online, Filbars, Hobbiestock, CalicoToys, Gaming Library, Funtastik, Talent High,  Solid Toys, Collectors Base, Stormy Vault, Devil Toys, the College of St. Benilde, Bostik,  Cybercraft PH, Grimalkin, JoyToy, Gnarly, and supported by Canon, GMA Store, Quiccs, Toku  Spirits, Funko Funatic Philippines, Big Boys Toy Store, Image World, Yori, Warner Brothers  Pictures, Paramount Pictures, Del Monte Potato Crisp, with hotel partners, Citadines and Heritage Hotel. Also powered by Exlink Events, Anime Alliance, Ambox Events, Komiket, IPMS, the Philippine Toy Group  Association and Creon Chknhead.

Tickets are available at SMTickets.com or onsite during the event dates at the SMX Convention  Center. The Globe Premium Passes and Globe MINDstyle VIP Passes are available on  Tickelo.com 

TOYCON PH 

Email: toyconph@gmail.com / toyconphmarketing@gmail.com 

Website: toyconph.com 

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