Welcome to the Craft of Play

So you have managed to find us! Congratulations! The Craft of Play is a concept that originated at the h+h americas show in 2024. The original idea was to create a business publication to support the Cosplay industry. As we continue to research and learn, we continue to adjust where this vision will take us.

The team behind the Craft of Play is the same duo that writes and produces Handmade Seller Magazine. Our world is artisan business. We are used to being a bridge between artisans and creatives and the broader business world.

In the last year, we have attended multiple Cons. We have also had many research discussions with small businesses in the industry of play. This research is allowing us to better understand what’s missing in the industry, and where to start.

We have heard very clearly from both artisan businesses and more established larger companies that more than just a publication is needed. For existing larger companies, navigating Cosplay and these industries is new, and requires a different kind of research and education to get up to speed. For artisan businesses, they also want business advice as well as access to new opportunities.

We see the launch of a trade association as a great way to begin to bring together companies under a common umbrella. Part of the mission of this trade association is to do research on the industries to solve a critical need everyone has-getting better information. But I don’t want to give away everything we are up to quite yet.

What comes next?

This summer, we start our original writing on this industry so that all parties get a sense of where we are headed. It will also allow you to see if things are a fit before we move things behind a paywall. We will also start our first original research.

Our goal is to launch the trade association portion by fall. We will be continuing to gather feedback during this time to make sure we have a clear understanding of how we can best fulfill industry needs.

Thanks for being here- and taking a leap on a new concept.