About | Collect 'Em All

Our Story

Collect 'Em All (formerly Toronto Toy Fair) was founded in early 2013 by Shane Kirshenblatt and Sari Goldfluss with a dedication to great programming and supporting important causes. We launched officially with the first one-day Toronto Toy Fair show on May 5, 2013, at the Holiday Inn in Markham with an attendance of nearly 450 patrons and high praise from both exhibitors and attendees alike. Additionally, the show succeeded in raising over $500 for the Children's Wish Foundation of Canada through hourly prize raffles and pay-what-you-can donations collected from an on-site photo booth.

The organization took a hiatus from shows in 2014 but returned on Oct. 25, 2015, with Intoystellar, a sci-fi/fantasy-focused event, which took place at Thornhill Community Centre. Despite the success of this event, the co-founders made the difficult decision to cease operations to focus on other life obligations

In late 2022, after seven years of silence, original Co-Founder Shane Kirshenblatt (joined by Designer, Social Media Director, and longtime friend, David Bax) decided to bring back the popular shows along with plans for other nostalgia-focused projects, with a renewed commitment to proving unique and memorable events for collectors and enthusiasts while also supporting small, local vendors and charitable organizations.

Immediately following this show and prompted by popular demand from our participants, we scheduled a follow-up show, called "Octoyberfest" for Oct. 6, 2013 at the Toscana Banquet Hall in Vaughan. The new venue featured twice the exhibitor space and also room for additional programming, such as video game tournaments (sponsored by electronic games retailer Video Game Express or VGX), a custom figure contest (sponsored by Happy Worker) and a costume contest (supported in part by seasonal retailer Spirit of Halloween). Octoyberfest featured fundraising efforts in support of Kerry's Place Autism Services (Children's Wish will continue to be the fundraising partner for future shows run during the spring season) which not only aided by the successful hourly raffles and photo booth from the first show but also a Blaster Range by the 501st (World's largest Star Wars costuming community) Canadian Garrison. Corporate partnerships and cross-promotions with Dave & Busters and Boston Pizza have aided in getting the word out about the show via on-location flyers and posters as well as through online mailings. The show also featured two exclusive limited edition custom figures, giving a limited number of attendees the opportunity to bring home a rare collectible.