"TCA gave me knowledge and the connections necessary to bring my games to life, and get them into retailers such as Barnes and Noble and CAMP Stores.”

TCA is an incredible resource that gave me key knowledge and the industry insights I needed to finish bringing my board games to market. For me, the course provided much needed guidance and clarification around the manufacturing process as well as safety testing requirements. Since completing the course, I have launched two award-winning board games and secured distribution with a national US retailer. I highly recommend TCA!

Toy Creators Academy gave me incredible insight into how toy and game companies think so I can design for what they want. l'm not blindly guessing anymore! Since joining TCA I’ve pitched my ideas to Ox Eye Media, Hasbro, Spin Master, Fat Brain Toys, and Klutz.

“As a result of taking Toy Creators Academy, our biggest win was getting an offer to test pilot our dolls at a chain toy store. We wouldn't have had that opportunity without being apart of the TCA Virtual Pitch event.”

“I pitched at Toy Fair Dallas before and after taking TCA. The difference was night and day. After taking the TCA courses I edited my toy concept to make it more appealing to toy companies and knew exactly how to pitch it to set it up for success. I have interest from several toy companies as a result of those meetings. During the course I learned exactly what to do to make the most of my 5-15 minutes with every toy company meeting as well as the right pitch materials to prep and bring. I’ve pitched most major toy companies.”

"Finding this course was hitting a roadmap...literally hitting a roadmap where someone was laying out in great detail...all of the things I wouldn't have even thought of."

“Azhelle gave me the step-by-step process I needed to implement each idea. Some I am working on as an inventor, creating content, finding factories, and publishing it on my own. For others, I am creating presentations and pitching to toy companies. I have also discovered a love for freelance design that I didn't even know I had! I am no longer lost and have a clear and concise path to follow. None of which I ever would have been able to do without the TCA!

My biggest win was learning how to pitch, then using that knowledge in a real world professional manner.”

“As a result of taking TCA my biggest WIN is that I have three products I am pursuing licensing deals for! With Azhelle's clear guidance I was able to choose a path that leaves me time to let my creativity flourish. Before TCA, my toy company contact list size was zero! I now have contacts at several notable toy companies. I am thrilled to have participated in the Toy Creator's Academy.”

I am a full time Toy Designer but I was frustrated that there were certain parts of the toy making process that I wasn't familiar with. I felt if I knew more about the toy making process I could be a better professional toy designer. TCA showed me step by step what I needed to know and provided me with the resources I needed to be a better designer.

“My biggest WIN was being introduced to specific people at different toy and game companies. And knowing other companies who were part of the pitch event and who are actively looking for ideas takes a lot of the stress out of the whole process.”

“TCA is a great course for toy and game inventors just starting out as well as those who have a deal or two under their belt! I got hooked on The Toy Coach podcast in 2020 and the episode "How To Make Your Ideas More Toyetic" really helped me a lot! It made me rethink and rework an idea I was working on at the time, which helped lead to a licensing deal.”

There is something about Azhelle that’s really tenacious. She’s high pressure but not in a way that is overwhelming. She’s high pressure in a way that inspires you. The personal aspect to her teaching style made me feel like a friend was saying “What are you doing wasting time? Go for it!”

I just spent almost a hundred thousand dollars on my MBA degree and I feel like a lot of the stuff I learned there I learned in Toy Creators Academy! The connections I’ve made in TCA I would not have gotten otherwise plus it feels really good to be in a space with like-minded toy people who appreciate your work.

"I found the Toy Creators Academy to be resourceful, amazing and awesome!"

This course was amazing. Azhelle has great energy and she brings that as well as her many years of experience in the toy industry to this class. TCA helped me do strategic market research, and taught me about how to go about licensing my game idea.

Over the course of several weeks, Azhelle covers anything you need to know about getting started in the toy industry, from researching your ideas all the way to selling your developed concepts.

I didn’t know how I would take my prototype farther to reach a larger market. TCA helped me consider packaging, adding accessories to enhance my marketability and different approaches to marketing my dolls.

Because of Toy Creators Academy, I have my DaisyTheClown trademark in the toy category and I’m working on releasing a few other exciting products under the name!

For years I would ask everyone for a coach and could never find one, and when you go to toy fair everyone had their big walls up-- you couldn’t find a way in if you wanted one. Azhelle is really a trailblazer in the industry with this program.