It’s been years since I last wrote a blog post — I really should do this more often.
Anyway! I had a fun weekend at DesignerCon UK in Birmingham. It was actually my first time in Birmingham and my second time attending DesignerCon in the UK. My first one was back in 2022 in London — a relatively small event. Honestly, the 2025 version still felt small compared to the cultural juggernaut that is DesignerCon in the US.
That said, this year’s event teamed up with AnimeCon, which is a pretty popular show. They shared the same venue, and with just one ticket, you could explore both events. That definitely helped boost the crowd and made the whole experience feel bigger and more exciting.
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The Good Stuff
There’s a lot of work that goes into prepping for a con — packing, setup, transport, hoping nothing breaks — you know the drill. But honestly, meeting fans and new customers makes it all worth it. It’s a great feeling seeing the toys I made bring genuine smiles to people’s faces.
The crowd was super friendly, and I also got to meet a few fellow designers and toy makers. That’s one of the best parts of going to cons — the people.
The Not-So-Good
That said, I do think the DesignerCon UK team has some room for improvement. For example:
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No contact number if you ran into trouble — before or during the event
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No booth numbers
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No venue map (yep, really)
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And… not much promo before the show
It made it nearly impossible to tell fans where my booth was. I still had a good result and made enough sales, but some designers in harder-to-find spots struggled and ended up leaving early. Real missed opportunities there.
AnimeCon Was a Blast
Meanwhile, AnimeCon was buzzing — so many fun events, great cosplayers, and just generally high energy. It definitely added life and excitement to the whole venue, including DesignerCon.
Super stroke to see this beautiful Miku themed Itasha car! I am actually a car guy!
A Special Debut
This con was also the debut of my new toy: Classicbot IIe.
It’s based on the Apple IIe — the first computer I ever used as a kid. I remember playing classics like Lode Runner, Avatar, and Castle Wolfenstein. Those are some of my earliest and fondest memories with tech, so this particular toy means a lot to me.
And yes — I think it turned out beautifully. 🙂
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