Efthimios Sidiropoulos Will Lead Supplier and Product Group Management at idee+spiel

idee+spiel is restructuring the product group and supplier management department, which was newly created in 2017, following the departure of the previous head, Matthias Höfel. Reiner Treder takes over responsibility for Eurotrain. Efthimios Sidiropoulos, who built up the McMedia video game line, becomes the new head of the division.

The departure of Matthias Höfel at the end of August is decisive for the reorganisation of product group and supplier management at idee+spiel. He joined the toy trade association in 2012 and took over the management of the newly formed department in 2017.

Efthimios Sidiropoulos will take over most of his responsibilities in the same function. Sidiropoulos has been with the trade association for 26 years and is no stranger to the games industry. For many years he built up and managed idee+spiel's McMedia marketing line, a successful retail partner in the physical distribution of computer and video games in Germany. With the increasing success of digital distribution of games, idee+spiel's head office scaled back its services under McMedia, leaving the affiliated toy retailers to decide individually whether and to what extent they sell games physically or digitally. Sidiropoulos later developed the books and PBS (Papier, Büro und Schreibwaren; engl: Paper, office and stationery products) division and gradually took on additional responsibility for numerous publishers and board games manufacturers.

Eurotrain is the only product area that will not be transferred to Sidiropoulos' responsibility. The reason for this is the increasing specialisation of many idee+spiel retailers in the lucrative toy segment of model railways in recent years. For this reason, idee+spiel is reorganising the department and creating a separate management team for the Eurotrain product line. Reiner Treder, who has been with idee+spiel since 2019 and was previously responsible for Eurotrain under Matthias Höfel, will be responsible for this segment from September.

Both, Treder and Sidiropoulos will report directly to the management. "We would like to thank Matthias Höfel for his 12 years of outstanding service," says Andreas Schäfer, Managing Director of idee+spiel. "We wish Mr Höfel all the best for his future career and are sure that with Mr Treder and Mr Sidiropoulos we have set the right course for the future."