Show Buzz: Licensing Show - Days 2 and 3
By Karyn M. Peterson and Cliff Annicelli -- Playthings, 6/12/2008 3:07:00 PM
NEW YORK—The 28th annual Licensing International Expo—the event's last expo in New York before next year's move to Las Vegas—came to a subdued close today, winding down three days of buzz, branding and brainstorming sessions for the hottest properties of the future. More than 25,000 attendees were on hand this week, hashing out their property plans from all sides of the business. Here are some of their latest deals and upcoming initiatives.
• The Wildflower Group plans to roll out a line of eco-friendly books (Penguin), organic plush (Kids Preferred) and baby products at mid-tier and department stores for its Peter Rabbit: Naturally Better brand, which is being positioned as a logical extension of author Beatrix Potter’s life-long focus on environmental conservation, as well as on the ongoing trend in the toy and gift markets for green products. “Naturally Better is better for retailers and makes Peter Rabbit relevant in the 21st Century,” Diane Cain, director of consumer products marketing for Penguin Young Readers Group, tells Playthings. “It’s a natural fit.”
Another U.K. import from Wildflower, The Interesting Thoughts of Edward Monkton, was at the show seeking new partners in multiple categories, particularly a plush licensee. The creation of author/illustrator Giles Andreae, the brand has been featured in a number of hardcover books (Andrews McMeel) as well as a limited line of popular greeting cards featured at Barnes & Noble, which will expand dramatically this summer. A limited card offering at Target will also debut. “We’re doing the launch very slowly,” Andreae explains, though he notes the brand’s popularity has grown continuously among its fans. “It’s been reasonably embryonic,” he says.
Wildflower was also at the show promoting its newest client, Roald Dahl, for which new softcover versions of his classic children’s books are currently being published by Penguin. The brand is seeking partners in all categories, particularly kids’ stationery and social expressions.
• The focus for Granada Ventures at this year’s show is the expansion of Bella Sara as well as the introduction of a new entertainment property, the U.K.’s Britannia High, for which the agent hopes to secure a broadcast partner for an Americanized version in the immediate future. Licensing for the horse-themed Bella Sara trading card game and Web brand “is moving ahead by leaps and bounds,” according to Granada’s Alice Burden, with products hitting retail that include books (Harper Collins), novelties (Basic Fun), video games (Nintendo), periodicals (Hachette) and crafts (MasterPieces). “It’s really exciting for us in what we’re able to reach,” Burden says. Granada was also seeking licensees for its Pocoyo preschool series, which launched on PBS earlier this year.
• Chorion has created a vast licensing program, featuring more than 100 licensees worldwide, for its Little Miss and Mr. Men brand based on the classic children’s books as well as a new TV series that launched globally in February (and airs in the U.S. on Cartoon Network). Ty’s Toybox also has a dedicated boutique for the series, with apparel is set to debut at the Gap, Steve & Barry’s, Claire’s, Suncoast and FYE this summer and DVDs and other products rolling out throughout the rest of the year as the show’s popularity grows, Cheryl Gotthelf, senior vice president of global brand management, tells Playthings.
Another big initiative in 2009 will be the 40th anniversary of The World of Eric Carle, with University Games and Chronicle continuing as partners and Applebees signed on for a summer promotional booklet in the spirit of the beloved author’s work.
Ian Falconer’s Olivia will also get a licensing push in 2009, with product tied to a new CGI, full-color television series. “It’s true to the spirit of Olivia,” Gotthelf says. Initial products, such as notecards and stationery, will debut specifically at specialty stores.
• DIC Entertainment will create a new licensing program in 2009, both domestic and international, for new animated entertainment property surrounding Penny Brite, the classic “wholesome” fashion doll of 1960s vintage that Charisma reintroduced to the collector doll market in 2007. The company is actively seeking partners and hopes to launch a range of product at specialty stores in the fall of 2009, then expand to the mass market.
• Warner Bros. will soon begin promoting its tie-in products (toys from master partner Mattel as well as costumes from Rubies and high-end collectibles from NECA) for the newest Batman film, The Dark Knight, which debuts on the big screen next month. Another big focus going forward for the company will be on The Brave and the Bold, a new Batman series set to air on Cartoon Network in November, Kelly Gilmore, senior vice president of global toys and themed entertainment, tells Playthings. The stylized animated series, appropriate for preschoolers, will pair Batman with a different superhero each week. An entire toy line for the series will debut from Mattel in spring 2009.
Other upcoming properties and deals being discussed at the show include Where the Wild Things Are (October 2009)—for which McFarlane Toys and Sababa will produce both movie and literary-based products; Alexander Doll, Crocodile Creek and Mudpuppy signed on for literary products; and Funko and Fisher-Price for movie products—as well as the upcoming seventh Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. The studio is now planning to break the film into two parts, one debuting in 2010 and the other in 2011, Gilmore says. The Hobbit will follow in 2011.
Long-term, live-action Robotech, Johnny Quest, World of Warcraft, He-Man and Justice League films are also on the agenda for licensing, as well as the CGI Thundercats and a third Batman film from Chris Nolan, Gilmore says.
• Mattel unveiled a number of new directo-to-DVD home entertainment properties that will debut for its Barbie brand, including Barbie and the Diamond Castle plus A Christmas Carol for the holiday season and Thumbelina for Spring 2009, which will have an environmental element. Meanwhile, the U.B. Funkeys, from the company’s Radica division, are being licensed into plush as well as electronic tie-ins such as computer speakers and flash drives from Emerson in an exclusive program with Target this fall; the Funkeys push is the earliest ever outbound licensing campaign for a Mattel, according to a company representative. Mattel also confirmed that new apparel is in the works for all its key brands, including Barbie, Hot Wheels and the U.B. Funkeys. Another focus for the company at this year’s show was the promotion of its Barbie BCause brand, a patchwork collection of girls’ accessories (toes, pillows, books) made from scrap fabrics and other recycled materials left over from Barbie doll clothing production. The line is exclusive to Toys “R” Us this fall.
• Disney Consumer Products talked up its plans for more Princess productions, which will for the first time venture beyond Disney-owned characters and into those from classic fairytales. Up first is this year’s The Princess and the Frog, which features the first African-American princess in the Disney family, followed by Rapunzel in 2010. Also on the horizon for the company is a fourth High School Musical movie and Toy Story 3.
• Sesame Workshop heads into the 39th season of Sesame Street with a newly announced deal with noted children’s world music label Putumayo Kids for a CD/DVD set, Sesame Street Playground, featuring songs and videos from Sesame Street productions around the world. It will be the first globally distributed Sesame Workshop audio CD. The company also continued to drum up interest in its modernized version of The Electric Company, its series specifically designed for post-preschool kids needing a little extra help making the transition from learning to read to reading to learn.
• United Media's reps, while still tickled pink over Jakks Pacific’s intro of a Fancy Nancy doll and dress up products at mass in May, were looking forward to “going after toys and games in a big way” for reality documentary series Deadliest Catch and Ice Road Truckers, as well as the company's efforts to modernize Raggedy Ann & Andy and Precious Moments (Precious Moments Girls Club) for a new generation. The company also introduced its campaign for Hallmark’s e-card characters Hoops & Yoyo.
For more coverage of new licensing deals, the winners of LIMA’s International Licensing Excellence awards and the latest news from the overall U.S. toy business, visit Playthings.com.
