Party Party by Lema Publishing

Month: Nov/Dec 2015 Issue 3 Volume 16

s t r a e h t f Li s ’ e n i t n e l this Va with Balloons

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Your seat on the front row! Keep a step ahead of the competition. Discover the latest trends and top exhibitors for your future business on an international stage. Start a successful year at the world’s leading trade fair for seasonal and festive decorations – with the best the industry has to offer. Order your tickets now: www.christmasworld.messefrankfurt.com info@uk.messefrankfurt.com Tel. +44 (0) 14 83 48 39 83

contents Issue 3 Volume 16

Regulars

Party Party team

5 Leader with Rhys Thomas 6 News – what’s the latest?

Editor Rhys Thomas rhys@lemapublishing.co.uk

10 Licensing news – the latest from the world of licensing

Advertisement Manager

12 Exhibition news – updates from the trade show calendar

Bradley Mason bradley@lemapublishing.co.uk

14 Party Patter – the retailers have their say

Grp Advertisement Manager

Mark Naish mark@lemapublishing.co.uk

18 Retail Interview – Izzys Party Shop owner Roy Gibbard talks best sellers, corporate balloon decoration and more as he celebrates 10 years in party retail

Production Director

Features

Ryan Horwood ryan@lemapublishing.co.uk

Publishing Director

Paul Naish paul@lemapublishing.co.uk

24 Range in Focus - Explore Unique Party’s brand new, expansive Star Wars party range - it’s out of this world!

Managing Director Malcolm Naish malcolm@lemapublishing.co.uk

26 Valentine’s Day – Consumers will fall in love with these fantastic products to make the day special

Circulation Manager Robert Thomas robert@lemapublishing.co.uk

36 Foil Balloons - Shiny, bold and beautiful. Party Party takes a look at these show stopping balloons

40 The Roaring Twenties Products inspired by the ﬂapper dresses, glitz and glamour that made the 20s roar 42 BLE review - We wrap-up the biggest Brand Licensing Europe to date 48 Christmasworld preview - Explore the opportunities at Christmasworld 2016 50 Face Paints - Your customers will be made-up with these fantastic products 53 Masks and Accessories - Party Party looks at the trends and top products changing the face of this dress-up staple

Columnists 16 Talk to an Angel – Angels’ Director, Emma Angel explores online marketing

PUBLISHING

22 Mark Brett – This month our columnist digs into data

Lema Publishing Ltd

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34 The Word – John Bowler looks at the hot topics of the BAPIA Facebook community

Telephone: 01442 289930

At the heart of retail The views of the contributors expressed in this journal are not necessarily those of the publisher. Comments, letters and criticism are welcome.

47 Recipe of the month – Love is in the air with the Fabulous Valentine’s Fox from Pioneer’s Cam Woody, CBA

Get ready for the next season with quality. Contact us now.

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The Force Awakens

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message from the

editor...

Have you felt it? H yourself, although speaking opefully you’ve to the team of one leading managed to supplier that spent all of 31 clear away all the October handling stock, a fake cobwebs quick drink down the pub from Halloween, as we was more than enough! rocket towards Christmas at But it always pays to an alarming rate. This time stay two steps ahead, so of year truly is party season this month we’re swapping bloody, here in the UK and Ireland, pulsating hearts for love hearts, with and speaking to the people in the know - the suppliers and independent a look at the accessories, dress-up and decorations for Valentine’s Day. retailers up and down the country Romance is a winning theme at any - everyone had a proﬁtable, if manic, time, propped up throughout the year weekend at the by innumerable end of October. hen and stag dos, It seems that Many retailers told anniversaries and the public really got me that it was their weddings. But behind the occasion this best Halloween to nothing beats year, and many retailers date - both in terms of sales and the way 14 February told me that it was for all out their best Halloween to the industry pulled romantic date - both in terms of together fun. sales and the way the There’s plenty of the classic industry pulled together to support Valentines motifs, plus one another and keep stock levels trend-driven ways to say I consistent throughout. love you, starting on page With spending in the millions, 16. retailers, bars and restaurants up We also take a and down the high street were look at the masks beneﬁtting. Even Harrods in London and accessories got involved in the fun, with an category, a winner arresting Alice in Wonderlandfor many retailers inspired display. With the UK’s most over Halloween, famous retail destinations taking and a category that advantage of Halloween as another is taking other occasions by storm. seasonal sales event before the With masquerade masks in highbig one - Christmas gift shopping demand for New Year’s Eve, and - begins in ernest, Halloween is a multitude of funny, famous and certainly in a good place, boding well freaky faces for the fancy dress-shy, for everyone in the industry. it’s time to face the music on page Hopefully along the way you had 50. a chance to celebrate Halloween

I also caught up with Roy Gibbard of Izzys Party Shop in Haywards Heath this issue. Coincidentally, we spoke on the 10th anniversary of his family-run business, and I know you’ll all join me in wishing him congratulations. Like many retailers, his business looks very different to when he ﬁrst opened in 2006, but one thing that really stood out from our conversation was his surprise at the amount of 100th birthdays he caters to. On the inverse, baby showers is another occasion that’s taken off for Roy. That really epitomises the ﬂuidity of this industry, and what makes it such a vibrant and exciting thing to be a part of. If you share Roy’s observations, or have had an occasion rise to prominence this year, do let me know at rhys@ lemapublishing.co.uk. Finally, we can’t ignore the impending release of one of the most highly anticipated movie releases of the year. More from Unique Party’s Star Wars: Star Wars range on p24 The Force Awakens is just on the horizon and fan excitement is reaching fever pitch, so we took a look at Unique Party’s expansive Episode VII-licensed party range on page 24. What better way to celebrate the return of one of the biggest movie franchises in the galaxy?

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NEWS BAPIA just got better Being a BAPIA member has never been better, thanks to some brand new benefits the trade organisation has secured to help businesses flourish. Members are now eligible to receive a special offer from Balloon Shop Pro, a new EPOS (electronic point of sale) system to make housekeeping and everyday tasks more efficient. Perfect for putting time and effort into increasing profit! Party Party columnist and balloon artist, Sue Bowler, CBA, is also offering BAPIA members a special offer on her newest DVD. Balloon Decor 2: Celebration Designs is a valuable resource to learn new skills and techniques to create a range of beautiful balloon designs. Catering to a wide range of themes and occasions, the new DVD has superb advice for beginners and seasoned professionals. Find out more on www.suebowler.com.

Unique bolsters sales team Unique Party has welcomed a new member to its sales team. Pascal Parker joins the company as Business Development Manager, and has already started in his new role. If you’d like to get in touch with Pascal, you can do so on pparker@uniqueparty.co.uk.

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Cheers to fears Halloween is now the third biggest retail event after Christmas and Easter in the UK, with spend expected to top £300m this year, rising as high as £400m, according to early reports. The record breaking spend would bury 2014’s already high £240m, and would see growth of 3,000% compared with 2001, when it was worth £12m. Market research firm Mintel estimates spend will be close to £300m, while Tesco’s sales forecasts a figure closer to £400m. Speaking to ThisisMoney.co.uk, a Tesco spokesperson said: “Halloween has grown significantly in the last 10 years, with the whole family, from young trick or treaters through to teenagers and adults, helping to turn it into the second biggest party event of the year, after New Year’s Eve.” The finance website heard from Asda that Halloween had outgrown a single, seasonal aisle, and is invading other areas of the shop floor. “In line with other large seasonal events such as Christmas and Easter, Halloween products are making their way into all areas of the store – including pet, bakery, and alcohol aisles,” the supermarket said. It expects a 20% sales increase on 2014 across Halloween products in all categories.

Across the pond… Halloween spend in the UK may be on the up, but we’re still a little way off our US cousins. According to the National Retail Federation’s Halloween Consumer Spending Survey, 157 million Americans will celebrate the spooky occasion this year, with average spend per person weighing in at a little over $74, generating $6.9b in total revenue. More than a third of that spend will go on costumes, with Americans dropping $2.5b on dressing up - and $350m of that will be spent on their pets! Almost $2b will be spent on spooky party decorations for the home, with more than third attending or hosting their own Halloween party.

Fun fact! 200,000 glow in the dark fangs, 170,000 witch hats, and 170,000 tubes of fake blood - the numbers Tesco expected to sell at Halloween.

When the store greeter is an imposing 10-foot statue of the Hulk, customers at Long Island’s newest retailer should know they’re in for quite a ride. And that’s exactly what Marc Beige, principal of Rubie’s Costume Co., had in mind when he designed the firm’s first-ever Long Island retail stores in Westbury and Melville. “It’s unlike any retail store you’ve ever seen,” Beige said. “It’s an experience.” Carved out of the existing 70,000-square-foot Rubie’s headquarters on Cantiague Rock Road, the 17,000-square-foot Westbury store is its retail flagship, boasting a harrowing haunted house called “The Dark Zone” and other ghoulish interactive exhibits. The store’s larger-than-life cast of animatronic characters features a fire-breathing gargoyle, a hoodedskeleton rapper and a shocking electric chair with

Suppliers of Wedding & Party Accessories

Rubie’s boosts US retail

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Peeks converts Rugby into sales

quivering victim. Complete with fog machine and sound system, that macabre prop has a price tag of $10,999.99, not even the most expensive of the stores’ 3,000-plus items. The priciest offering is a roaring 20-foot King Kong breaking out of a replica of the Empire State Building that’s available for $50,000. Besides the stores’ exotic high-end displays, shoppers can expect to ﬁnd the largest selection of costumes, masks and accessories available in a brick-and-mortar environment. The stores house everything from comicbook novelties like the classic bug-in-the-plastic-icecube gimmick, to Ironman helmets to myriad costumes of virtually every genre for everyone from toddlers to adults.

“I’ve never seen a selection of merchandise like this in one place,” said one customer who identiﬁed himself as Peter from Oakdale. “This is the best I’ve seen. The store is a destination.”

Despite the host nation’s dramatic crash out of the competition, there was still plenty of opportunity for party retailers to beneﬁt from this year’s Rugby World Cup. Following the Japanese team’s early surprise triumph over South Africa’s Springboks, both Peeks’ vast party store in Christchurch and its website immediately saw a rush on Japanese ﬂags, Japan-themed rosettes, fans and mobiles, and other costumes and decorations often associated with the country. Some lines sold out as new fans of the Cherry Blossoms looked to

show their support for the mighty minnows. “We saw a positive increase in sales following Japan’s amazing win,” said Nick Peek, MD of Peeks (pictured). “Japan flags and table flags were flying off the shelves. “The unscripted drama of sport makes it so thrilling and results like the Japanese victory over South Africa can really galvanise people. Whatever else happened in the rest of the tournament, Japan went home proud. We had plenty of stock for the Rugby World Cup, but like everyone else never anticipated a Japan victory over South Africa.”

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NEWS Join the MyBalloon revolution

Pioneer Europe Limited has launched an exciting new personalised balloon service in partnership with Dave Saunders from Bizzy Balloons. The new web-based service www.MyBalloon.com allows consumers to design their very own high-quality, personalised photo balloon with 24 hour click-and-collect service. Once ordered, the designs are printed by Bizzy Balloons on Qualatex Microfoil balloons, and shipped uninflated to partnered retailers, where customers can then collect them. Participating retailers in the MyBalloon.com programme will gain a competitive advantage in the customised balloon space, opening the door to increased profit potential. Retailers will earn commission from sales of each photo balloon ordered, and in addition to inflating the photo balloons, retailers are encouraged to offer a bouquet upgrade, as the MyBalloon.com border designs coordinate with existing Qualatex balloons. The MyBalloon.com interface is user and mobile-friendly, allowing consumers to easily personalise their balloon anytime, anywhere. Double-sided printing is offered on Microfoil rounds, stars and hearts, with a generous 16-inch printing area. Customers can further enhance their designs with a selection of coordinating borders and fun icons. Retailers can visit www.MyBalloon.com or contact Pioneer Europe Ltd on 0800 281215 for more details.

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Fun Shack goes global In what has been a fantastic year for the Leeds party supplier, Fun Shack has appointed overseas trade specialist Chamber International to help it develop its global business. Already well established in parts of Europe, Australia and New Zealand, its design team believes it can create costumes to fit any occasion and culture from Massachusetts to Mumbai! Fun Shack is among a number of businesses stepping up exports as part of Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership’s We are International initiative, which aims to bring more revenue and jobs into the local area. It began exporting in 2012, and company directors Jeffrey Fearnley, Geoff Key and Harvey Felstone, believe that it can become an international business by understanding what makes people from different nationalities, faiths, cultures and ages dress up to have fun. “So far overseas sales represent eight per cent of turnover but we want to do more,” said Jeffrey Fearnley. “Our research and design centre allows us to understand local markets and create outfits specifically for local cultures which, although they may differ, have a common factor of appreciating quality and value. “Chamber International is hugely experienced and we have initially sought help in locating potential trading partners, compliance issues and for market reports for various countries including the USA and Germany.” Committing fully to its expansion plans, Fun Shack will be exhibiting for the first time at Nuremburg Toy Fair 2016, which hosts a large number of leading party suppliers each year. Chamber International senior export adviser, David Attia, said: “Fun Shack makes fantastic costumes and they certainly have significant potential. It is still early days but we’re looking forward to helping the company take its brand of fun overseas.”

Look freshtive

Window on the world Time 2 Celebrate These eye-catching window displays can be found in Kettering, Northamptonshire, and are the work of Time 2 Celebrate owner Michelle Pettit and mum Sue. With eight years’ party retail experience under their belts, they know exactly how to fright and excite the Halloween crowd. “We dressed the window to showcase all our products in a fun way,” Michelle explains. “Halloween was up on last year, and we sold loads of accessories and face paints. “We’re an all round party shop, catering for everything from baby showers to 100th birthday and every celebration in between.” So whats next for the windows? “We have two windows, and one is currently Star Wars, while the other is promoting out range of Christmas cake decorations. A bit later on in December, we will change those both to festive Christmas displays. Christmas really picks up in the second half of December, much closer to the day itself when people come in to pick up their last minute party bits.”

OppoSuits is always looking to bring fresh, new styles to the market, and with Christmas just around the corner, the outrageous suit maker has just released some festive new additions to the collection. The four new seasonal styles capitalise on the growing trend and popularity for the classic ugly Christmas jumper, and are sure to boost wearers’ Christmas credibility by 200%! The new styles are Gangstaclaus, The Lumberjack, Snowﬂake and Quilty Pleasure.

MOONPIG SALE IS ON Moonpig and owners Photobox Group have been sold to a pair of private equity partners for around £400m, with the current management team reinvesting part of their proceeds. The deal is subject to certain conditions including consultation with employee representatives and anti-trust clearance, but is expected to go through four years after Photobox bought Moonpig from founder Nick Jenkins and other investors for £120m. Moonpig originally became a household name for its personalised greetings cards, but has since added balloons and a number of other product categories to its offering. Under the terms of the offer, Exponent and Electra will buy the entire share capital and become the principal shareholders. The current Photobox management team, led by CEO Stan Laurent, will continue in their roles while reinvesting part of their proceeds from the sale back into the company. Stan said: “We’re excited that Exponent and Electra Partners, both with impressive track records of building great businesses, share our vision about continuing to develop the most personal e-commerce business in Europe, celebrating millions of customers’ memories, birthdays and other happy moments.”

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ICENSING NEWS

Introducing LTW TV LTW TV is the new regular video series from Party Party’s sister title Licensing Today Worldwide, bringing you Host Mirella with Hasbro’s Simon Waters at BLE unparalleled access to the ever-evolving world of licensing. LTW TV The Clangers are whistling their way into party stores joins sister publication Toys ’n’ Playthings’ TnP TV, which next year with a new licensed range from Unique Party. has already welcomed Amscan and Pioneer Europe to The globally recognised party goods manufacturer its studios for a first-hand look and distributor signed with Coolabi to produce a bespoke at the companies’ latest party partyware range - including innovations. tableware, favours and piñatas With movie and pop culture Movie licenses are driving sales in toys - which will be on the shelves licenses driving a good portion of and children’s merchandise, according in the UK and Ireland from sales, particularly in the fancy dress to NPD. The research company’s data September 2016. and costumes category, at retail, Two other licensees signing for shows toy sales grew five percent by keeping up to date with the latest Clangers include Portico Designs value in pounds, year-to-date compared licensing news can help give party for diaries and calendars, and to the same period last year. Movies have retailers that competitive edge. Things 3D, which will produce fuelled this growth, as movie-related “As the only multimedia meeting limited edition 3D printed toys experienced a 28 percent increase point for the interconnected party, figurines and digital 3D stickers. in sales during this time and represent 15 “We are incredibly excited to toy and licensing industries, we’re percent of all UK toy sales, compared to announce the new licensing proud to extend our coverage 12 percent last year. deals at Brand Licensing beyond the ordinary,” said Group With Disney Frozen and Star Wars Europe,” said Valerie Fry, Editor and LTW TV and TnP TV holding the number one and two spots Director of Licensing at Coolabi. presenter, Mirella Anstey. in the top toy properties respectively, it “These additions to the Clangers Visit www.ltwmag.com to see portfolio mark an exciting time comes as no surprise that these will have the latest episodes of LTW TV, for the brand which, having a large presence this festive season. and subscribe to receive the latest launched four months ago in episodes directly in your inbox. June 2015, now has 18 licensees.”

In the pink

Movies driving growth

Roar-some! What if the asteroid that forever changed life on Earth missed the planet completely and giant dinosaurs never became extinct? Disney Pixar’s The Good Dinosaur is a humorous, exciting original story about just that, following Arlo, a lively Apatosaurus with a big heart, and his unlikely companion Spot, a human boy. The Good Dinosaur is an extraordinary journey of self-discovery full of thrilling adventure, hilarious characters and poignant heart. Releasing in UK cinemas 27 November, the movie is lining up to be the animation studio’s second hit of the year, following the success of Inside Out, and Pioneer Europe has some fantastic licensed balloons for fans. Available to order now, the 11” latex balloons from Qualatex are available in 25ct and feature prints of key characters Arlo and Spot, plus other art and characters from the ﬁlm. To order today, contact Pioneer Europe on 01279 501 090 or 0800 281215. And if you think you have the best window displays in the galaxy, Pioneer Europe wants to see your best Star Wars-inspired display for the chance to win some prizes that are out of this world. Only Qualatex products can be used in the display, and it must include one ofﬁcial Star Wars licensed Bubble, latex or Quick Link balloon to qualify. The overall winner will receive two tickets to see Star Wars: The Force Awakens when it releases this December, plus a bundle of goodies. Qualatex credit, and coverage on its social media. Runners up will also receive a prize. Entries can be sent to chloe.leman@qualatex.com.

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XHIBITION NEWS

Haunted House of New Orleans Visitors to The Halloween & Party Expo in January are in for a very spooky treat. Event organisers have The Brewing – Boos and teamed up with K.Studios, a New Booze, takes place at Orleans specialist in decimated Generations Hall. This architecture for haunted attractions costume-themed event, open and themed events, to transport to all badge holders, is an visitors to the Haunted House, opportunity for the industry a New Orleans cemetery faced to gather together after daywith crumbling brick and plaster one for a night of celebration detail. Zombies, Dia de los Muertos with old friends and new. skeletons, vampires and werewolf themed characters will roam throughout the Haunted House, bringing the fun and excitement of the industry to life and setting the stage for the products and services on the show floor. “We’re excited to offer the industry something new, something exciting during the show,” said Mike Carlucci of Urban Expositions. “The industry’s focus is on fun and celebration, and it was important to us that we make sure the show reflects this message, as well as provide an exceptional platform for doing business.”Additionally, the event is working with holographic technology, produced by Zebra Imprints, to create a realistic, three-dimensional experience of a ghoulish figure that will make its appearance just outside the cemetery walls. This new technology provides an interactive way for attendees to experience the event.

New Orleans networking

Halloween & Party Expo takes place between 22-25 January, 2016. Visit www. halloweenpartyexpo.com

Toy Fair 2016 registration open Visitor registration is now open for the 63rd Toy Fair, taking place at London’s Olympia from Sunday 24 to Tuesday 26 January 2016. Visitors can register to attend the show free of charge at www. toyfair.co.uk. Attendees from any of the past three Toy Fairs will receive a Smart Link containing

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previous details so need only check, update and submit to receive a bar code email which will be required to gain access to the 2016 show. Toy Fair welcomes thousands of visitors each year including buyers, merchandisers, agents, importers, distributors, licensors, and more.

Go premium this Christmasworld Christmasworld has unveiled a new complimentary programme for visitors to next January’s show, where international sector experts will deliver specialist lectures and discuss the issues impacting the retail market. The Premium Business Programme will give visitors expert insight into tackling the latest challenges at retail, as well as the opportunity to explore alternative perspectives on the industry. The lectures programme will include a number of international speakers and will be hosted by Stephan Jung, Chairman of Retail Innovation, ICSC Europe from London. Speakers all come from different spheres of activity and perspectives, promising a fascinating exchange. Discussions will range from addressing the changing demands of retail such as digitalisation, and developing matchmaking for greater footfall in town centres and shopping centres, to learning how retailers can challenge their competitors with innovative product displays using the latest lighting and decoration. Participants in this service will beneﬁt from many convenient advantages. As well as free entry to Christmasworld on all days of the trade fair, they will also have access to a cloakroom service, Premium Area, and the reserved VIP car park in the grounds of the Exhibition Centre. For those using the local public transport network, use of services operated by the RMV are completely free. A copy of the Concept Decorations Guide will also be provided to help participants ﬁnd their way around quickly and easily.

The 2016 Halloween & Party Expo is where yoƚűll ĀnÚ the hottest ÏolleÏtion oü ƚniŧƚe ĵerÏhanÚise anÚ ÏƚttinčěeÚče new proÚƚÏts in the inÚƚstryţ ostƚĵesØ aÏÏessoriesØ party sƚppliesØ ÚæÏor anÚ ÏanÚy ô yoƚűll ĀnÚ eƴerythinč yoƚ neeÚ to stop Ïƚstoĵers in their traÏĩsú

Regular Party Patter!

Party Patter!

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How was Halloween? Scarily good or a little frightening? Party Party talks to retailers to ﬁnd out

Michelle Pettit,

blood. We did well with contact lenses as well they work with a lot of different looks.

Time 2 Celebrate, Kettering, Northampton

Known locally as the Aladdin’s cave of party supplies, owner Michelle and mum Sue have been running the family “Anything that business for 8 years How was Halloween for you this year in general? We were slightly up on last year, with the majority of sales coming from last minute shoppers on the Friday and Saturday. What were your Halloween best sellers? Anything that turns you into a zombie was really popular: face paints, temporary scars and cuts,

you into a zombie was really popular: face paints, temporary scars and cuts, blood” Michelle Pettit, Time 2 Celebrate

Kirsty Hart, The Card and Party Shop, Harleston, Norfolk

Kirsty runs the party section of this award-winning family run business, which has been serving local customers since 1998 How was Halloween for you this year in general? It was more spread out in the weeks leading up to Halloween than it has been in the past. We were still busy on the day, but it was just quiet and then one big rush. I think I prefer it when its mad anyway! What were your Halloween best sellers? Masks sold really well, and the usual face paints and fake

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ng. co.u k

Are you set now for Christmas and New Year’s? How important is that time of year to your business? We have an local charity event ent called the Santa Saunta each year, and although everyone is supplied with a Santa outﬁt, lots of people come in to pick up extra bits to make it extra special. We’re quite near some pubs and bars, so we get some turns trade over the festive period there, too. For New Year’s Eve, party canons and poppers are the classics. We do sell masquerade masks, and that seems to be quite a big thing at the minute. What products have stood out for you this year? Baby showers are something quite new. Banners, tableware, sashes, badges, straws, photo props and games from Alandra have all been selling well for that.

blood was as good as ever. The traditional scary dress-up seemed to be the most popular, particularly werewolves. We did have a lot of people wanting to dress up as the Joker, too. so we sold a lot of spray-on hair dye and face paint for that.

Are you set now for Christmas and New Year’s? How important is that time of year to your business? Yes, it’s all Christmas stock now. We’re a combined card and party shop, so its n important time for the year for us. Decorations tend to sell the best for us for New Year’s Eve, and Hawaiian is a popular theme. www.partypartymag.co.uk

21 9

Heidi Barnaby,

Jane Gillett,

Fun Bags Party Shop, Haywards Heath, West Sussex

Sweet Celebrations, Banbury, Oxfordshire

Heidi and the team are currently gearing up for Christmas, following their best Halloween to date How was Halloween for you this year in general? It was absolutely amazing - our best Halloween so far. It’s always been children’s occasion for us, but this year we had so many adults getting involved. It really was incredible. What were your Halloween best sellers? Dress-up for adults really stood out. We had a 50/50 split in terms of sales of full costumes and accessories. Everyday costumes were actually just as popular as the Halloweenthemed ones, and people bought Fun make-up sets and fake blood to zombiﬁed themselves. Contact lenses was the big thing this year, though. We sold out of them, and Smiffys were brilliant and got an order to us on the day itself - and then we sold out an hour later! Are you set now for Christmas and New Year’s? How important is that time of year to your business? Yes, Christmas has deﬁnitely come to Fun Bags! New Year’s product will go out closer to the time - about a week before. It’s a busy time of year for us as we do a lot of balloon arches and decorations for local bars and restaurants. The local Zizzis restaurant has a party theme each year - last year it was USA and we always do designs for them.

With 20 year’s experience, owner Jane Gillett is thrilled after her biggest Halloween to date How was Halloween for you this year in general? It was really good, our busiest ever I think. Having it fall on a Saturday made the difference, for sure. But you can never tell until the day itself comes around. What were your Halloween best sellers? We stocked up on black and white face paint, fake blood and liquid latex well in advance this year - and we were right to do so. We sold more accessories than ever before, but honestly, we sold out “Contact of everything - it all just went, lenses was and we were left with an empty the big thing shop!

this year, though. We sold out of them”

Are you set now for Christmas and New Year’s? How important is that time of year to your business? Heidi Barnaby, It can be difﬁcult not to get Bags Party Shop behind on Christmas with the Halloween rush. But we do have Christmas product on display now, and that really picks up in December. Children in Need has actually been quite big for us this year. It has a hero theme, so we’ve done well from that. We open the shop up for the few days between Christmas and New Year, and because you can’t get deliveries at that time of year, we get a lot of visitors. What products have stood out for you this year? One new product range we brought in this year that has been very popular is UV paint and hair gel. That’s big with the festival crowd and for 80s parties.

What products have stood out for you this year? Frozen has continued to be really popular, although that is beginning to slow. One celebration that has really taken off is Baby Showers. We sell a lot of fab Qualatex Bubble balloons for that, and because they last for so long, nine times out of 10 they’re still inﬂated when the baby arrives! We will deﬁnitely be on the hunt for more baby shower ranges for next year. www.partypartymag.co.uk

Regular Talking with an Angel

Flying the This issue, Emma looks at what retailers can do to keep the spotlight focused on them after the Halloween buzz wears off and the New Year’s Eve party wagon starts rolling

The internet is, of course, a vital he Halloween mayhem may marketing tool and if you haven’t be over, but this is definitely already invested in search engine not the time to sit back and optimisation (SEO) or pay per click relax. What is important now is (PPC), you may want to seriously focusing on promoting other key events consider it, as a huge number of on the calendar to emulate the success people use internet search engines of the last eleven, as Halloween will to source costumes. It come back around again There are many is important to ensure before you know it! that your website is The more recognisable inspirational options updated regularly with you are to customers to consider when relevant content as, throughout the year for through SEO, this will other events, the more putting together drive traffic to it. likely it is that customers store displays that Look at how you will return to you when will attract the are presenting your the peak Halloween products online. Your season comes around. festival goer home page should Through prior display the top-sellers for that period, preparation and innovative marketing, alongside current and relevant you can benefit from the increased fancy dress themes. For example, as visibility of your brand following Christmas is fast-approaching, you Halloween, and use this to help should be promoting festive products promote your store and drive your on your home page. Designing online sales for the rest of the year.

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banners based around popular dates on the fancy-dress calendar such as Christmas, Halloween, festivals, Book Week etc. is sure to make a difference to your conversion rates. The more relevant you make your website, and the more you tailor it to what your customers will be searching for, the greater chance you have of increasing sales. An offline marketing plan is just as important as your online marketing strategy. The simplest and most obvious form of offline marketing is advertising, and securing space in your local newspapers and magazines at a time when Christmas is prevalent in readers minds is a surefire way to capture their attention. Obviously this is a medium your competitors will be taking advantage of, so your adverts need to be attention grabbing and pleasing to the eye to give you a competitive edge. Stock costume images will do the job, but a photo shoot allowing you the opportunity to show exactly what you can offer will be far more appealing, and really help customers to engage personally with your brand and service. You may want to consider distributing flyers in key areas too, as these are a simple and eye-catching way to grab people’s attention. You could pay Royal Mail to carry out a door-to-door drop, or contact your local news agency and enquire about adding your flyers to their paper run; both are a great way to target local consumers directly. One popular way to distribute flyers, and to also display your products in person, is to hand out flyers in your local area dressed in a selection of

flag Getting social Social media provides many great platforms to showcase your products and engage with your customers. Christmas is a significant retail event and so engagement is more likely to occur as it is at the forefront of our minds. Use Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube to your advantage: posting photos of your displays and products and communicating with the public directly is a great way to engage customers and retain their loyalty. Social media also offers a great opportunity for rewarding followers with discount codes, or raising your company’s profile through competitions or promotions.

the costumes you sell. Before you send Santa and his elves onto the high street though, it’s important to contact the local council to get the necessary permission. You could also offer a discount within the advertising – a code for online buying, and presenting of the ﬂyer when purchasing in person - as this will not only allow you to track your return on investment easily, but also serves as a ﬁnancial incentive for potential customers – everyone loves a bargain! In-store promotion is another great opportunity for increasing sales; your

Emma Angel is Director of Angels, the world’s largest and longest-established costume house. Emma has over 20 years of experience in fancy dress and Angels has two stores, a fancy dress website – www.fancydress.com - and is the UK distributor of Rasta Imposta, InCharacter and Tinsley Transfers. Emma is the sixth generation of the family to work for the Oscarwinning company and is the ﬁrst female member to take on a directorial role at Angels.

If a customer has a good experience staff are your greatest advert, and in your store then they’re likely to offer a brilliant way to show your recommend your shop to their friends. products in the best light. Costumes You need to make sure you pay worn or displayed in store always sell particular attention to your window well because customers are able to display as this is what will really visualise how an outfit will actually catch your customer’s attention and look, rather than just seeing them in a distinguish you from the competition. packet on a shelf. This, in turn, makes Put plenty of effort into making it a sale (with additional accessories to both interesting and complete the look) far There are many visually attractive; even more likely. when you’re closed Think of your store inspirational options you should aim to have as your ultimate to consider when items on display as you marketing tool. If it has putting together never know who will a thriving atmosphere take notice and then with enthusiastic staff, store displays that return at a later date. not only will people will attract the If you have a website, be drawn inside in advertise the details in the first place, they festival goer the window so you can will also be inclined pick up online sales even when the to spend more time in your shop premises is closed. which will increase the likelihood of You may be pushed for time or have them making a purchase. Costumes a limited promotional budget, but are always a talking point, people implementing even a few of these tips often discuss their costume options is a starting point and will inevitably for an upcoming fancy-dress party result in driving more sales across with friends and colleagues, so word the year. of mouth definitely comes into play.

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All about the blog Blogs are another fantastic way to showcase your products and also allow you to share your inside knowledge of the costume industry. Customers are always keen to know more and you are well-equipped to provide them with the answers. By using social media and Google analytics to identify trends and keywords, you can tailor your posts to ensure that you are writing about what people want to know at any given time. Within your posts there is also the option to embed relevant YouTube videos, allowing the customer to better understand the product and really see them in a different context.

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Retail Izzys Party Shop

Getting Izzy with it Owner Roy and Jane Gibbard have just celebrated their 10th anniversary at Izzys Party Shop in Haywards Heath, West Sussex. He spoke to Party Party about best sellers, balloon decorating for ITV and his growing centenarian customer base! where we are today, 1000 yards up the same road with double the amount of ﬂoor space. Funnily enough, we’re actually ofﬁcially 10 years old today.

Take us back to the beginning Roy. When did you open Izzys Party Shop? We started up as Izzys Party and Gift Shop in 2005, with a 500 sq ft shop. When the three year lease was up there, it was time to seek bigger premises, so we moved to

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Foil balloons were our entry level into the industry, and we quickly realised the potential of the party market

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Congratulations on the milestone! Will you be doing anything to celebrate? Later this month we’re running a day of celebrations at the shop with a local charity. We’ve been running competitions and drumming up excitement on Facebook for that recently, so it should be a busy, fun day - particularly given it’s a jam packed time of the year for us anyway! Looking back over the past decade, how has your business changed? It’s changed dramatically. After we moved to our current location, we were

increasingly asked by customers to bring in more fancy dress options, so we decided to move away from gifts and focus our efforts on party. That’s when we really became the company we are today, and over the years we have continued to evolve and develop, adding corporate and private balloon decoration services, and opening The Sugar Mouse Sweet Shop inside the store. Closing in on the end of the year, how has 2015 treated you at retail? It’s been a good year for us. Every month we’ve exceeded or matched last year’s numbers, and there just seems to be a level of conﬁdence and optimism in the trade that wasn’t quite there 18 months ago. The last couple of Halloweens have been very good, and Christmas and New Year’s Eve are shaping up well this year too. Consumers are certainly happier to spend, and that’s matched

Smiffys

Amscan

Top licenses Frozen Minions Star Wars

by our corporate and events customers too. Tell us a little more about the non-retail side of your business. We do a lot of balloon displays for business events and openings. We’ve worked for Gatwick Airport, ITV’s Good Morning Britain, major supermarkets, and most recently for a new Greggs

opening in town. Generally we’re given a budget to work with, and that allows us to plan a design upfront, which works well. It also allows us to gauge whether it’s a good move for us, as this kind of work naturally takes us away from our retail core. Do you think its important to explore these different opportunities that complement your retail business? Absolutely. The shop will always be our core, but taking advantage of those same skills and products allows us to be competitive and attract more opportunities.

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There just seems to be a level of conﬁdence and optimism in the trade that wasn’t quite there 18 months ago

High street retailing can be a fragile beast, so going down these different paths that run alongside that core business just makes sense. Pick something and work on it though. There’s no point trying to do everything and risking your competitive edge at retail.

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Lets talk Halloween. Was it a good one for you this year, and what was popular? It was excellent, if a bit slow to get going. The Thursday, Friday and Saturday were manic though. We were topping up stock all throughout that week, and even received orders on the day itself. Smiffys, which supplied us with a lot of our Halloween product, did a fantastic job at getting everything to us. They were really on the ball, and I can not fault them. Contact lenses were very popular, and they often went hand in hand with an accessory. I could have done with some more Clown products, because they

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Retail Izzys Party Shop

and people were asking, so it seemed a natural ﬁt. We already had plenty of candles, but the new lines have been amazing for us so far, and the word has got around locally that we’re the new people to see. Proﬁt margins can be a little tricky, because some of it is perishable, but it’s worth it.

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seemed to be very popular this year. Day of the dead was another big theme, along with the usual suspects: zombies, vampires, undead everything.

Smiffys did a fantastic job at getting everything to us. They were really on the ball, and I can not fault them

What have been your best selling products overall this year? Number and letter foil balloons are absolutely our best sellers. We have them in six colours and sell them consistently every day because they’re just so versatile. On the fancy dress front, 2015 has been the year of the 80s revival. Last year it was all ﬂapper dresses and other 1920s outﬁts - and that’s still popular - but it’s all been big-hair wigs, 80s costumes and accessories this year.

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What about licensed product, what’s been flying off the shelves? Frozen is still going strong, but I expect that to tail off after Christmas. Disney Princess is still big though, and that’s aimed at the same audience, so it will slot in there. Looking at the whole of 2015, the forerunner is Minions. The consistent level of demand for that has been very, very strong. Star Wars is on its way, and we’re already selling licensed balloons for that. Once the film is out, the rest - partyware, costumes, accessories - will follow suit. Speaking of big licenses, somebody really ought to get behind Minecraft and get product into the market. There’s a huge audience for it - both children and adults - and people are already making their own Minecraft themed decorations. We sell a lot of black and green square plates, which is the closest thing we can get to it. What have you added to your offering this year that has surprised you? We bulked up our cake decorations this year although I’m not sure how we fit it all in! The Great British Bake Off has got the public interested in baking,

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You’re well known locally for your window displays. How do you keep things fresh? We change them every fortnight or so, and it just keeps people interested and more likely to take a look. The windows are currently empty as we’re changing from Halloween to a festive toy soldier display. Closer to Christmas we’ll go fullon Father Christmas and his Reindeer. We did a social media competition recently for people to vote on three designs. A magic hat and rabbit display won, so we created that and invited those who voted for it to come and pick up some sweets in-store as a prize. Things like that are great at getting people through the doors and getting your name out there. Don’t over do it on social media though - people will get bored. What occasion do you think has the most potential for growth in the near future? Baby showers are certainly very fashionable right now, and there’s more product on the market catering to this crowd than there was last year. But interestingly, there’s a very noticeable increase in sales for birthdays in the higher age brackets, such as 80th and 90th. In fact, I’m reordering products for 100th birthdays on a surprisingly frequent basis, and more than ever before.

Party Party fo focuses on some of the hottest What’s Wh hat’ss New New introductions to the market arket

Back to the th future futu BRISTO BRISTOL NOVELT NOVELTY 0117 972 4012 www.bristolnov www.bristolnovelty. co.uk

Whether it’s th the past, future, or an entirely ﬁctional time timeline, Bristol Novely’s fantastic new rrange of adult costum costumes has something for everyone. From the vali valiant Red Crusader, tto the futuristic Fantasy Cape and SteamPunk Vicky, Vi consumers can rock a timeless look in style.

A pirate’s life for me LEGS EGS AVENUE 31 24240 3444 +31 www.legavenueeurope.com ww.legavenueeurope.com

The he new Black Beauty irate brings a fresh Pirate nterpretation of a interpretation emale pirate costume. female eg Avenue’s design Leg eam always makes sure team itss costumes are upo-date with the latest to-date ashion trends. Highfashion waist trousers and ralettes have been bralettes n the fashion scene in or quite some time for ow and costumes now an’t stay behind. It’s a can’t ashionable pirate look for fashionable women who always want to look at their best. This ﬁve-piece costume set includes a bra top, arm puffs, trousers and a matching irate hat. pirate

Page turners urners FUN SHACK 0113 2001050 sales@fun-shack.com www.fun-shack.com Some of Fun Shack’s fantastic new children’s costumes have now arrived in stock, and are ready for retailers to order. Expanding on the previously successful animal range, which the company launched last year, are some brilliant new animal costumes ideal for World Book Day and Children’s Book Week. The new children’s costumes include Mr Frog, Mr Fox, Bumble Bee, Butterﬂy and Mr Brown Rabbit. All the costumes come in sizes S to XL and are tested to EN71 parts 1, 2 and 3.

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Regular Mark Brett

Data... How do we get it ? What do we do with it ? Data, now there is a catchy title. It will no doubt draw the readers in, in droves, or it wont! The word may sound tedious and dry but we avoid it at our peril

Information is not knowledge. - Albert Einstein We are drowning in information but starved for knowledge. - John Naisbitt (a futurologist and author of Megatrends)

oth of the above quotes are from different generations, but both ring the same bell. There is so much information but little to suggest we know what we are doing with it, if anything at all. From the dawn of time to 2003, the amount of data in existence was estimated to be five exabytes. We are now generating more than five exabytes of data every 48 hours. This comes from a business to business website. The fact cannot be verified but

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A bit heavy you may say for an article in a party trade magazine. And you would be right, so for the sake of this article replace ‘good’ with ‘profit; and ‘evil’ with ‘loss’. Possibly the two biggest events in data collecting within UK retailing history, was the advent of bar codes (1973 Keymarkets supermarkets, now swallowed up) and the Tesco Clubcard in the mid '90s. Bar codes suddenly gave the retailer data in a format that could be rapidly accessed and interpreted. Ostensibly, the clubcard was introduced as a benefit to the consumer, but in reality it harvests a huge amount of information about customers buying habits. Perhaps one of the unintended consequences of this has been the the principle is true. poor performance of We are We are accumulating Tesco over the last information and data accumulating eighteen months. at an exponential rate. information and The consumer has Exabytes is a word data at an the perception that most of us don’t know the supermarket is exponential or care about. But the getting more out rate end result is that we of it than they are are accumulating vast and simply look for amounts of data in very cheaper places to short periods of time. shop. Whereas, if compared to a In order to illustrate Einstein’s scheme such as Waitrose, they statement that information is not immediately give a daily benefit knowledge, we only have to look at to the consumer, coffee and a the humble fossil. They have been newspaper, plus the ability to around for millions and millions choose the products you want to of years but it is only in recent save money on, whilst at the same years that mankind has understood time harnessing huge amounts of that they are priceless bits of data about your shopping habits. information. Knowledge is the As with any business, too much source of all that is good or evil. information can lead to overload

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Mark began working for the family business in 1977, manufacturing and marketing Fantasia latex balloons in the UK and around the world, until 2008 when he set up shop on his own and created the Fantasia brand. Since 2011 Mark and his wife have been the sole UK agents for Boland Party, a Dutch company who are one of Europe’s largest distributors of party and dress-up products. And that’s not all, Mark has been a Director of HITF Ltd since 1996, and in 2002, he was the founder member of the European Balloon and Party Council, holding the post as chairman from 2002-2012. flow. However, having made the and confusion. Within our own investment in such systems, the industry even the smallest retailer data has to be looked at and can be faced with an overload. analysed. By nature of the party Suppliers' ranges are much bigger, business, most are tightly staffed you can access competitors and as a consequence and this websites, EPOS systems analysis can be are more accessible, approached as an feedback might come We have to afterthought. back from Facebook make use of There will be no pages or Twitter feeds, what we know thanks for saying this, and this is before you and what we but there have been open a conversation with know better too many occasions a potential customer. than some when a buying Naturally, the online decision has been platforms are inundated faceless made based on "I think with even more organisation this is what we sold", information. It would thousands of resulting in either be correct to think that miles away under or over stock. this information is more The words "what we detailed, but this is sold" can be replaced where the knowledge bit with "what we paid... the one we comes into play. Is this information buy is this big". The data is there being used or, more importantly, but not always used. used correctly? For example, a Today’s reality is that the big website would be able to quickly beasts that threaten our place determine what sells, when, where in the market chew and digest and to whom. If ignored, the data in enormous quantities. potential to maximise sales with More often than not these beasts certain groups in specific areas lie in waiting thousands of miles in the relevant seasons they are away, and not just eastwards. selling most of their product. This It Is no longer the case that should be a very useful piece of the competitors who threaten information as they can most have the biggest shops target needs. and buy at the best prices. With the more affordable access Though that can obviously be to good EPOS systems, retailers the case. It is those who make should collect large amounts of use of the information they data on what they sell and of have. Historically, it has been course when. ‘What' enables stock difficult for an overseas retail control, forecasting, profitability, operation to be successful in a product peaks and troughs, and foreign market, primarily because average spend. ‘When’ will show they don’t understand or have peaks and troughs, and cash

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the right information about the market. This is one of the reasons so many UK retailers have failed in the States. We have to make use of what we know and what we know better than some faceless organisation thousands of miles away. All parts of the chain, supplier through to retail, store or online , need to analyse the information we have and to accrue information that we don’t have. As a relatively small market, perhaps we should share more information. Controversial as it may seem, we, all have information that, in reality, that is not commercially sensitive. By sharing this type of information, it can help our market grow and develop. A customer will ask for your top sellers and this information given in isolation can not only be useless, it can be harmful. It needs to be explained and put into context. The top seller maybe an item that one customer buys ‘x’ thousands for an annual event. It is the top seller not because it is a product that sells well but because there is an unusual demand created by a specific need. Corny as it may seem, but we and I mean ‘we’, need to be more generous with what we know. It is not altruism, it just makes commercial sense.

An investment in knowledge pays the best interest. Benjamin Franklin

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Proﬁle Unique Party

Star attraction Star Wars returns to the silver screen this December with The Force Awakens, to the delight of millions of fans. To meet the demand of this famously dedicated fan base, Unique Party is bringing Episode VII of the epic space saga to partygoers with a comprehensive range - ideal for throwing the best party in the galaxy

fan base for the ne of the world’s Star Wars brand, biggest movies Unique’s range will swoops back Unique Party has even appeal to older fans into UK cinemas on 17 more impressive licensed of the previous six December as Star Wars: party products coming to Episodes of the epic Episode VII - The Force market for 2016. Prepare space saga, as well Awakens reunites fans yourself for expansive as new, younger with the characters and new ranges including: fans, who are adventures of a galaxy excited for their first far, far away. With preThunderbirds cinematic Star Wars sale tickets already Batman Vs Superman experience. smashing records, Disney Baby Shower “As I’m sure Unique Party is bringing Finding Dory everyone is aware, one of the world’s Miles From Star Wars has a biggest entertainment Tomorrowland massive following,” properties to life with The Lion Guard Sophie says. “Due a full range of Star Minnie Jam Packed With to the heritage of Wars: Episode VII party Love the brand crossing products spanning Zootropolis many generations everything from Clangers we can only see this partyware to piñatas. Captain America: Civil War as a positive within Unique’s expansive the party sector.” range offers everything To appeal to for a full Star Wars party, the varied fan base, the new from Star Wars Episode VII Dieproducts feature characters Cut Invitations and Envelopes and images from the new The for letting guests know, and Awakens film, as well as Triangle Flag Banner for or setting Force A Aw returning the scene, to Party Bags g gs returning icons from the Star Wars for taking away some Warrs universe. Featured are goodies at the end. e new characters Kylo Ren, Rey and the “As Star Wars has a Ky K BB-8 droid, alongside large fan base, we’ve B classics like X-Wing made sure that we c starfi ghters, lightsabers have a full diverse s and range of products a fan-favourite R2-D2, ensuring the to suit different R range will be instantly ages,” explains Sophie e rra recognisable for fans of Robinson, Marketing re ec all generations. Executive at Unique ge g With Party. “To do this, we h such an expansive range, says that all have purposefully expanded a anded rang ra nge ng e Sophie So S Star Wars Paper Plates 20cm the products are “stand out this range to include 16 items serve up a storm items, and we believe they are so we are sure this is going to going to look great in stores.” meet the demand expected by But there is a show stopper customers.” that is sure to be at the top of With such a wide and varied

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On the horizon

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every Star Wars fan’s list, giving them a chance to take on the new film’s antagonist in their own living room. “If we were to pick,” Sophie says, “for us, the stand out items are the Piñatas - especially Kylo Ren; he looks very realistic.” With less than a month to go until the hotly anticipated The Force Awakens opens in cinemas, hype and excitement for all things Star Wars is reaching fever pitch. Unique has already had a fantastic reception from its customers, and Sophie says many are ordering now to ensure their order arrives in time for 17 December. “I feel Star Wars films always have a huge hype and there is always going to be a great reaction,” she explains. “We’ve seen an incredible response for the partyware range from customers, with many complimenting the range and ordering in advance, ready for the film’s release.” Of course, Star Wars is an evergreen brand, and this excitement is sure to continue well into 2016. In fact, Sophie says retailers are likely to experience a second flurry of high demand when the film releases for the public to own. “We feel Star Wars VII is going to be a huge success in cinemas in December and with this we can envision correlating success within partywear,” she explains. “We don’t only see thiss lasting around the launch date, as the DVD is due to release in spring/summer 2016, so it’s sure e to be a Star Wars year!”

Star Wars Happy Birthday Die-cut Banner - best birthday in the galaxy Star Wars Plastic Table Cover - a stellar spread

Biggest fans in the galaxy Star Wars’ fan base is famously passionate and dedicated. The release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens has already smashed records for ticket pre-sales, and Force Friday, a global launch of toys and merchandise from the ﬁlm was a global success. With returning faces Luke Skywalker, Han Solo and Princess Leia, plus a whole host of new characters, demand is sure to be strong with this one from fans of o all ages.

Star Wars Plastic Cups - Sith sips

Star Wars Die-cut Invitations and Envelopes - spread the message in style

Kylo Ren Piñata - face The Force Awakens’ fearful antagonist

Star Wars Masks - look the part

Order now Call 01724 281113 or email sales@uniqueparty. co.uk to order the out-of-this-world Star Wars Episode VII range from Unique Party.

Star Wars Tote Bag carry favours

Star Wars Party Bags - bag up the goodies

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Feature Valentine’s Day

Love me spender

Amscan

Hens, stags, anniversaries and weddings make romance a winning theme in the party trade. But one day in February reigns supreme, as a growing number of people pull out all the stops for Valentine’s Day

The look of love here are countless ways to The modern deﬁnition of say I love you, and Valentines Valentine’s Day has Day is increasingly opening changed, but have up to let couples, consumer’s tastes? singles and those for whom ‘it’s Amscan says complicated’ celebrate the classic in style. motifs still Heading out to a win the day. restaurant for a bottle “Evergreen icons of red, and Lady and the for Valentine’s Tramp-style spaghetti Day such as hearts slurping, is the traditional and roses are still image of the day of love. incredibly popular; But many couples are particularly for eschewing this, opting balloon and partyware instead to stay in and categories,” says Amscan’s add a romantic Charlotte Cox. And touch to dinner, colours? You’ve or even throw guessed it: “Red a romanceis key and pink is themed party. Far also popular, often from the reserve of contrasted with white the lucky in love, Valentine’s or silver.” Day has become a blowout Neviti’s Creative for singles too, with speed Manager, Cathy dating evenings, friendship Crawford agrees, parties and naughty club pointing to the nights all vying for popularity of their attention. “classic red love With this shifting outlook on hearts and Valentine’s Day, savvy party roses,” but adds retailers are presented with that the most ever more opportunities to Fun Shack popular designs make sales and supply this are often in line demand. But what products with current trends. work best, and what are

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“It is trend-led as customers are looking for new ideas and designs that include these popular motifs. Our Just My Type range is a popular choice for Valentine’s Day, incorporating the timeless red heart emblem against a brown paper background, creating a homemade look which is really on trend at the moment. Our most popular categories for Valentine’s Day are gift packaging, including our selection of pails, boxes and favour bags and our Valentines-themed confectionery.” Valentine’s Day has deﬁnitely changed in recent years, and this increased diversity in consumer demands allows more people to celebrate in the way they want to driving its popularity. “Valentine’s

Valentines Feature

Valentine’s Day more each year. Director, Emma Angel explains: “Valentine’s Day is a signiﬁcant retail season in the UK, and is, by default, important for the party industry – especially within the student market. With unions and nightclubs frequently running themed nights, the opportunity to wear something funny or sexy is embraced enthusiastically every year, from the traditional Cupids and Red Devils, to slightly more tongue-in-cheek novelty offerings such as Apple Bobbing Contest and Free Willie.”

Day is always a busy occasion for us and it seems to get busier year on year,” Cathy says. “It’s no longer just about cards and gifts as our balloons and buntings are becoming increasingly popular for this occasion.” For Angels Fancy Dress it’s the students turning up the heat for

Share the love In fact, many retailers have had particular success in recent times supplying not just directly to consumers, but to other local businesses looking to cash in on the occasion with romance-themed events. For restaurants, balloons and banners add a special wow factor, and are a great way to attract new customer, particularly mid-week. For bars, pubs and clubs, the popularity of speed dating and the opportunity to have a laugh with themed cocktails means red and pink heart decor and accessories are a must. This is fantastic opportunity for retailers of all sizes, giving them a chance to combine all their expertise and offer packages of decor, accessories, party tableware, and of course, balloons - with even more opportunity to add value and margin here by creating a centrepiece like the one found in our balloon recipe on page 40 this month. Ballooning sales For many in the industry, Valentine’s Day is a key calendar event for the

Top three for love! Amscan: - Floating Love Multi-Balloon - Sitting Smiley Heart Multi-Balloon - Red Heart Doilies Neviti: - I Love You Red Foil Balloon - Love Is Sweet Chocolates - Heart Pails

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Evergreen icons for Valentine’s Day such as hearts and roses are still incredibly popular Charlotte Cox, Amscan sale of balloons - particularly foil balloons, which work great as a gift. “We expect our new range of foil balloons to be another popular choice this year with a variety of beautiful designs to choose from including the red heart design with I Love You text and heart shapes in a variety of different colours,” says Neviti’s Cathy. For Charlotte, Amscan’s top picks are “our new Floating Love Multi-Balloon makes a stunning statement, as well as the adorable Sitting Smiley Heart Multi-Balloon, which is simply ﬁlled with air.”

Neviti

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Feature Valentine’s Day Amscan

air. “We have a range of love themed foil balloons that are purchased all year around and make a perfect gift for anniversaries or as a romantic statement,” Charlotte explains. Cathy believes this versatility makes romancethemed products a great ﬁt for retailers at anytime of

In fact, both Charlotte and Cathy agree that these products sell all year round. With their romantic stylings, they’re perfect for a number of occasions throughout the year, gaining a boost mid-February each year when love is truly in the

the year, who can stock them with conﬁdence, knowing they will sell to consumers for a number of out-ofseason celebrations. “Many of our Valentine’s products such as favour bags, boxes, pails, sweetie bags and decorations are popular choices for a variety of romantic occasions such as anniversaries and weddings,” she explains. “This is great for our customers as they can be certain they are purchasing products which will be strong sellers all year round.”

Tales of Valentine’s bliss Love it or hate it, Valentine’s Day is here to stay. And while we all know some sectors of society place huge importance on it, how do retailers engage those who might not be totally sold on the idea? Party Party talked to one consumer, Mairead, who is more than open to the idea of being sold to…

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s a newly wed, I’m facing into my very first Valentine’s Day as part of a married couple, and I won’t lie – I’m expecting a lot. I want flowers, I want perfume, I want a nice meal out, I want a card. But more than that, for one day only, I want a Valentine’s party - yes, I want the whole shebang. And I’m more than willing to be sold to. In short, I’m your ideal customer. I’m well aware that specific Valentine’s shops don’t exist so as a consumer, where do I turn to make the most out of Valentine’s for both myself, and my new husband? The fact is, I’m looking towards a variety of stores to make my dream Valentine’s Day happen. Party shops for a little bit of dress-up, major grocers for some essentials, greetings stores for that perfect card, a florist for my dozen roses, a chocolatier for something tasty, a perfumery so that I smell divine, department stores for

something a little special, a jewellers for some sort of gift to mark the occasion, a bakery for that all important Valentine’s Day cake, and a restaurant to provide

my ideal night out. When you think of it, that is a hell of a lot of buying and selling, and yes, if I could get everything I wanted in one shop, I would.

“

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This year, part of creating this dream Valentine’s involves decorating my love nest, or if you rather, my house. And for this I’m turning towards party stores to provide me with some ideal accessories, I want love hearts on a string, I want fake rose petals, I want tinsel and tassels and just about anything else you can think of. I also want some dressup – because Valentine’s isn’t Valentine’s if you are not dressed as a giant love heart. Essentially, I want to be sold to, and I’m not alone. To be frank, I can’t say I’m a particularly loyal consumer, if I’m looking to buy something, I’ll walk into the ﬁrst shop that gets my attention. Usually it’s an impressive window display that grabs me, or my head could be turned by some well-priced package deals. At the end of the day, like many others I’ll part with my hardearned cash for the right products – what more could a retailer ask for?”

But more than that, for one day only, I want a Valentine’s party - yes, I want the whole shebang. And I’m more than willing to be sold to. In short, I’m your ideal customer.

Feature Valentine’s Day

Playing Cupid Leg Avenue +31 24240 3444 www.legavenueeurope.com

When Valentine’s Day comes around next year, partygoers can turn to Leg Avenue to look great and get in the romantic spirit. The Rockabilly Swing Dress creates a romantic

Oooh matron! Fun Shack 0113 200 1 050 sales@fun-shack.com www.fun-shack.com Valentine’s Day is an important date in the party calendar and another great excuse to party. Let’s face it, we’re all romantics at heart and we all get excited at the sound of an envelope dropping through the letter box on 14 February. Whether consumers are looking for something sexy for a romantic night in or something more sophisticated for a night out celebrating the single life, Fun Shack has a wide range of high quality costumes at affordable prices ideal for any costum Valentine’s Day celebration. Valent

IIt must be love Pioneer Europe 01279 501090 / 0800 281215 www.QualatexEurope.com

retailers can help their customers express their love on Valentine’s Day - or any day of the year - with Pioneer’s contemporary designs featuring stripes and the word Love with a heart. Perfect for the young or the young at heart, balloon bouquets featuring the new 22” Mickey & Minnie I Love You Bubble Balloon and 11” Mickey & th Minnie I Love You Latex in Red and Rose 25ct is sure to please! Min Visit Qualatex.com to get inspired and boost Valentine’s Day sales with Vis various marketing tools from Pioneer Balloon Company, the makers of Qualatex Balloons. Retailers will ﬁnd bouquet and decor ideas, a free downloadable poster, exclusive resources for QBN members with a Valentine’s Day planning check list plus exclusiv and additional iinstructional sheets.

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Valentine’s Day Feature

Mr. Lover Lover OppoSuits 01592 657120 www.opposuits.com

For Valentine’s Day, there is one suit from OppoSuits that is absolutely perfect. Whether asking their special someone to marry them or looking for a new lover, Mr. Lover Lover is here to help the lucky and unlucky in love stand out. Suitable for Cupids pproved! and Shaggy would surely approved!

Work of heart

Fall in laugh h

Unique Party

Rasta Imposta

01724 281113 www.uniqueparty.co.uk

020 8732 8879 distribution@angels.uk.com www.angelsdistributaion.co.uk

Unique Party’s array of stylish gift bags give Valentine’s Day gifts that extra special touch, and are available in a variety of designs and sizes, both big and small. The fantastic Valentine’s Day ensembles are perfect for that special day. The Love Heart set consists of napkins, table cover, 7” and 9” plates, cups and large gift bag. And nothing says I love you better than heart shaped balloons. Unique Party has a selection of heart shaped balloons in different colours and messages g to cater for all ages. g

This Valentine’s Day, partygoers ers can choose from Rasta Imposta’s naughty, witty, and tonguein-cheek offerings, including Anita Waxin’, Giant Boob, Free ee Willie or Apple Bobbing Contest. test. And if couples want to dress as a pair, why not try Bacon & Egg - a winning combination!

Wing it Tinsley Transfers 020 8732 8879 distribution@angels.uk.com www.angelsdistribution.co.uk

Tinsley Transfers’ easy to apply Extra Large Wing Tattoos are perfect for those wishing to be someone’s angel, or even Cupid, on Valentines Day!

www.partypartymag.co.uk

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Feature Valentine’s Day

Love is in the air Amscan 1908 288500 www.amscan.co.uk Amscan’s heart ﬁlled collection of partyware, balloons and wearables has everything retailers’ customers will need to impress loved ones on Valentine’s Day. Have a sweet celebration with a great choice of decorations to transform any setting. New additions include a delightful Scene Setter decorating kit, co-ordinating large banner, 3D decoration kit and much more. Complement with solid colour red tableware, decorations and candy buffet for a strong visual impact, and add cute ﬁnishing touches such as Amscan’s new pretty heart shaped doilies and confetti. Balloons make a fantastic surprise gift or eyecatching party decoration, and are a key part of Amscan’s Valentine’s Day range. There are 50 gorgeous new balloons for 2016 from foil manufacturers Anagram.

From standard formats, to SuperShape, UltraShape, specialty and even Sing-A-Tune options, there is a fantastic choice to suit any preference. Look out for the new Floating Red and Pink Hearts Orbz, Floating Love Multi-Balloon, the adorable Sitting Smiley Heart Guy .and Elegant Valentine’s Day SuperShape, featuring intricate edging. Amscan also has a selection of latex Valentine’s balloon including heart shaped options, solid colour red and heart patterned that are perfect to create some striking bouquets.

I heart you Neviti 0845 638 1358 www.neviti.com Valentine’s Day is a key event in the Neviti team’s calendar, with customers looking for themed sweets, table decorations and even decorative packaging for Valentine’s gifts. Neviti has a wide selection of confectionery for this occasion with

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items such as foil heart eart chocolates olates in an array of different ferent colours. rs. Otherr popular collections ctions include de the Just My Type ype range, with gorgeous items such as sweetie bags and chocolates. Other beautiful items in this collection include the versatile tile cake boxes. For those cooking a romantic meal at home, the ‘Love Is Sweet’ range bunting is perfect. Neviti also has some fantastic options for decorative packaging with beautiful heart pails

and and boxes. box xes. The e Vintage Vinttage Romance Rom mance collection provides some beautiful ideas, with heart napkin rings, laser cut glass decorations, heart straws and heart confetti, for a romantic touch to the Valentine’s table.

Introducing LTW TV

Brand new from Party Party’s licesning-focused sister title LTW comes LTW TV, a fresh way to keep up on all the devlopments in the dynamic world of licensing

f you were at BLE in October, chances are you saw something very exciting on our stand. As ever, we were busy ﬁlming, talking to some of the brightest minds in the business to bring you unparalleled access to our industry - but something was a little different. As TnP TV - which has welcomed party suppliers such as Amscan and Pioneer Balloon Company to the studio - continues to go from strength to strength, we’re excited to unveil LTW TV. In partnership with our sister title, Licensing Today Worldwide, LTW TV is

the latest launch from the Lema Media network. Aimed squarely at the hugely lucrative world of licensing, LTW TV is the next step in our industry-leading, multimedia coverage. For the savviest retailers and industry professionals, LTW TV is your new window on the ever evolving world of entertainment, lifestyle and character licensing, a hugely popular and lucrative facet of the fancy dress and expanded party market. “You asked for it, and we’re delivering it,” said Group Editor and presenter of TnP TV and LTW

TV, Mirella Anstey. “We simply could not have planned for the success of TnP TV. The support has been overwhelming, and LTW TV is the exciting next step. “As the only multimedia meeting point for the interconnected party, toy and licensing industries, we’re proud to extend our coverage beyond the ordinary.” The ﬁrst episodes of LTW TV can be viewed today on www.ltwmag.com. Visit now and register for free to receive brand new episodes directly to your inbox, and stay ahead of the licensing curve.

The only way to be a part of TnP TV and the brand new LTW TV is to get in touch with Ryan Horwood now on 01442 289930 or ryan@lemapublishing.co.uk.

talks y, MD of eOne Andrew Carle lly n and Ho Peppa and Be

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THE WORD from

Logging on This issue, John Bowler takes a look at the hot topics over on the BAPIA Facebook group - a hotbed of industry discussion

Back to the Future scultpure by Mike Harris of For Every Occasion

ell, once again we find ourselves staring down the nose of Christmas and another New Year! I really cannot tell you how quickly this year seems to have flown past. I didn’t have a specific topic to write about this month so I thought I would take a look back at what was happening on our Facebook Group page over the past month. It was really quite incredible how many different, interesting topics the BAPIA members discuss in the space of one month, so here’s an overview for you. We started the month with a question about the new Consumer Rights Act 2015, which pretty much affects us all in one way or another. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 came into force with the

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intent to simplify and modernise UK consumer law, replacing a number of existing laws with regard to business-to-consumer transactions. The changes are relevant to every business that sells directly to consumers, so we did some research on the changes and how they may impact on us as retailers. We have produced a “Key Points” document available for download from our website. Next up was the delegate draw for the Great Ormond Street Christmas Party Class 2015. It is one of the really exciting things about this time of year, as so many people

are really keen and excited to get involved in this day. Unfortunately we are restricted to only 25 delegates but we know that we could so easily fill it with at least 50. It is a real pleasure to get involved in this charitable event as I have seen for myself the pleasure that the balloons bring to the children and how supportive our industry is of this amazing charity. We then had a couple of new benefits for members with special offers from Sue Bowler CBA on her new DVD as well as a BAPIA member exclusive on the new software Balloonshop Pro. These are both great deals on great products for members. It’s interesting how there is a photograph somewhere relevant to pretty much every day that you care to mention and Back To The Future Day was clearly no exception with Mike Harris posting a reminder of the sculpture that he built back in 2011. We then had requests for a recommendation of a wholesaler who could supply Gift & Craft products for one of our retailers looking to expand into that market and the members willingly assisted. After our own post with information on Cyber Security and how to protect your business, there was a question about displaying a sign on vehicles carrying Helium cylinders. Once again the membership responded very quickly with helpful replies and links

We then had a couple of beneﬁts for members with special offers

and this also got us to thinking that maybe we should source these and supply them to members as part of their package - we are looking into this now. We then had some information about the insurance benefits offered to our members, not only the cover that is included as part of membership (Public, Products & Employers Liability as well as Legal Insurance cover) but also the discounted business insurance that our brokers offer through AVIVA, one of the UK’s biggest insurers. If you are reading this then you are very likely to have an insurance requirement for your business, why not see if we can beat your renewal quote? As the month moves on we come back to the Great Ormond Street Hospital Christmas Party Class again, with delegates arranging to meet up in London the night before the event to have some networking fun and get into the Christmas spirit! It seems like a month does not go by without the mention of balloons and the environment and this month was no different, however

John Bowler is the Chief Executive of BAPIA, the Balloon and Party Industry Alliance. The trade organisation is for everyone involved in the UK Balloon and Party industry, and offers a range of support and beneﬁts to its members, helping them grow, develop and focus on their business. It is also a member of the EBPC, the European Balloon and Party Council.

keep watching as we are hoping to have some great news for you very soon. Approaching the end of the month and Wesley Kinsella of Creation Balloons Party & Events told us about a new exhibition centre entre where they had achieved hieved a couple of superb corporate te contracts to supply y balloons. It’s always great reat to see our memberss achieving the large contracts ntracts that they are aiming for, I think most ost of us are looking for corporate contractss as they tend to be successful ccessful both financially y and in terms off our own business siness status. We look like ending ing the month with a picture from Joseph ph Lee Ross, The Balloon oon Professor, of The Big Bad Wolf that he built in time for Halloween, een, we’ve included a copy here for your delight! So that’s a brief overview of a month on the BAPIA Facebook group, we are a very active ve industry organisation, always ys looking for ways to bring new benefits to our members and to promote the Balloon and Party arty Industry to the public. If you would like more information on membership mbership and the benefits please contact ntact us

It’s always great to see our members achieving large contracts

Big Bad Wolf by The Balloon Professor

info@bapiaonline.com m or 020 8123 1746.

INFO For more information on BAPIA and the beneﬁts of membership go to www.bapiaonline.com or contact John on info@bapiaonline.com

www.partypartymag.co.uk ww ww. w pa p rtyparty ty yma mag.co.uk

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Feature Foil Balloons

Shine bright Nothing says let’s celebrate quite like a foil balloon. Party Party explores this growing market to ﬁnd out which occasions are driving sales and how to make the most of this shining market

alloons form the backbone of many party retailers’ offerings. Versatile, affordable and fun, they are the perfect product for all occasions, and this means guaranteed sales and happy customers. With innovation continually coming through to market, party goers and throwers can now ﬁnd balloons in more designs, colours, shape and sizes than ever before. But perhaps the most popular balloons for the big occasions are foils. Often big and bold, and always shiny and bright, foil balloons are popular centrepieces or gifts for everything from birthdays to weddings. The category has performed tremendously this year, and Amscan’s Product Director for Balloons, Anton Schygiol says this puts the industry on good footing at the close of this year and heading into the next. “The foil balloon category has performed fantastically for Amscan this year,” he explains. “We’ve seen tremendous growth across both licensed and unlicensed categories putting the industry in a great position for 2016.” For Anton, it’s the big occasions

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that draw customers to foil balloons, from a new birth to 18th birthdays, 80th birthdays and everything in-between. “Milestone birthdays continue to be a very popular category for us,” he adds. “With this in mind we are launching a new range next year including standard and MultiBalloon options, which have a 3-D Amscan effect. Babies and tots themed foil balloons have also seen some

We’ve seen tremendous growth across both licensed and unlicensed categories putting the industry in a great position for 2016 Anton Schygiol, Amscan of the highest growth, for instance ﬁrst birthday and baby shower designs.” Unsurprisingly, birthdays and the heralding of a new baby are core

Fast Facts More than 2000: the total number of Amscan’s different foil balloons 350: the amount of new foil balloons Amscan will launch in 2016

drivers of sales in this sector for many retailers and suppliers. Nikki Thompson, Sales Manager UK and Ireland at Northstar Balloons says the company’s burgeoning sales are coming from these classic celebrations and wider market trends. “Our balloon sales have increased this year, with customers looking across the range. Our dinosaur range has definitely been a popular range this year, as well as our air fill kits, especially happy birthdays and baby.” Innovation inflation But Nikki believes there is still plenty of room for innovation in sector: “I have numerous enquiries for new product missing from the industry at the moment, so there is a need for something new and inspirational.” Happily, many of the major suppliers are busy working on just that. “We are always looking to create new shapes and add more detail and complex designs with our foil balloons,” explains Andrew Storey, Product and Licensing Executive at Pioneer Europe. “One of our most popular new shapes was the wedding butterfly. A very elegant design and shape, great for a range of occasions.”

“

The foil balloon category continues to grow and we continue to invest more in this area - Andrew Storey, Pioneer Europe

For Pioneer, foil balloons hold an exciting and fruitful future. Andrew tells Party Party that the company will continue to invest in innovation in this category, and will continue to invest in it after lots of success this year. “The foil balloon category continues to grow and we continue to invest more in this area. We saw a good increase in wedding themed foil balloons this year. We invested heavily in this area this year and our customers loved the designs. The launch of our entwined hearts collection has been greater than expected.” Amscan, too, will be investing

in bringing new innovations to the category in the new year. Anton explains that it’s all about customisation and giving consumers the tools to personalise their own foils. “We have some exciting new innovations launching to the UK market in 2016, including an adaption of our Inﬂate-AFun,” says Anton. “There is a new ‘colour your own balloon’ option. The balloons are double sided and feature a pattern to be coloured in with the crayons provided and are

simply inﬂated with air by the consumer. Another new innovation is our new range of Write-On SuperShape foil balloons. As the name suggests the balloons can be personalised with a hand written message using the special pen provided and are ideal for any occasion.” Licensed to sell As with many categories in party, licensed designs can be a great way to add value and get people spending, and this year’s phenomenal slate of blockbusters has given suppliers a wealth of well-

Northstar Balloons

UNIQUE PARTY, EAST COMMON LANE, SCUNTHORPE, NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE, UK, DN16 1DE

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Feature Foil Balloons

Qualatex

known characters and art to work with. Amscan’s licensing offerings are “performing brilliantly,” according to Anton, although he says the most popular licenses probably won’t shock you. “Disney Frozen and Minions have been key licenses this year, which I’m sure comes as no surprise! Looking ahead to next we predict Star Wars balloons to become increasingly popular, particularly designs focusing on the new movie.” Andrew agrees that licenses are a important for all balloon categories. “We are always looking to increase our licensed product offering,” he says. The company has tapped the talents of Rachel Ellen, a talented designer who is very popular in the greetings industry. “Rachel Ellen continues to be popular, especially for our greeting card customers,” Andrew adds. “We offer an broad range of 37 Rachel Ellen foil balloon designs covering birthdays, milestones, children’s, baby and seasonal.”

Added value So how can retailers make the most of foil balloons? Its all about getting creative. “The use of both helium and air fill balloon together is a great way to make more margin and offer customers some originality,” Nicky offers. And why not mix and match foil balloons with latex? Andrew says with a little creativity, this can be a very economic and striking way for retailers and balloon professionals to add perceived value. “We encourage our customers to create balloon bouquets combining foil and latex, they have a higher perceived value at little additional cost to the retailer,” he explains, adding that they can be designed to appeal to customers for almost all occasions and seasons. And what about a balloon as a gift? Anton says the long life of foil balloons make them ideal for gifting, not to mention the diversity of format. “For instance the AirWalkers by Anagram include weights so appear to magically float, adding an interactive element and play factor. Displaying balloons near related items in store such as cards and gifts is a simple way of increasing basket spend. Having pre-inflated balloons ready to sell is also effective, especially for customers in a hurry.”

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New year, new balloons Amscan 01908 288500 www.amscan. co.uk

With more than 2000 foil balloons already available in its collection, Amscan will add more than 350 new foil balloons to its offering in 2016. Consumers can add sparkle to the proceedings with the new Multi Balloon Sparkling Celebration Milestone Holographic, or personalise their very own foil balloon with the Write-n SuperShape balloon. For something even more super, the licensed Super Mario AirWalker will bring the popular video game character to life.

Foil Balloons Feature

Foil favourites Pioneer Europe 01279 501090 / 0800 281215 www.QualatexEurope.com

From birthdays, to graduations and weddings, Pioneer Europe has a range of foil balloons for a huge array of occasions. Pioneer’s offering includes a licensed range from Rachel Ellen Designs, which features 37 colourful and fun designs covering birthdays, Christmas, romantic occasions, christenings and other milestone celebrations. Weddings is a particularly popular celebration for foil balloons, and there’s no better way to set the scene than with Pioneer Europe’s elegant, new Entwined Hearts collection.

UNIQUE PARTY, EAST COMMON LANE, SCUNTHORPE, NORTH LINCOLNSHIRE, UK, DN16 1DE

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Feature Foil Balloons

Inﬂate with conﬁdence Premium Balloon Accessories www.premiumballoon.com

Everyone that works with foil balloons knows that what’s on inside costs just as much as what’s on the outside. Premium Balloon Accessories’ Cool Aire technology inflators ensure that foil balloons are simple to inflate and look great, using cool air to avoid inflated balloons wrinkling as the air inside them cools. Premium’s Mini Cool Aire Dual Pro is also ideal for inflating foil balloons and is designed not to blow out the self-sealing valves often used on foils. When this specially designed inflator’s Cool Aire Nozzle is removed, it automatically reduces heat, air velocity and vibrations - all of which can lead to damaged valves - for safe, effective and low power consuming inflation of foil balloons.

Off the scale! NorthStar Balloons 07469 890714 www.northstarballoons.com

For customers planning a dinosaur themed party, look no further than NorthStar’s super shape range. The realistic designs and intricate details have already proven to be a great success this year. The range includes four different dino designs, including a 47-inch T-Rex (pictured) and a 51-inch Apatosaurus. They’re a must for any dinosaur enthusiast!

Fill ‘em up! Balloon Time +001 351 256 420 444 www.BalloonTime.com

Balloon Time is the ﬁrst and best-selling disposable helium kit brand in the world, manufactured by Worthington Industries. Balloon Time’s family of products include portable, lightweight standard and jumbo-sized helium-ﬁlled tanks and kits with 30 and 50-count vibrant balloons and ribbon. The recyclable canisters are made in Europe and available for retailers to order now.

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www.springfair.com Espresso Cup, Bialetti, Hot Plate Products · Tree, CB Imports · Pineapple, Two’s Company by Mulhouse · Stool, Baa Stool · Foo Dogs, India Jane · Cockatoo Cushion, Bombay Duck · Patterned Cushion, CB Imports.

7-11 FEBRUARY 2016 NEC BIRMINGHAM UK VOLUME OPENS 6 FEB

Show Review: Brand Licensing Europe

Brands of plenty Europe’s premier licensing show has come to a close for another year, but the business done across BLE’s three action-packed days will bring fantastic costumes, balloons and partyware to retail for years to come

“

LE 2015 has passed us in a whirlwind of costume characters, kids’ entertainment brands and drying ink. The doors to an unmissable show may have closed for another year, but many more open up ahead, as the deals, agreements and partnerships forged under Olympia’s barrel-vaulted roof fire into action. Thousands of professionals from all corners of the everevolving world of licensing filtered into the show this year to map out the future of

This year’s costume character parade, the biggest of its kind in Europe, was more than 80 strong this year, making it a show record

some of the world’s premier brands. Whether it was licensors looking for consumer product partners, retailers seeking exclusive in-store magic, or manufacturers on the hunt for the next big license to transform the dress-up market, there was something for everyone. Speaking of dressing up, this year’s costume character parade, the biggest of its kind in Europe, was more than 80 strong this year, making it a show record. “It is a visual feast to watch, and has often been described as a ‘‘lava flow unstoppably of fluff’ moving un down the show’s main aisle,” said David Scott, MD of

”

Nickelodeon's Spongebob Square Pants

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parade organiser Rainbow Productions. “It’s an incredible sight – particularly the expressions of visitors whose looks of surprise turn to frantic grabs of their mobiles to take photographs. It is great to see its popularity grow each year.” Alongside the costume characters, more than 300 exhibitors made this year’s BLE the largest yet, and with such breadth in the properties represented, it was clear to see that the event was a stand out in the show’s 17 year history. “Exhibitor feedback has been extremely positive, with many remarking on the high quality of attendees and

OiDroids triumphs at License This! 2015 of the world’s biggest toy number of retailers at the companies were at the show. show this year,” BLE Show BLE Show Director, Darren Director, Darren Brechin Brechin revealed that toys, told us. “There was strong games and hobbies is the representation across a second biggest area of range of new categories interest to show visitors, and including automotive, food its not surprising given the and beverage, beauty, music, special partnership publishing toys and licensing and heritage Feedback share. “They provide with the has been the perfect brand likes of extremely extension which Volkswagen, allow the audience Vimto positive to connect with, International, with many and own, part of Lee Stafford, remarking the property they NOW! That’s on the love,” Darren said, what I call music, quality of and household Stanfords and names Mattel and The Shakespeare attendees Hasbro were both Birthplace Trust Darren in attendance. Brechin, Show in attendance to represent that. “We are now Director One property looking forward hoping to secure to building on a Master Toy partnership this success and working at this year was Boj. with exhibitor feedback, Co-creators David Hodgson further develop the show for and Claire Underwood told 2016.” TnP that although lots of In the world of children’s entertainment nt and a d characters an char ch ara ar acter acte ers rs opportunities oppo op orttun unit i ies were it we w ere still - the most vibrant and ib ibra br nt a nd s il st i l open open forr the exciting section off th the tiion o he the creative crea eati tive ve CBeebies venue’s ground both und floor flo loo or - b or oth ot CBeebies character, brand new and nd d returning re etu turrnin ing ng charac cte ter, a toy partner favourites from om the the past p st pa to would brought theirr bes best. be est. The e w ul wo uld d be hotly anticipated return off ated e re etu tur urn rn o be the the e “perfect Teletubbies, D Danger Mouse, an nge gerr Mo M ouse e, “per “p erfe ffe ect c result”. The Simpsons, Teenage ns,, an and d Te Teen nag a e r su re sultt”. ” Mutant Ninja Turtles aT urttle ur es tturned urrned out in style, d drumming up rum ummi ming ng u p excitement in n the t e aisles. th aissles ai ess. Perhaps more than ever, re tha han n ev ver er,, suited and booted d visitors visi sitto si orss stopped to take a snap ap p with the life-size costume -size e cos stu tum me characters off their th hei eirr childhood chil ch i dh hood od heroes.

Championing new brands and fresh ideas is a big part of BLE. Perhaps nowhere else is this more evident than at the annual License This! competition, where new brands can pitch to a panel of expert judges for a spot at next year’s show. This year’s winner was OiDroids, a collectable robot brand from Jonathan Klemenz, which beat off some tough competition to secure a stand at next year’s BLE, plus a one year membership to LIMA and one of its premier events. “I’m so excited to have won against such strong competition, and am looking forward to bringing the property to Brand Licensing Europe 2016,” said Jonathan.

Party time As well as the he sstand tand ta nd out names in n kids’’ movies and T TV, V, ssome ome om e

20th Century Fox's Simpsons

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Show Review: Brand Licensing Europe ????????????

Next year What: Brand Licensing Europe 2016 When: Tuesday 11 to Thursday 13 October, 2016 Where: Olympia, Kensington, London Follow: @bleurope The team used BLE as an opportunity to officially unveil a number of brand new licensing initiatives for the brand. A new feature soft play area is coming to West Midland Safari Park, and a stand alone magazine series will hit the shelves in partnership with top kids’ publisher Redan. Bringing something entirely new to BLE this year was Italian kids’ entertainment specialist Rainbow. The company’s new animation Regal Academy was drumming up a lot of excitement from the crowds, with its unique spin on the

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brand to be social online and interacting with your audience. You can be creative and do things that just aren’t possible elsewhere. Anyone can grab a camera and start communicating with people, and there are no rules like you find in traditional media: no limits on time, cost or content.” Casey says that established brands, and often those that come from traditional media channels, are really beginning to embrace social media, bringing brand new and valuable content to the market. “You don’t just see marketing and adverts online anymore, and that’s great. characters and It’s so Brands that use social worlds of everyone’s important media and use online in favourite fairy tales. exciting ways stand to do for any “With Winx, we’re a brand to be super well, and we’re seeing leader in entertainment social online more and more of that. I and consumer product think we will see even more for a younger audience, and interact in the future; it’s all very but Regal Academy with their exciting.” allows us to target a audience One exhibitor that slightly older audience has built up a hugely - Licensing and open it up to new Academy successful property in the partners. Already we keynote digital space is Outfit 7. have partners in place speaker, With its Talking Tom and around the world, Cassey Ho Friends apps rocketing and we are hoping to past a phenomenal 3 billion expand this into new downloads, Cassie Chandler categories such as party said this year’s BLE was products and plenty more.” incredibly exciting. “We’ve actually had to Going digital change the layout and tables Social media and digital and chairs to allow more content is a hugely important people on the stand,” she told part of any modern brand, TnP on the show floor. “Of and in the Licensing Academy, course, we’ve had plenty of some of the world’s leading pre-planned meetings, which names in this space shared is great. But what we didn’t their insight with attendees. anticipate was the number Presenting the keynote of very promising walk-ons. address on day one was social We’re really excited to see media fitness entrepreneur where they lead.” Cassey Ho, who flew in from With BLE over for another Los Angeles to give insight year, many exhibitors and into the new frontier of social visitors will be following suit and digital brand building. with Outfit 7 and continuing “Just keep sending out to build on those partnerships. good vibes,” said Cassey, who And one thing’s for sure: built up her own fitness brand the world of licensing will Blogilates on YouTube and continue to make waves in the other social media channels. party industry. “It’s so important for any

Show Review: Brand Licensing Europe

As seen @ BLE Some of the great licenses that could be found at BLE WHAT TIME IS IT? Cartoon Network Enterprises 020 7693 1000 www.cartoonnetwork.com

Smart, contemporary and unpredictable, Cartoon Network Enterprises’ unique shows offer licensees and retailers an opportunity to connect with the discerning youth audience and the entire family. A colourful portfolio of brands lead by the irreverent and playfully anarchic Adventure Time. Over 43 million fans regularly tune in to watch the show across EMEA and the franchise currently boasts more than 100 licensees in the region Blossom, Bubbles and But Buttercup are back in a reboot of The Pow Powerpuff Girls, the orig original ambassadors of girl power, and B 10 will also be Ben introduced to a new generation of fans from autumn 2016.

WARNER BROS. CONSUMER PRODUCTS Warner Bros. Consumer Products 020 7984 6100 www.wbcpmedia.warnerbros.com Currently in production between Warner Bros. Entertainment and J.K. Rowling, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is the first in a new film series from Rowling’s world of witches and wizards, inspired by Harry Potter’s textbook of the same name. Harry Potter remains an incredibly popular license in the party industry, particularly in costumes for Halloween and World Book Day. WBCP will be fully supporting the film with global partners offering fans an exciting licensing and merchandising program. DC Comic’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is fronting a line-up that includes nine further DC movies set for launch by 2020. Targeted licensing programmes including DC Super Hero Girls, a multi platform universe for girls 6 to 12, will also feature on the bill. Scooby-Doo leads the classic animation slate, with brand new content and LEGO Scooby-Doo rolling out across EMEA.

IT’S COOL TO CLANG Coolabi 020 7004 0980 ww.coolabi.com Brands owned and represented by Coolabi include Clangers, currently airing on CBeebies, and Scream Street, currently in production for broadcast on CBBC. Other properties include Beast Quest, Domo, Poppy Cat, Purple Ronnie and the Smallfilms’ properties Bagpuss and Ivor the Engine. Just launched on CBeebies is the new series of Clangers, which immediately hit the number one spot in the UK’s top children’s programmes. To meet the demand of both returning and new fans, Unique Party has signed on to produce a brand new partyware range - including tableware, favours and piñatas - which will be on the shelves in the UK and Ireland from September 2016.

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Show Review: Brand Licensing Europe

DREAMS ARE MADE OF THESE DreamWorks Animation 020 7173 5121 www.dreamworksanimation.com DreamWorks Animation headed to BLE this year with a robust, global franchise portfolio featuring content from film, television and online across multiple categories. Leading the charge and poised for a major reintroduction at retail are the beloved Trolls, who will sings their way into theatres worldwide in 2016 as the stars of their very own full-scale, hair-raising, musical comedy. Noddy, the celebrated celebra classic also children’s class grand makes his g return to Toyland Toyl with a wit

completely fresh look and a brand-new series for 2016: Noddy Toyland Detective. Also on the small screen, DreamWorks’ Dragons franchise continues to take flight, highlighted by the recently launched television series Dragons: Race to the Edge. Everyone’s favourite ogre Shrek continues to resonate with a worldwide audience with recent activations in the UK including the grand opening of the fully immersive Shrek’s Adventure! London.

THE FUTURE’S ORANGE Nickelodeon and Viacom Consumer Products 020 3580 2474 www.nick.co.uk

As a global player in the entertainment arena, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and MTV properties have inspired creative consumer products for fans around the world to experience their favourite characters off screen. The network has launched a raft of new product lines across all core properties in 2015, from Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants, Dora the Explorer (and the hotly anticipated Dora and Friends: Into the City), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Paw Patrol, to adult targeted brands including South Park and MTV Classic. NVCP showcased new product for established hits including Paw Patrol, to accompany the party ranges from Amscan and Rubies. The smash hit show was recently greenlit for season three and has quickly evolved into one of the biggest pre-school franchises on the planet.

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Demonstrating its crossdemo appeal for tweens and young adults, NVCP also unveiled new content and property launches in 2016 for the ever-popular evergreen SpongeBob SquarePants, who returned to the big screen in February 2015 in blockbuster smash SpongeBob SquarePants: Sponge Out of Water. So ,as NVCP prepares to fire on all cylinders in 2016 with a slate of new content and brand new categories and lines across all core properties, the future is most certainly a brighter shade of orange!

Balloon Recipe

Fantastic Valentine’s fox This cute and characterful creature is the perfect way to say I love you. Combining the Fabulous Fox Microfoil Shape and Love You Foxy Heart Microfoil balloons, this showstopping design works equally well in a retailer’s window as it does a centrepiece for a romantic themed party, or a gift for someone special

Inflate five 11” Onyx Black latex to 6” and make a fiveballoon cluster. Tie the sand weight to the cluster.

Ingredients: 1 x 33” Fabulous Fox Microfoil Shape 1 x 18” Love You Foxy Heart Microfoil Balloon 5 x 11” Onyx Black Latex Balloons 3 x 5” Orange Latex Balloons 2 x 5” White Latex Balloons 3 x 646Q Orange Latex Balloons 1 x 646Q White Latex Balloons 2 x 350Q Orange Latex Balloons Extras needed: 260Q Scraps, Qualatex BalloonRibbon, Clik-Clik Stretchy Tape, Clear Packaging Tape, and Sand Weight

To be inspired and learn how to create more designs like this Fantastic Valentine’s Fox, visit www. thequalatexevent. com and click on the Education tab.

Inflate two Orange 646Qs, leaving 3” uninflated on each, and tie into a pair. Inflate a White 646Q, leaving 3” uninflated, and tie into the Orange pair. Pull the three 646Qs up through hrough the weighted 6” cluster ter from Step 1. Tie the uninfl nflated ends together.

to the neck roll. Use your hands to push some air back into the neck, creating a slight bulb shape. Wrap the uninﬂated end of the 646Q into the base of the design.

Air inﬂate the 18” Microfoil and tape back the neck. Use Stretchy Tape to secure an uninﬂated 260Q onto the back of the Microfoil. Tie this onto the White 646Q on the front of the body.

Inﬂate two Orange range 350Qs, leaving g 3” uninﬂated on each, ch, and tie into a pair. Pull ll the 350Qs up through h the 6” cluster at the base, and tie the ends together er with the ends of the 646Qs. The e White 646Q should uld be positioned between een the two 350Qs.

Inflate three 5” Orange latex and two 5” White latex to 3.5” and make a fiveballoon cluster. Tie e this cluster onto the uninflated ed ends from Step 3. The two White balloons should be positioned in the front. TIP: Make a small cut in the uninflated d ends of the 646Qs and 350Qs to release the trapped air for easier tying. g.

Air inﬂate the 33” Fabulous bulous Fox Microfoil. Roll up and tie the neck with an uninﬂated 260Q. Tie the Microfoil into the cluster from Step 4.

To make the tail, inﬂate e an Orange 646Q to 20” and tie the he knot close

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Preview Christmas World

Season’s treatings The time for festive celebration is upon us, but for many in the industry, Christmas begins in January at Christmasworld in Frankfurt. Party Party takes a look at next January’s show

which Messe Frankfurt t’s the most Manager, Detlef Braun, wonderful time of said puts this year’s the year. Christmas is Christmas period on a just on the horizon, and good footing. consumers are hitting “With more the high street to dig exhibitors and an deep and pick up the What: Christmasworld increase in the presents, decorations, 2016 number of visitors, partyware and food to Christmasworld once make their celebrations When: 29 Jan - 2 Feb, again underscored special. But for many in 2016 its position as the the industry, Christmas Where: Frankfurt, unrivalled leading begins in January. Germany trade fair for festive Each year, tens decorations for all of thousands of Info: www. market participants retailers, buyers, christmasworld. and gave the starting events and services messefrankfurt.com shot for a highly professionals ﬂock to promising new festive Frankfurt, Germany for season.” Christmasworld. The The event is a highlight 2015 edition of the show was on the calendar for those a vibrant and successful event,

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Show Details

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looking to discover the very best in seasonal decorations and festive articles across the spectrum: from trendled decorations, to lighting, crackers, ribbons and wrapping, and for that ﬁrst time, even fresh ﬂowers. With so much to explore and inspire, it comes as no surprise that Christmasworld 2015 drew more than 36,000 visitors from around the world to the expansive Messe Frankfurt exhibition centre. More than 20,000 of those visitors came from outside Germany, a 9.5% visitor rise year-on-year, and Christmasworld’s international credentials extend to the exhibitors, too.

Christmas World Preview

party supplies. German firms and beyond. Arona Khan An international affair MTK Papier and Nestler will will be sharing her wrapping Of the 911 companies that set be joined by NPW from the expertise in a number of live up shop to showcase their UK, Poland’s POL-Mak, among demonstrations, Yarom will festive innovations at this others for a truly international explore the future of retailing year’s show, just 204 of those party offering on the show with his insightful talks on came from within Germany. A floor. From paper partyware, multichannel, and much more. whopping 707 exhibitors from to gift boxes and party bags, 42 different countries headed and decorations, setting time Three in one! to Frankfurt, with strong aside to visit the exhibitors at As if there wasn’t enough to support from the neighbouring Paperworld can yield great discover and be inspired by Netherlands, Italy and Poland. results for Christmasworld at Christmasworld, visitors A total of 911 companies visitors. can also strike out and set up shop to showcase explore the two trade shows their latest innovations that run alongside it on the at Christmasworld 2015, Messe Frankfurt representing 42 exhibition grounds. different countries. Sharing the 600,000 Just 204 of those sq ft of exhibition were from Germany, space, Paperworld with whopping 707 • 911 exhibitors from and Creativeworld exhibitors from 42 countries both bring together outside the country, market leaders and headed up by • 95% of visitors has pioneers from their neighbouring the successful show in respective industries, Netherlands, Italy, 2015 and there’s definite Poland, and Austria. overlap, particularly Coming off a from a party industry very successful perspective. show last year, Christmasworld Paperworld focuses on 2016 is shaping up to be one the paper, stationery and of the best editions to date. associated gifting markets, The format remains largely but it’s also a key destination unchanged, and with 95% for those in the party trade. Of of visitors saying they were Paperworld’s 39,000 visitors, satisfied they had achieved 9% say they’re on the hunt for their objectives - and more than half of those leaving very satisfied with the event - the organisers are looking to evolve and enhance the show’s offering. Get a head start on Christmas yet to come with the Far from treading water, however, the show’s organisers Christmasworld Trends 2016/17 have been busy refining and Surreal laboratories: Festivity meets sci-fi in this mix expanding on its programme of tech, traditional handicrafts, surreal shapes and new of experiential and educational experiences. This sparkling, materials future-orientated line-up Boho treasuries: Down-to-earth with added glam of events gives attendees a combine to create an unhurried look with sensual, competitive edge, with expert insight and inspiration to natural colours and patterns increase profit and increase Quiet harmonies: Casual and uncomplicated, this trend value to your customers. celebrates the minimalism of high-quality materials and As well as the show’s renowned focus on trends, clean surfaces the Lecture Area in Hall 11 will Playful possibilities: Reinvigorate the vintage and retro host a an incredible line-up with an injection of modern design to familiar objects of presentations tackling the hottest talking points at retail

Fast Facts

Trend spotters

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Feature Face Paints and Accessories

Face to face Face paints and body art give consumers a simple but effective way to get creative with their fancy dress. With a relatively low price point and the versatility to use them for multiple occasions, this party store staple remains as popular as ever

Snazaroo

hen it comes to fancy dress, there’s no such thing as too much choice. With partygoers increasingly looking to customise and personalise their looks, face paints and body art offer transformative power that’s limited only by the imagination. Either as an alternative or add-on to masks and face accessories, or as the finishing touch to a full costume, these products give consumers a simple way to add their own personal touches and finishing flourishes and at a very economic price point. Price is an important Tinsley Transfers factor for many customers, and the relatively low price point, coupled with its versatility, make them the perfect

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impulse purchase. As an added bonus customers recently. She added UV for retailers, these products also take paint and hair products to her offering up very little shelf space, and are ideal for the first time this year, and they’ve point-of-sale promotional items. been “big with the festival crowd and Of course, Halloween and other for 80s parties.” seasonal Sporting events, occasions are the hen and stag dos, popular choices children’s birthdays for face paints and increasingly and body art, festivals are all with white, black popular occasions to and red paint an crack open the face essential for any paint and get super spooky costume. creative. The rise of Sergio Battaner of fancy dress themes Palmer Agencies for festivals in said retailers particular has been a stood to do well fillip to sales of many Jane Gillett, Sweet Celebrations retailers around the with face paints this Halloween, country. with specialist party shops able to Fran Gore of Fancy Dress Fanatics offer their customers “high-quality, is capitalising on Bristol’s vibrant safety-tested make up and latex kits. and booming live events and festival Offering that quality and peace of scene, and face paints and UV paint mind will be their trump card.” have been a key component in this. “It Many retailers depends on local festivals, which we were sure to take have a lot of here,” she says. “Most of make the most of them have fancy dress themes, so you that opportunity have to cater to that – Snazaroo face this year, including paints are always popular as are UV Jane Gillett, owner of and glow-in-the-dark products.” Sweet Celebrations, Children’s face painting is Banbury, Oxfordshire synonymous with summer fetes and who ordered the Christmas fairs, and the scope for staples in bulk. “We giving kids the look they want - from stocked up on black popular superheroes to butterflies and and white face paint, more - is what makes them popular. fake blood and liquid But retailers can also offer customers latex well in advance added value through the creative play this year - and we options they encourage. were right to do so,” Amscan, distributor of popular she tells Party Party. face paint brand, Snazaroo, offers “We sold out of everything!” creative kits for kids to role-play as In fact, face paints and body art a variety of popular themes. From products have been hit with Jane’s pirates to princesses, knights to

We stocked up on black and white face paint, fake blood and liquid latex well in advance this year - and we were right to do so

About face

Temporary transformations

Amscan 01908 288500 www.amscan.co.uk

Tinsley Transfers

Face paint provides a chance for children and adults alike to get creative and makes a great ﬁnishing touch to a fancy dress outﬁt. Amscan has an extensive collection of face paints and accessories by leading brand Snazaroo. From the classic colours, to painting kits, handy booklets and themed packs, there is something to suit all abilities. Add an extra burst of colour with Snazaroo’s range of new temporary colour hairsprays, available in seven vibrant shades. Also available is a range of four fun role-play sets containing the face paints and accessories to create the desired design from pirates to princess, and knights to Egyptians!

Spooktacular Premier Decorations

0845 180 6545 distribution@angels.uk.com www.angelsdistribution.co.uk Founded in 1999 by Hollywood make-up and special effects artist Christien Tinsley, Tinsley Transfers has provided Hollywood’s biggest ﬁlm and TV productions with custom temporary tattoo transfers. From tattoo sleeves and costume kit tattoos, to face tattoos and 3D FX tattoos, they come in a variety of designs, including the colourful Candy Skull Face and Cheetah Face, plus more old-school designs such as Tribal Zebra, Dragon, Koi and Wings XL. Tinsley Transfers are easily removable, so everyone from grandparents to the tiniest tot can join in the fun. Individual and unconventional, they will certainly give everyone something to talk about!

020 8624 5555 sales@premierdec.com www.premierdec.com Premier Decorations has a huge range of spooky accessories for Halloween, and one of its best-selling ranges this year is Halloween make-up, thanks to its creative options and its outstanding quality. Premier’s entire make-up collection is fully tested to EN71 cosmetic regulations making it a preferred choice, particularly when using with children - plus there are lots of sets to choose from. As well as basic character makeup kits, there are Vampire, Witch,

ancient Egyptians, the kits come with everything necessary to face imaginary worlds. Due to the fact Snazaroo face paints are water based, they are both easy to apply and easy to remove. Through rigorous testing, parents can buy with conﬁdence, knowing that the

All A ll made d up Devil, Pirate sets and of course, of course, fake blood. There are facepainting kits with instructions, with make-up to create anything from a Vampire to a Skull – and for a truly spectacular effect, add some of Premier’s brand new glow in the dark make-up. Complete the effect with zombie gory ﬂesh, black tooth make-up with glow in the dark lipstick and nail polish. At a relatively low price point and taking up very little shelf space, Premier’s make-up collection includes everything from paints and crayons to fangs, moustaches and coloured hair sprays.

products are suitable for sensitive skin and non toxic. And it’s not just children that get a kick out of face paint and body art. Adults too are turning to this category as a quick and simple way to make an impact. Distributed by Angels in the UK, Tinsely Transfers is

Palmer Agencies 028 9064 7119 www.palmerag encies. com Palmer Agencies offers No Smudge Make-up Cream in a variety of popular colours, including white, red, black and green. There’s also a range of kits to perfect a look, including a Family Make-up Kit, and kits for popular spooky characters. Palmer also offers fake blood, liquid latex and special kits such as the hugely popular zipper kits.

a popular brand for adults, bringing the expertise of Hollywood’s make-up departments across the pond. New to the UK market in 2014, the range offers authentic looking, temporary transfers, from tattoo sleeves and costume kit tattoos, to 3D FX tattoos in a variety of incredible designs.

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HOW TO Face Paints

It’s Christmas Face painting professional Claire shows Party Party why face paints are so popular with consumers. In just five simple steps, she gives Poppy a festive makeover for her Christmas party. What a cracker!

Equipment Required ■

■ ■ ■

White, Black and Red face paint No. 1 and No. 6 round brush Cosmetic glitter Self-adhesive gems

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eet Claire Naish, Party Party’s professional face painter with a wealth of experience. Her work includes events, children’s parties and carnivals.

Step 1 Paint white hat band and bobble with No. 6 brush.

Step 2 Add basic red hat shape with No. 6 brush.

Step 3 Outline hat and detail in black using No. 1 brush.

Step 4 Add snowﬂake detailing in white paint using No. 1 brush.

Step 5 Add a bit of Christmas sparkle with selfadhesive gems and cosmetic glitter.

Masks Feature

Face off

Masks and accessories have been keeping partygoers entertained since the masquerade festivals of the renaissance. Today, the category is the go-to option for creating a custom look

Rubie’s It seems masks are Speaking to taking over the party independent scene for other retailers ahead occasions, too. Joyce of Halloween Mallo, Marketing and this year, it was communications clear masks at Leg Avenue and accessories Europe, has been were gong keeping up with the to ﬂy off the latest trends. “It’s shelves. While full a current trend costumes remain to wear all kind strong sellers for of masks to this occasion all sorts of in particular, parties, not the increase only themed in the number parties,” she says. “We see that of people now celebrating in some form on 31 October has had a natural the ear-headband trend is slowly disappearing, making room for lace effect on the market - namely or animal masks. Leg Avenue’s new a demand for more casual, less lace masks are already immensely involved dress-up options. popular, and we expect this to Heading into her second Halloween continue.” this year, Fran Gore And what from Fancy Dress about the classic Fanatics in Bristol masquerade ball? was facing exactly Joyce says that this kind of demand. its enigmatic “I made the mistake of ordering too Joyce Mallo, Leg Avenue Europe aesthetic is seeping into all kinds of many full fancy parties. “A Masquerade ball itself dress options last year, when lots isn’t necessarily a growing trend, of the students wanted however elements of masquerade masks and accessories balls are something we see more to customise their and more at all sorts of parties. Eye own look,” she told Fun Shack masks and half-masks are popular, Party Party. “Full and when we look at our best-selling costumes will of masks it’s the Rabbit Mask and our course be popular, Venetian Eye Masks, which come in but my offering three different styles.” this year is more Michelle Pettit, Owner of balanced. I will be Time 2 Celebrate in Kettering, offering far more Northamptonshire, has experienced accessories, masks this popularity ﬁrst hand. “In the and wigs because from my experience, last year or two, masquerade masks have really taken off, particularly as they’re what a a party theme for New Year’s Eve, good chunk of my so I’m expecting to sell a lot of them customers want.”

et’s face it, sometimes less is more. When a full costume just won’t work, a wacky wig, a famous face, or an up-market masquerade mask can be the perfect way to inject a bit of fun into a party, or tie-in with a theme. Popular for New Year’s Eve, Christmas parties, and of course Halloween, masks and accessories are the go-to dress-up option for the fancy dress shy, or the partygoer that likes to customise their own look.

It’s a current trend to wear all kind of masks to all sorts of parties

Legs Avenue

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Feature Masks Rasta Imposta

closer to the end of the year,” she says. “In fact, we stock masks from Pams and Bristol Novelty, and they’re just more popular in general. We’re finding that a lot of customers like to twin a mask or an accessory with something else they either already have at home, or another costume they pick up here.” This flexibility has made masks and accessories a winner with party-goers. Leg Avenue’s Joyce says that they’re the “perfect addition to any outfit”, and this means they work for almost any y occasion. “They can be worn with a costume during Halloween, but they can also easily be worn with a glamorous outfit for New Year’s Eve. It’s all about imagination gination really, and at Leg Avenue we have a wide variety of masks, so with a little imagination, they can be worn to many parties.” With work Christmas parties, New Year’s Eve and end year celebrations galore on the horizon, masks and accessories are a must have for any retailer.

FROM VENICE WITH LOVE Fun Shack 0113 2001 050 sales@fun-shack.com www.fun-shack.com Fun Shack has launched a brilliant new range of Masquerade Masks. Venetian masquerade carnival masks have been part of the mystique of Venice for over 800 years, and in the 15th century, the mask makers of Venice were ofﬁcially recognised as master craftsmen. Fun Shack Venetian style Masquerade masks follow in this tradition, and each one has been handcrafted to make it a unique item. There are three ranges of masks to choose from: Argento, Oro and Platino.

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UNLEASH YOUR ALTER EGO Leg Avenue +31 24240 3444 www.legavenueeurope.com Masks and a ccessories are the perfect addition to any party outﬁt. They’re easy, fun and above all, they are the perfect ice-breaker to kick start a good conversation. Masks and accessories aren’t just for themed parties, they can also be worn to all kinds of parties, like a night out clubbing, or a birthday party, making people stand out from the crowd. Leg Avenue has a wide range of masks and accessories suitable for everyone who is looking for a fun night out. The accessories vary from complete accessories kits, to ears, tails, and of course masks. Lace cat masks are immensely popular, an absolute must-have to every store. The matte black version of Leg Avenue’s Rabbit mask was immensely popular, and the new glitter version is sure to be too. Venetian lace masks are timeless, and an elegant addition to any outﬁt. Leg Avenue’s sales show that masks are very popular at the moment, and it’s a category that fashion magazines are picking up on as well. Lace cat mask that cover a part of the head are seen everywhere. Some of the Kardashian are even seen wearing them!

Feature Masks

The ultimate makeover Amscan 01908 288500 www.amscan.co.uk Amscan launched a brand new collection of wearable accessories earlier this year to add the perfect ﬁnishing touches to outﬁts, with items suited for everyone from children to adults. Items range from wigs, to hats, masks and jewellery, and coordinate with popular fancy dress themes and seasonal occasions, including decades, pirates and Halloween. A real head-turning range is Amscan’s striking wigs selection, which includes vibrant red and pink crimped options, a raging pony curls wig and rainbow clown wig, to name a few. Solid colour accessories make

Take me to the ball Bristol Novelty

up a popular section of Amscan’s wearables offering. The extensive range of solid colour accessories are ideal for any fancy dress event, and there are eight different colours which look great on their own or mixed and matched. Items include a variety of hats, wigs, headbands, glasses, necklaces and more. The items also look fantastic customised with Amscan’s all in one spandex party suits. With the festive season nearly upon us, Amscan has extended its Christmas wearables range with a whole new selection of Christmas hats to suit all price points. There’s even something for those not feeling particularly festive: the Bah Humbug hat! Other accessories include elf hats, antler headbands and giant Christmas tree glasses, sure to get guests into the party spirit!

GIVE IT SOME LIP Rasta Imposta 020 8732 8879 distribution@angels.uk.com www.angelsdistribution.co.uk

0117 972 4012 www.bristolnovelty.co.uk Bristol Novelty has a s selection of high quality masks, including of on-trend some a selection o masquerade-ball style offerings. These masks are intricately detailed, with ﬂ oral designs and ﬂo feathers for add added wow factor.

Rasta Imposta offers a range of purses, baskets, hats and ‘Staches that allow costumeshy individuals to accessorise in style. Perfect for Movember and multitude of other dress-up themes, Rasta’s ‘Staches that can be worn by both men and women and come in three sizes: 20”, 30” and 60”. Purses and baskets include Gingham Basket, Doggie Basket, Christmas Tree, Reindeer Purse and many more!

TEMPORARY MAGIC Tinsley Transfers 020 8732 8879 distribution@angels.uk.com www.angelsdistribution.co.uk

Tinsley Transfers’ range of Hollywood ﬁlm-quality 3D FX transfers is in stock now and these gruesome lesions are sure to add some horror to any costume. Also look out for the Big Mouth Tattoos which includes six designs 5” wide and 11.5” tall.

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Face the force Rubie’s Masquerade 08453 070707 www.rubies.com

Known predominantly as a leading licensed costume manufacturer, Rubie’s Masquerade also produces a huge range of licensed masks and accessories which can be bought separately. Its new range for Star Wars: The Force Awakens, for example, includes all manner of Stormtroopers, Firetroopers, Captain Phasma and Kylo Ren masks for adults, which combine perfectly with Rubie’s existing Star Wars range of masks, including iconic characters like Yoda and Darth Vader. Rubie’s range of Halloween masks, are really popular, with its Pennywise the Clown mask from the movie It being a popular and eye-catching choice for partygoers. New for this year is a spectacularly creepy representation of Annabelle, the macabre haunted doll from horror movies The Conjuring and Annabelle. Elsewhere in Rubie’s catalogues are masks of The Joker from The Dark Knight Batman trilogy, alongside Michael Myers from Halloween, Jason Vorhees from Friday The 13th, and Freddy Krueger from Nightmare On Elm Street.

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GAS SUPPLIERS

WHOLESALE

Party Plus - Party

Wholesalers

6WRS 3D\LQJ 5HQWDO HQWDO the bottled gas specialist

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www.adamsgas.co.uk T: 0800 195 4445/01843 220596 We are suppliers of BBS, Talking Tables, Amscan, Unique, Gemma, Procos, Colpak, Creative Party and many more.

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One of the widest ranges available including Peppa Piig, Hello Kity, Super Mario, Ben 10, Gruffalo, Football, Sealife, Princess, High School Musical, Farmyard, Disney, Jungle, Fire Engine, Spongebob Squarepants, Plain Coloured and many more.

www.partyplus.co.uk

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tel: 020 8811 2898 steve@partyplus.co.uk

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GAS SUPPLIERS

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