Licensing News – licensed products and what brands are up to

The big screening

As a new edition of the Brands & Retail UK Winter Conference 23 ramps up its activity – it’s just announced headline sponsor Fabacus – ahead of the event on January 18-19 at the Wellcome Museum in London, owner and event director Ryan Beaird unveils Toys ‘n’ Playthings as official media partner and talks about the event…

First off - I am delighted Toys n Playthings is now our official media partner for our great conferences. It has huge respect in the toy industry not just in the UK but globally.

I would always read TnP magazine when I ran the UK office of Licensing International (the consumer product trade association), especially for the great articles and relevant news to the licensing industry sector I represented.

Lema Publishing’s TnP supports the wonderful toy industry and I’m delighted it wants to support our new conferences.

We have now had two Brands & Retail UK conferences under our belts here at imaginators events. The first winter conference in February was attended by the majority of the retail industry that buys in licensed merchandise, and also all the great manufacturers and brand partners that make brand extension products.

At our first conference we had Hasbro, Bulldog Licensing, Paramount, Moonbug, MGAE, Penguin Ventures, BlueZoo Animation, SEGA, Activision and Warhammer. It was an incredible line-up and there were some great presentations.

To give you an idea – the Brands & Retail Conference format is back-to-back screenings from IP owners, showcasing either their new IPs or updates on existing brands to an audience of just retailers and manufacturers. All of them are under NDA and they have to be a licensee or retailer to get entry.

I wanted to create an event where everyone was happy. The brands knew I could get the VIP audience to come as I have the connections, and also the retailers and manufacturers were delighted because they could watch 15-minute back-toback screenings in one day – rather than having to attend 10 or so separate screenings from the brands themselves.

We save retailers time, money, travel – and shoe leather! They just sit back, relax in the comfy seats of the Wellcome Collection museum theatre in Euston, London, and take notes on what brands they want to license.

When we wrapped up the first conference, I asked the audience to put up their hands if they wanted me to put on a summer conference. As a result of the unanimous feedback, we ran a summer conference in July, which quickly turned into a two-day event due to huge demand from brands that had heard about it on the grapevine.

The line-up for our summer conference in July was even bigger - with Paramount, The V&A Museum, Ashmolean Museum, London Electric Taxi Company, Pink Key Licensing, Battersea Dogs Home (our conference supported charity), Lisle Licensing, Mighty Jaxx Toys, The FA, Acamar Films, Mattel, Kelebek Media, MGAE, Warhammer, Boat Rocker, Jazwares, Penguin Ventures, Uplift Games, PMS International, Retail Monster, Silver Gate Media and SEGA.

It was a phenomenal line-up – my team worked round the clock to make sure all the screenings were ready, and we delivered a perfectly-timed event; the audience feedback was again great. I am now in full organisation mode for our next winter conference – which comes a week before London Toy Fair – with ours on the January 18 and 19 2023, again at the Wellcome Collection museum. Holding it before all the trade shows and in the first couple of weeks of Q1 means all these great IP owners can deliver their message right at the beginning of the year, leaving them more time to do actual deals at all the trade shows. They won’t have to get their laptops out to show a retailer a 15-minute sizzle on a stand because the retailer will have seen it already at “ Brands Retail. They can just get the dialogue going and move the deal forward.

We have two great toy companies taking part: Jazwares, which is coming back to present its new IPs, and Mattel, which has also been supportive and got the format right away.

We would love to see some other toy companies taking part at Brands Retail UK Winter conference, especially if they are licensing ‘out’ as we say in the business. But if they are a toy company that license ‘in’ they are more than welcome to attend as an audience member. We have HTI, Golden Bear and Moose Toys in the audience – all looking for the next big children’s entertainment IP.

I can’t wait to host TnP and Lema Publishing at our winter 23 event and am delighted they are our media partners going forward.

If you are a toy company and you want to pitch your IP for licensing please do visit our website and send me an email – we have some un-reserved 15-minute slots left at time of press.

Ryan.Beaird@BrandsRetail.uk www.BrandsRetail.uk

How it works...

The Brands & Retail Conference format is back-toback screenings from IP owners, showcasing either their new IPs or updates on existing brands to an audience of retailers and manufacturers. All of them are under NDA and they have to be a licensee or retailer to get entry. At our first conference we “ had Hasbro, Bulldog Licensing, Paramount, Moonbug, MGAE, Penguin Ventures, BlueZoo Animation, SEGA, Activision and Warhammer

Barbie is back and, with a blockbuster feature film on the way, the brand is set to grow even further

It’s never been a better time for companies to partner with Mattel in further growing the brand and making it truly immortal. For, as Mattel president and COO Richard Dickson said in his keynote speech to mark the opening of Brand Licensing Europe: “Barbie isn’t just having a moment, she’s making the moment, with no intention of slowing down.”

Dickson outlined the brand’s storied history, and its revival in fortunes from the nadir of 2014, as well as its efforts to make Barbie fit for purpose in today’s world; more inclusive and representative.

The company set about developing a playbook that conentrated on four elements to revive Barbie’s fortunes – brand purpose, design-led innovation, cultural relevance and executional excellence.

The result? Barbie is, he said, the number one global toy property, doubling Barbie’s toy business in the past seven years.

Dickson said: “Pioneered by Barbie, the Mattel Playbook is the heat behind her brilliant turnaround and a blueprint that’s now re-energising brands across our portfolio.”

In recent years, as Dickson noted, the company has increasingly moved towards better representation too, a move that has further aided the brand and chimed with societal movements.

“Today, Barbie dolls represent more than 175 different looks and growing, including Ken body diversity and dolls that represent a range of disabilities. Barbies with hearing aids, wheelchairs, prosthetic legs, and a skin condition called vitiligo, are all designed with an eye for inclusivity.”

He continued: “We are immensely proud that diversity isn’t some small offshoot of the brand. More than half of Barbies sold, positively represent diversity, all because we had the courage to rethink everything.”

Last year, Barbie became not just the number one in dolls sales worldwide, she was also the number one global toy property. Mattel believes that with the Warner-distributed film already making waves well ahead of its 2023 release, the brand is poised to grow even further.

“At a time when our cultural, economic, and political discussions all too often send mixed messages to kids, Mattel, as you’ve just seen, is using Barbie’s massive global platform to model empowerment and inclusion, advocating for the limitless potential in all of us,” he added. “And consumers are rewarding us for it, proving that purpose is profitable, which is a win for everybody. Like fashion, the toy industry is full of trend-driven items that peak quickly, then disappear. But purposebuilt brands - brands that are based on an idea that’s bigger than product - can have staying power for generations. I’m a big believer that evolution makes a brand relevant, but purpose makes a brand immortal. And that’s Barbie.

“Now, as thrilled as we are that Barbie is on top again, we’re not stopping there,” he concluded.

“There has never been a better time to partner with Mattel. Because as powerful as Barbie is today, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.”

“Barbie dolls represent more than 175 different looks and growing, including Ken body diversity and dolls that represent a range of disabilities’’

Richard Dickson

Mischief planned for 2023

The Beano is gearing up for its big birthday plans for 2023 – the legendary comic is celebrating its 85th anniversary throughout the year – with a raft of autumn and winter activity.

The Beano has recently partnered with EE to teach children about online safety, while Halloween saw the brand collaborating with English Heritage. A Beano-themed Halloween Quest took place at 22 different English Heritage sites, with Dennis, Gnasher and pals helping kids find out facts about the sites and history during half-term week.

Melissa Satterly, brand manager, Rocket Licensing, commented: “The work of English Heritage is all about bringing history to life, and this marvellous event is perfectly designed to do just that for young visitors to some of the country’s most historical sites. We’re delighted to be bringing Dennis, Gnasher and friends together with the inspirational work of English Heritage in what promises to be a fun and engaging half-term treat.”

Vanessa Andreis, franchise planning and partnerships director at Beano, said: “We’re incredibly excited to partner with English Heritage for the first time and for families to enjoy our spooky Beano Halloween Quests up and down the country this half-term. Beano has been entertaining for kids for more than 80 years so these iconic English Heritage sites are the perfect place for us to cause mischief and mayhem this Halloween.”

In a statement preceding the anniversary activity, Beano Studios said: “Productwise we’re thrilled to announce an extension of the Licensed to Charm range; the Hornby Beano Carriage; Spike Leisurewear; a classic capsule collection with Dennis and Gnasher from Cotton Division; a Dennis bespoke statue and Beano chess set (from Blu Goblin in aid of Save The Children); and the Farshore book range.”

Madam, I’m Adam

With the latest DC superhero blockbuster set to land in cinemas, Warner Bros Consumer Products has pushed the boat out for Black Adam, as licensed product “smashes into retail”.

Tie-ins include one with star Dwayne Johnson’s associated Under Armour brand, as well as a raft of toys, including, in the UK, both Rubies and Amscan for dressup. Rubies is working with Warner internationally, while the ubiquitous Funko is also on board, with Spin Master holding the international toy licence.

Johnson, aka The Rock, described the training process that inspired the Black Adam Under Armour gear, saying: “Black Adam deserved more than a portrayal. He deserved a transformation. Every training session, every rep, every drop of sweat was my commitment to disrupt the very notion about this character and myself.”