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Sales restructure at Character Options

Richard Dinham

Athony Thorpe

Sally Hunter

Character Options has announced several changes to its sales structure as part of an internal review to ensure the company is well positioned for growth.

Homegrown talents Richard Dinham and Anthony Thorpe have been promoted to senior national account manager roles in recognition of their “fi rst-rate professional approach and respect within the business”. Sales director David Bramford said: “I’m really pleased for Richard and Anthony, as they have both played an integral part in Character Options’ success in recent years. And from a personal perspective, it’s brilliant to have the opportunity to promote internally.”

In addition, Sally Hunter is joining the company as senior national account manager. She replaces Guy Rooney, who is leaving to take on a new industry role. David commented: “Sally’s professional approach - alongside her contagious enthusiasm - will perfectly complement Anthony, Richard and the rest of the team. Over the years we have always felt she would be an ideal fi t for Character and whilst I would like to personally thank Guy for his excellent contribution, equally I’m sure Sally will relish taking this opportunity.”

MGA UK recruits new Zapf Creation sales director

MGA UK & Ireland has appointed Guy Rooney to the role of Zapf Creation sales director. Reporting to UK and Ireland managing director Neil Bandtock, the newly created position will oversee the portfolio of Zapf’s award-winning brands including Baby Annabell, BABY born and BABY born Surprise.

Joining the team following four years with Character Group, Guy will take up the position at the end of September. He joins with a wealth of experience in the toy and retail industry, including senior sales roles with IMC Toys and retail management positions with Argos and Homebase.

Neil said: “We’re delighted to welcome Guy to the team. Zapf is home to a number of evergreen and hugely successful brands, and the addition of Guy as sales director will elevate this success to the next level. Our UK and Ireland retailers will really benefi t from this increased focus.”

Guy commented: “I’m thrilled to be joining the Zapf team and can’t wait to get started. I’m looking forward to having the opportunity of supporting our customers and increasing the sales of these well-loved brands.”

New talent joins University Games sales and marketing teams

University Games and The Lagoon Group have made two key appointments, contributing to the growth of both the sales and marketing departments. University Games has welcomed Victoria Reece in the marketing assistant role as the business continues to strategically develop strength and depth in this department. Marketing director Gemma Lewington said: Victoria Reece “Victoria is such a bright and enthusiastic individual and we are very excited to have her as part of our team. She comes to us from Viegli UK, where she was heavily involved with website development and asset creation, as well as a wealth of campaign management across both B2C and B2B.” Meanwhile, Liz Price has been appointed as new territory manager for the Midlands and North England. She brings a wealth of knowledge, with a decade of retail experience and over six years of Liz Price specialising in toys, games, and licences. Liz said: “University Games are innovative, forward-thinking and passionate about what they do, I’m really enjoying being part of this dynamic team.”

University Games and The Lagoon Group has a comprehensive portfolio of products to cater for the whole family, from preschool through to adult. Some of the ever-popular lines include Subbuteo, Smart Ass, Sort it Out, Kersplatt, What’s Up and Don’t Say it, as well as Football Stadium and Harry Potter 3D puzzles.

Jazwares adds directors

to EMEA team

Jazwares has appointed Matt Stent as European commercial director and Samantha Bourne as European licensing director as part of its ambitious European growth strategy. Matt joins the company after almost two decades at Argos & Sainsburys, most recently as the buying manager for sports, leisure, outdoor toys & nursery, reporting to Jonny Taylor, SVP Europe. Matt will be responsible for growing Jazwares’ business in Europe both through its regional offi ces and third-party distributors. Samantha Bourne, the former head of licensing and brand at Rubie’s Masquerade, brings a wealth of experience within licensed consumer goods. Reporting to global VP of licensing Sam Ferguson, her role as EMEA licensing director will focus on ensuring Jazwares delivers commercial value and results to global licensing partners. Jazwares has also expanded its UK team with 10 hires to fi ll newly created positions across licensing, sales, marketing, operations, and business intelligence. Jonny Taylor said: “We are thrilled to be adding such strong talent to our team, to match our growth both in the UK and across Europe. Exciting times ahead!”

Giochi Preziosi names Julia Cake as new UK country manager

The Giochi Preziosi Group has confi rmed the appointment of a new UK Country Manager, as Julia Cake takes the helm at Surrey-based Flair PLC.

Julia grew up in an entrepreneurial family manufacturing business, making doll pushchair covers in the UK. Since then, she has accumulated 20 years of toy experience, having held positions at Mattel and Schleich, among other toy companies. Most recently, she held the post of commercial director and manager of Magic Box UK where she doubled turnover in just three years.

Giochi Preziosi Group CEO Marie-Eve Rougeot said: “Julia brings a vast amount of experience and shares our drive to take Flair to a new level of success. With such impressive achievements to date, Julia will be instrumental in supporting the growth of the UK operations in both the short and medium term.”

Julia took over from managing director Simon Hedge as GP’s Head of UK on 1 August. Simon left the company at the end of July. He has been part of the toy industry for more than 30 years and was a founding member of the former Flair Leisure Products when it was established in 1995. Having taken the company through the acquisition by The Giochi Preziosi Group in 2008, Simon was appointed managing director of the Group’s UK operations in 2013.

Speaking of his decision to move on, Simon said: “I feel the time is right to start a new chapter in both my career and family life. My time with Flair has been tremendous and we have seen both highs and lows during the past 25 years - from a pre-Christmas warehouse fi re right through to distributing some of the UK’s most exciting toy brands. To start a company from literally nothing alongside friends and colleagues such as Peter Brown and Nicola Bergot, I feel very lucky for the time I’ve had with Flair and all that has been achieved.”

New faces at

Thames & Kosmos

Lauren Thames & Kosmos UK’s Kent offi ce in Lethbridge Cranbrook has welcomed two new staff members. Lauren Lethbridge has been appointed as science kit sales and marketing manager. She succeeds Julia Loeser and will handle key accounts and science kit orders.

Tillie Hearty joins as Amazon account manager, taking over the role from longstanding team member Samantha Latter, who is heading off on maternity leave.

Tillie Hearty

Casdon Toys expands team with new senior hire

Casdon Toys has recruited Laura Bull as Americas Territory manager. The newly created role will allow Casdon to strengthen its operations overseas and harness its growth in the America market.

Laura brings a wealth of toy industry experience. She previously held the position of UK and Ireland sales manager at Magic Box, as well as the role of marketing manager at both Posh Paws and Schleich UK.

Casdon Toys managing director Phil Cassidy said: “We are delighted to welcome Laura to the Casdon family. This is an exciting step for Casdon as we continue to focus on our international growth, and we have no doubt that Laura’s experience within the industry will help us to achieve plans we have for the coming year.”

Laura added: “I’m thrilled to join Casdon: a company so renowned and admired throughout the industry. I look forward to being part of the Casdon family and driving business growth in the American markets.”

Funko adds to its EMEA sales management team

Funko (EMEA) has appointed former MGA Entertainment sales director Karen Athill as regional channel director of sales, where she will lead the regional sales teams.

At MGA Entertainment, Karen helped to spearhead the growth of the UK region through a successful sales strategy for brands including L.O.L. Surprise, Rainbow High, Little Tikes, Baby Born and Baby Annabel.

Prior to this role, Karen headed up sales for the UK at Rubie’s - the world’s largest manufacturer of licensed costumes and accessories - where she delivered multi-channel strategies across its portfolio of products in both hard and Softlines.

Commenting on her new position, Karen said: “I’m delighted to be joining the Funko family. Their huge range of license partnerships offer unlimited opportunities and I’m thrilled to be working on such a diverse product range spanning multiple categories.

“Additionally, the ongoing portfolio expansion (Loungefl y to name just one) makes this an exciting time to be a part of the business. It’s great to be back in a cross-category environment and I cannot wait to be working with the talented Funko team and look forward to supporting our EMEA retailer partners towards further growth.”

Malcolm Ottley, vice president of sales at Funko (EMEA), commented: “We are delighted to have been able to secure someone with Karen’s proven experience to help strengthen our retailer relationships throughout the UK, France and Iberia regions. Karen will lead our sales teams in those regions, further enhancing our strategic partner relations and continuing to drive our category expansions across our Pop! collectables, toys, games and Softlines through our thriving Loungefl y business.”