Big Interview: Widdop and Co

It may have a storied history spanning 140 years, but leading giftware supplier Widdop and Co is very much a forward-focused enterprise. Commercial director Stephen Illingworth tells LSB how adopting new processes and practices, as well as signing new powerhouse licences Hasbro and Paramount, has future-proofed the business for the decades to come.

Ready to grow Inset: Stephen Illingworth, commercial director, Widdop and Co. Below: The new Disney Home range features beautifully designed, modern pieces for the styleconscious Disney fan.

“I’m excited about what’s next,” Widdop and Co’s Stephen Illingworth declares. “We’ve spent the last ten years in transition, building a business that is robust and sound for the growth to come, and now we’re on the cusp of a big change. We’ve got new licences, new product categories, and we’re building a brand-new supply chain, with less reliance on China. We’re perfectly placed for an amazing 2023.” Next year will be pivotal in more ways than one: Oldham-based Widdop and Co will turn 140, Stephen himself will hit the big 4-0, and the company’s two biggest licences – Disney and Warner Bros. – are both marking their centenaries. But 2022 has provided Widdop with plenty to celebrate, too, notably the acquisition of awardwinning gift company Apples to Pears (best known for its Gift in a Tin collection), and Hasbro and Paramount joining the company’s portfolio of leading licences. “We’re looking forward to bringing our experience in what we've done with Disney and Warner Bros., as well as in general gifting and occasion gifting for the last 30 years, and applying that to the worlds of Hasbro and Paramount,” says Stephen. “There are opportunities to bring unique new gifting formats to life using some of Hasbro’s incredible toy and gaming properties. For Christmas 2023, for instance, we’ll be bringing out Monopoly and Cluedo gifting.” The Paramount stable, meanwhile, is home to PAW Patrol, Star Trek, Baby Shark and, of course, Top Gun – for which Stephen has already envisioned some “brilliant” Father’s Day gifts for next year. Widdop has a strong line-up of licensed offerings for Q3 and Q4. The company is one of the launch partners for Disney Home, a new interiors range debuting in October; also new for autumn are a Harry Potter ‘Charms’ collection and ‘Little Heroes’, a DC comics range, offering nursery accessories and gifts for toddlers and infants. Every licensed item sits within one of 50 product categories under the company’s four ‘pillars’ (Kids and Baby Gifting, Home, Collectables, and Christmas and Seasonal Events) – and the adult and children’s gifts produced by recent acquisition Apples to Pears slot in perfectly, according to Stephen. “The biggest reason we acquired Apples to Pears – and the biggest reason we acquire any licence or distributorship – is that it’s a subjectmatter expert, the best in class in its field. It does something we can’t do ourselves as yet, and it both serves our existing customers and opens new doors for the future. We also don’t take on

anything that is just a short-term opportunity that we can capitalise on for just a few months. We’re all about things that last forever. And now, with Apples to Pears, we can start licensing within craft and build-yourown kits, and the Gift in a Tin category, which is a fantastic opportunity.” With 2023 and even 2024 pretty much planned for, Stephen and the team are heading to BLE in order to “gauge what the next five to ten years will look like”. One thing they would like to see in the licensing sector is “more future thinking on providing companies like us with support to get product to market faster, in everything from 3D turnarounds on characters to smoother sign-off processes. All these things hamper the ability of companies to be able to do things quickly. Kids in particular aren’t used to having to wait for what they want, if you think about the way they consume content, and I don’t think the gifting world has really got to grips with that yet.” In order to become more responsive, Widdop is developing its own customisation processes. “From next year, we’ll have the capability to offer a ‘giftware on demand’ service,” Stephen explains. “We’ll be able to take about 100 blank formats and turn them into whatever the zeitgeist demands, by finishing off the designs here in the UK and shipping straight to retailers. It will allow us to react quickly to new trends.” The company is also working on personalisation systems, which will enable it to offer b2b and b2c customers branded items in batches as small as 12. In addition, this winter will see the launch of Widdop’s Greener Choice programme, which will highlight the company’s ethical and sustainable business practices.

“Like everyone else, we’re not quite yet where we need to be,” says Stephen, “but we’re putting our best foot forward and trying to be the leader in this field in our industry.” Inset: Available from October 2022, The Harry Stephen is confident Widdop Potter Charms collection can weather any economic promises to be a Christmas sell-out. storms ahead. “During recessions we’ve been successful because we sell product that's commercially of value. Whatever happens, people still buy gifts for people, they still celebrate birthdays and milestones. And we're not selling experiences that cost hundreds of pounds; our average selling price is under £12 at retail.” Having muchloved licences such as Disney on board has a protective effect. “A licensed portfolio that people know and understand is a door opener, because it means that you don't have to explain the backstory to what you've created. Inset: The Little “I think the next 140 years will be Heroes collection. the brightest yet. We have built an amazingly resilient, commercially profitable, industry-famous business that can now go on to leverage its platform and deliver so much more. We’re doing our first international exhibition [Ambiente] in Germany next spring, we’re expanding into America… We are poised for massive growth, and the sky truly is the limit.”

Inset: Acquiring Apples to Pears, known for its Gift in a Tin collection, has opened up a world of licensing opportunities for Widdop.