2019 Mid Year Toy Preview by The Bugg Report

TOY PR • IEW EV

JUNE 2019

BUGG

THE

REPORT

From the Editor 2019 Mid Year Toy Preview by the Australian Toy Association TOYS FOR LIFE - In these very different times there are some things that never change.

Families and children have always loved toys and will continue to love toys. Congratulations to the Australian Toy Association (ATA) for providing a mid year preview (toy show) platform for the industry to gather and interact. We hope to assist in raising the profile of this show and the Melbourne Toy Hobby & Licensing Fair in March.

If we look back to the 60’s and 70’s when Tim The Toyman was a dominant toy destination and the 80’s and 90’s when Zig Zag toys was the new innovation, nothing remained the same.

Toys ‘R’ Us came to Australia and World 4 Kids challenged them, things changed and these evolutions all created uncertainty and opportunity.

We do have a great industry to celebrate; it will take a little time to figure out the next model.

As the industry works to figure out solutions for the future, raising the profile of toys is of paramount importance to growing the category. I notice with interest that most of the Sydney based retailers have registered to attend the ATA mid year toy preview.

This is a positive sign and will provide good opportunity for members to discuss new opportunities for toys.

Reflecting on generations of toys passed, the one constant has been evolution and change.

Image: www.rctoymemories.com

THE BUGG REPORT

Image: www.heraldsun.com.au

www.buggreport.com.au

NEWS ON RETAIL, SPORTS, LIFESTYLE, TOYS & LICENSING Managing Director Tony Bugg tony@buggsolutions.com.au

Editor & Designer Matthew Bugg matt@buggsolutions.com.au

Advertising: bookings@buggreport.com.au

Publisher Bugg Marketing Solutions info@buggsolutions.com.au

Feedback: editor@buggreport.com.au

The Bugg Report has been compiled as a guide to retail, sports, lifestyle, toys, licensing and/or other related matters. The views and opinions provided are based upon the views and opinions of our writers. In no way is The Bugg Report a factual guide to retail, sports, lifestyle, toys, licensing and/or other related matters and does not take responsibility for how the information provided is used by its consumers.

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2019 Mid Year Toy Preview

Contents 04. Welcome 05. Exhibitors 06. Boardrooms and Mezzanine Level 08. Triple Crown Ballroom 26. Wide Eyes News from the Tube 28. ESL Gaming: Feature Interview 31. Licensing Expo Photo Tour 38. Showtime Attractions: Feature Interview 40. BBC Studios and Disney Strike Deal 42. The Recorrection of Retail

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Welcome Mid Year Toy Preview by the Australian Toy Association Held over two days at the Rydges Parramatta hotel in Rosehill, welcome to the ATA’s 2019 Mid Year Toy Preview. This trade-only event hosts businesses involved in manufacturing, wholesaling, distributing or retailing products for kids & family leisure, learning and entertainment.

Location and Opening Times Location: Rydges Rosehill 116 James Ruse Drive, Rosehill NSW

Opening Times: Wednesday June 26th - 9am to 5pm Thursday June 27th - 9am to 3pm

EXHIBITOR LISTING

Photos from last years Toy Preview

2019 Mid Year Toy Preview

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EXHIBITOR LISTING

2019 Exhibitors

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2019 Mid Year Toy Preview

EXHIBITOR LISTING

Boardrooms and Mezzanine Level Baby Brands Mezzanine - M3 Sean Richardson | 02 8911 0642 sean@babybrands.com.au babybrands.com.au

Happy Distribution Mezzanine - M9 & M10 Ben Qian | 0409 333 321 ben.q@happydistribution.com.au happydistribution.com.au

Bensons Trading Pty Ltd Boardroom - Phar Lap 1 David Peel | 03 9369 9929 david@bensonstrading.com.au showbags.com.au

Headstart International Boardroom - Kingston 1 & Carbine Amy Gregory | 03 8574 4400 amy.gregory@headstartint.com headstartint.com

Big Balloon Boardroom - Kingston 3 Caroline Seal | 03 9020 1358 info@bigballoon.com.au bigballoon.com.au

Impact Posters Mezzanine - M6 & M7 Matt Walter | 02 9481 7344 matt@impactposters.com impactposters.com

Crown & Andrews / Goliath Games Boardroom - Winx Andrew Lee | 02 9898 3555 info@crownandandrews.com crownandandrews.com

Jasnor (Australia) Pty Ltd Boardroom - Makybe Diva James Thurlow | 03 9562 9900 jthurlow@jasnor.com jasnor.com

Early Life Projects Mezzanine M1 Kirsty Assad | 02 8667 5325 info@earlylifeprojects.com holatoys.com.au | kindywise.com.au

KAPLA Mezzanine - M2 Dania Waples | 0432 750 284 kapla.au@kapla.com kaplatoysaustralia.com

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Boardrooms and Mezzanine Level Licensing International Mezzanine - M8 Tony Bugg | 03 9796 2921 tbugg@licensing.org licensinginternational.org The Bugg Report Mezzanine - M8 Matthew Bugg | 03 9796 2921 editor@buggreport.com.au buggreport.com.au

VR Distribution Boardroom - Kingston 2 Mark Rosser | 08 8234 1355 mark@vrdistribution.com.au vrdistribution.com.au Zimbler Pty Ltd Boardroom - Phar Lap 2 Joel Zimbler | 03 8481 1000 sales@zimbler.com.au zimbler.com.au

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2019 Mid Year Toy Preview

EXHIBITOR LISTING

U. Games Australia Boardroom - Black Cavier Melissa Hamilton | 02 9436 1016 info@ugames.com.au ugames.com.au

EXHIBITOR LISTING

Triple Crown Ballroom Australian Toy Distributors Ballroom - BA16 Scott O’Rafferty | 02 9668 9800 sales@australiantoydistributors.com.au australiantoydistributors.com.au

Geomagworld Aus P/L Ballroom - BA9 Andrew McDougall | 02 4340 2833 andrew@akmtoys.com.au geomagworld.com/en/

Axis Toys Ballroom - BA5 & BA6 Paula Opfer | 02 9986 3456 paulaopfer@axistoys.com axistoys.com

Heebie Jeebies Ballroom - BA10 Simon Woolley | 02 9740 3092 simonw@heebiejeebies.com.au heebiejeebies.com.au

Big Wheel Toys Ballroom - BA13 Cameron Stewart | 1300 244 945 sales@bigwheeltoys.com.au bigwheeltoys.com.au

Jedko Ballroom - BA11 Bob Davies | 03 9559 5200 jedkobob@yahoo.com.au jedko.com.au

Bio Dough Ballroom - BA21 Rana Semaan | 0411 128 907 info@biodough.com.au biodough.com.au

Johnco Ballroom - BA7 Claire Ball | 02 9452 5819 claire@johncoproductions.com johncoproductions.com

Funrise Australia Pty Ltd Ballroom - BA2, BA3 & BA4 George Khoury | 02 9090 2439 georgekhoury@funrise.com funrise.com

Keycraft Ballroom - BA22 & BA23 Terence Davis | 02 8599 1333 terence.davis@keycraftglobal.com keycraftglobal.com

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EXHIBITOR LISTING

Triple Crown Ballroom

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2019 Mid Year Toy Preview

EXHIBITOR LISTING

Triple Crown Ballroom LaQ Australia (Smart Toys Trading) Ballroom - BA12 Doreen Yong | 0409 503 926 dyong@smarttoystrading.com.au laqaustralia.com.au

Theatrix Magic Stuff Ballroom - BA24 & BA25 Marc Benjamin | 0415 966 069 magic@theatrix.com.au theatrix.com.au

MJM Australia Ballroom - BA8 Jacques Levy | 0418 368 662 jacques@mjm-australia.com mjm-australia.com

Toynetworx Ballroom - BA17 Brad Ford | 03 9460 2277 brad@toynetworx.com.au toynetworx.com.au

New Dimension Oz Ballroom - BA1 Peter O’Brien | 02 9477 4368 peter@newdimensionoz.com.au newdimensionoz.com.au

Toy Revolution Ballroom - BA20 Peter Bando | 0401 793 950 peterbando41@gmail.com

Plum Products Australia Pty Ltd Ballroom - BA14 Ben Randall | 02 8968 2200 brandall@plumproducts.com plumplay.com.au Rainbow Pacific Ballroom - BA18 Murray Forbes | 0407 029 269 murray@rainbowpacific.com.au rainbowpacific.com.au

Trendy Toys Ballroom - BA19 Leon Li | 0450 365 168 leon@paperlight.com.au trendytoys.com.au Winning Moves Ballroom - BA15 Jason Ciantar | 02 9437 3713 jason.ciantar@winningmoves.com.au winningmoves.com.au

2019 Mid Year Toy Preview

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EXHIBITOR LISTING

Triple Crown Ballroom

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HARRY POTTER characters, names and related indicia are © & ™ Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. WB SHIELD: TM & © WBEI. J.K. ROWLING’S WIZARDING WORLD ™ J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros.

Entertainment Publishing Rightsand © JKR. (s18) HARRY POTTERInc. characters, names related indicia are © & ™ Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. WB SHIELD: TM & © WBEI. J.K. ROWLING’S WIZARDING WORLD ™ J.K. Rowling and Warner Bros.

Entertainment Inc. Publishing Rights © JKR. (s18)

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LEGO, the LEGO logo, the Minifigure, the Brick and Knob configurations are trademarks of the LEGO Group. ©2019

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Come to stand BA13 at the 2019 Sydney Mid Year Toy preview to review our exciting new products! www.bigwheeltoys.com.au • P: 1300 244 945 • E: sales@bigwheeltoys.com.au bigwheeltoysaustralia

bigwheeltoys

Correct copy rights to 2019. Produced by ClicTime Holdings Ltd and Room Copenhagen A/S under licence from the LEGO Group.

MID YEAR TOY PREVIEW

SYDNEY RYDGES ROSEHILL - 116 James Ruse Drive, Rosehill NSW

WED 26TH – THURS 27THJUNE • 2019

Boardroom - Makybe Diva

VISIT US!

Jasnor is the home to Iconic brands and characters!

1300 881 940 | sales@jasnor.com

jasnor.com.au

More new products launching this year!

Come visit us at BA22 & BA23

Keycraft Australia Level 2, 18 Burns Road Heathcote NSW 2233 Australia

Tel: +61 (0)2 8599 1333 info@keycraftau.com www.keycraftau.com.au

NEW MODEL DUE, FULLY COMPLIANT

KL700200 THE KLOROFIL MAGIC TREE

DUE END JUNE

Rainbow Pacific (Australasia) | ABN: 33 472 107 285 Mob: +61 (0) 407 029 269 | Email: murray@rainbowpacific.com.au | Web: www.rainbowpacific.com.au

Toynetworx Distributes Mad Matter and Toki Dough Toynetworx has teamed up with U.S. toy company Relevant Play. Toy distributor Toynetworx, specialising in distribution to over 2000 independent retail outlets across Australia is extending their stable to include Relevant Play as a partner. Available now, the company hopes to rival dough competitors bringing to Australia the most unbelievable dough to build with, introducing both Mad Mattr and Toki Dough brands into the market.

Jonathan Byrnes, CEO of Toynetworx said, “we are truly excited to be representing these amazing products from Relevant Play across Australia. Toynetworx is a long established wholesale business based in Melbourne Victoria, carrying a large range of brands across the toy, game craft and outdoor categories.

MAD MATTR The smartest dough to ever flow! Let children stretch their creativity to the max with this addictive, super-soft modelling compound, that shapes easily. Press it, mould it, knead it, stretch it, squeeze it, squish it, shape it, build it or simply just pull it slowly and watch it flow! Cleaning is no worries, since it sticks to itself and doesn’t leave a mess around the house or on the kids! A brilliantly diverse sensory experience that’s both thrilling for the senses and calming for the mind! Mad Mattr is available in 6 super cool colours for never ending fun, that is totally safe for kids and even Gluten Free!

TOKI DOUGH A new, magical arts and crafts activity brand, inspired

by Kawaii design, a global trend that translates to “cute” in Japanese. Toki Dough modelling compound doesn’t dry out, molds impeccably, is smooth, flexible and stretchable, and is super easy to clean up. The colourful, imaginative creations that can be shaped with Toki Dough are never-ending! The Toki Dough Bento Box has everything kids need to create a Garden Party fantasy, molding delicious treats. Toki Dough is totally safe for kids and even Gluten Free!

*Suitable for ages 5+

*Suitable for ages 3+

Relevant Play strives to provide kids of all ages with cool toys that encourage imaginative, open-ended play, while inviting their minds to explore, create, and learn.

Visit Relevant Play on YouTube or go to the Relevant Play website at relevantplay.com to learn more!

VISIT US AT BALLROOM - BA17 For enquiries, stockists and wholesale orders, contact Toynetworx Email: sales@toynetworx.com.au | Phone: (03) 9460 2777 | Web: www.toynetworx.com.au

- THE AMAZING -

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CAN YOU LIGHT A CANDLE WITH A PIECE OF SPAGHETTI?

WHAT IS AUSTRALIA’S LONGEST RUNNING TV SHOW?

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WHAT WAS TOM CRUiSE’S CALL SiGN IN THE MOViE ‘TOP GUN’?

U. GAMES AUSTRALIA www.ugames.com.au P 1300 998 150

A GAME FOR EVERYONE!

COMING SOON!

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Come and see all that’s new...

...in Boardroom Phar Lap 2

Zimbler Pty Ltd 899 Heidelberg Road, Ivanhoe Vic Australia 3079 Phone +61 3 8481 1000 Email joel@zimbler.com.au

Wide Eyes News from the Tube This article is written for The Bugg Report by a leading industry expert and gives a quick snapshot of some the best opportunities in the television & animation market.

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The pre-school TV show Play School has been broadcasting continuously on ABC TV since July 1966 and continues to be one of Australia’s most popular shows for pre-schoolers. Books, recorded music, videos and soft toys associated with the Play School TV show have been selling in Australia for over 50 years.

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The first Sesame Street TV episode was broadcast in Australia on ABC Channel 2 in January 1971. However, it wasn’t until 1977 that the first Sesame Street toys were launched in Australia which began the on-going relationship between pre-school shows broadcast on ABC TV and associated pre-school merchandise being sold through Australian retail outlets.

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Every decade has seen the rise and rise of new pre-school shows broadcast on ABC TV becoming massive hits with the under five year olds in Australia - Sesame Street and Play School ruled the 70s and early 80s, and then in 1987 along came the Thomas the Tank Engine TV series and Thomas became a massive merchandising sensation.

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In July 1992, ABC TV produced and broadcast the first episode of Bananas in Pyjamas which was inspired by the Carey Blyton nursery rhyme often sung in Play School and went on to be a big hit in many countries around the world.

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In the same year ABC Music signed a new pre-school music band called The Wiggles who would go on to become the most successful pre-school music band of all time and are still going strong on ABC TV to this day.

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In February 1998 the Teletubbies arrived in Australia and Tinky Winky, Dipsy, Laa-Laa and Po became the must have toys for Christmas and for many years following.

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In September 1999 Bob the Builder arrived in Australia and in 2001 the Bob the Builder Can We Fix It? single and album topped the Australian music charts.

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In the 2000s the pre-school hits on ABC TV continued to roll out with Octonauts, Yo Gabba Gabba, Giggle & Hoot and Peppa Pig all selling truckloads of merchandise in Australia.

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And now we have Bluey, an Australian animated television series for preschool children that premiered on ABC Kids on 1 October 2018.

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The series is set in tropical Queensland and follows a humanised family of Blue Heeler dogs including Bluey, who is characterised by her abundance of energy, imagination and curiosity at the world, her father, Bandit; mother, Chilli; and younger sister, Bingo, who regularly joins Bluey on adventures as the pair embark on imaginative play together.

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The Bluey TV series is the most watched children’s TV show on ABC Kids and has the honour of being the most streamed program on ABC’s iView with an extraordinary 23 million streams and counting.

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Bluey has already been commissioned for a second series and is going to be a merchandising megahit with pent-up demand for Bluey products in the Australian market at an absolute frenzy.

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The release of Bluey merchandise is being co-ordinated

by BBC Worldwide for the second half of 2019 and it is going to go gangbusters - get on board if you can.

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ESL Gaming ESL is the World’s Largest Gaming Company ESL was founded in 2000 and now, 19 years later, is an industry leader across many online and offline competitions. With 242 million fans globally and 8.4 million playing members, ESL is evidence of the power and strength of esports. The Bugg Report recently had the chance to speak to Alex Blaikie from ESL in Sydney Australia. We asked Alex some questions about esports and ESL Gaming to learn more about what this industry is all about.

About ESL & the Esports Industry

Esports as a Competition

Thank you for speaking to The Bugg Report Alex. For those who don’t know, can you provide us with an overview of ESL and what you do from an overall business perspective in the esports arena?

Can you offer an insight into how ESL takes a game and then turns it into a worldwide competition through your online and offline competitions?

Thanks Matt. At ESL, we operate a number of video game leagues and competitions all over the world, such as the Intel® Extreme Masters, ESL One, ESL National Championships and Melbourne Esports Open, as well as grassroots amateur cups, leagues and matchmaking systems. As a business, we provide services to clients in the broader gaming, technology and event management space, as well as sell advertising & sponsorships on our ESL-owned products, in a model that follows traditional sports media quite closely.

Essentially, if a client (often publisher) comes to us wanting to run a custom esports league or program – we can handle that end-to-end for them.

Our ethos at ESL is to create a world where everyone can be someone – basically, the zero-to-hero mentality, where a player can start off competing in one of our Open competitions on our grassroots tournament platform, ESL Play, gain experience and eventually qualify into one of our Challenger competitions like the ESL AU & NZ National Championships, and finally move through the new pathways we’re creating into our global mega-events, like IEM Sydney. This year’s IEM Sydney is actually the first time we’ve had a qualification spot directly allocated to our national championships program – a big win for local teams who now get the chance to shine on a global stage.

The Esports Audience & Event Calendar

As a global leader in esports, where do you see the industry heading given its rapid growth in popularity?

The short answer is: up. We’ve seen reports from the likes of Newzoo predicting massive growth in the sector, and now that we’re seeing multinational brands like Pepsico, DHL and Mercedes-Benz getting involved in ESL-owned products, that’s starting to become a reality.

www.eslgaming.com 28 2019 Mid Year Toy Preview

How many fans does esports currently have globally and what is the key demographic for esports in terms of age and location?

Speaking from an ESL perspective, our largest global event – IEM Katowice – this year saw 230,000,000 unique viewers across the world, predominantly in the late teen-early 20’s demographic. Location always varies per-game, we see South-East Asia as a bigger market for Mobile esports, vs. Australia where we have a large audience playing on PC.

I believe that you have a number of events coming up including Mumbai, Sydney and Birmingham. Can you provide with a brief a snapshot of what your event calendar looks like for 2019?

Very busy! We recently had a number of our staff travel to ESL One Mumbai, now it’s full steam ahead for Intel Extreme Masters Sydney this year.

Outside of that, we have multiple live broadcasts running each week locally – and definitely enough events to put our three studios to use. We’ve also just announced the Melbourne Esports Open for 2019, that’s coming back this August 31 – September 1, and expanding to Melbourne Park.

ESL Content & Highlights You have many content types in your line-up, can you elaborate on what types of content ESL offers?

Our biggest content offering to our fans is via online broadcast. Recently, IEM Katowice viewers consumed 157 million hours of content that we broadcast,

comprising of more than 500 live hours of content in 21 different languages. One of the great things about being in the gaming space is that it really is global – whether you’re playing a game like Counter-Strike in Australia or Norway, you can still tune into one of our broadcasts and appreciate that you’re watching the best players in the world, playing your favourite game.

Although it is still early in 2019, what are some highlights from late 2018 all the way up until now?

Where to start! Late last year we launched the Melbourne Esports Open, which took place at Melbourne & Olympic Parks, and featured over 20 AAA titles across multiple tournaments. MEO was a fantastic first event and proved that local content can have a massive audience, with over 12,000 fans attending and content generating 12 million impressions on social media. So far this year, the highlight has probably been the Pokémon Oceania International Championships – the region’s biggest Pokémon event that we ran at MCEC this February, where almost 1,000 players competed over 3 days on a massive stage, with 3 concurrent broadcasts going out online.

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ESL Merchandise & Licensing

ESL Social Media

I notice you have a style guide on your website which is nice. Do you get involved in ESL branded merchandise?

Your social media presence is very strong, do you use social media as a driver for your business or is it more of a value-add which you use to supplement your core media and entertainment ventures?

Absolutely! We have the ESL Shop which you can view at shop.eslgaming.com – which features a number of ESL products that we develop in-house. Locally, we operate pop-up stores at our events like IEM or Melbourne Esports Open to sell our merchandise, as well as official merchandise from the professional teams competing in our tournaments.

From a Licensing point-of-view, do you offer the ability for companies to use the ESL branding and style guide to develop specific products which are appropriate for the esports arena?

Last year we announced the first ever ESL co-branded clothing collection with SNIPES, a German streetwear and sneaker chain, which really hit home with our audience. Plantronics is another partner that comes to mind with their ESL-branded line of RIG headphones, amongst others. When companies want to associate themselves with esports – our brand is synonymous with the term, and we’re always exploring new partnership opportunities that make sense in the space.

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Social media is at the core of a lot of what we do at ESL. While there’s still some areas we’re learning from traditional sports, our social content & presence is second-to-none in the space, with many of our ESL game accounts having an incredible engagement and following, even when compared to first-party channels.

With a young, tech-savvy audience, we find that social media is also the primary driver of attendees to our mega-events globally, taking the place of more traditional marketing channels.

Licensing Expo Photo Tour

2019 EDITION

Licensing Expo Photo Tour

Welcome to Licensing Expo 2019

The Media Zone with The Bugg Report on display

Magazines from around the world on display at the Licensing Expo Media Zone

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Licensing Expo Photo Tour

Some legendary Stan Lee products on display

The 2019 Bravado Stand at Licensing Expo

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Licensing Expo Photo Tour

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Licensing Expo Photo Tour

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Joins the Circus!

THE SHOW OPENS SEPTEMBER 2019

PROUDLY PRESENTED BY

AUSTRALIA’S ENTERTAINMENT LEADERS

SESAME

STREET

Showtime Attractions together with Silvers Circus are proud to present Sesame Street Circus Spectacular!

A great opportunity to see your favourite Sesame Street characters live and see amazing jaw dropping acts that will provide entertainment for the whole family.

Please visit us online: www.showtimeattractions.com.au for all upcoming show locations and dates.

TM and © 2019 Sesame Workshop.

AUSTRALIAN STATE OFFICES

CHINA OFFICE

VIC +61 3 9770 8000 | NSW +61 2 9607 6333 QLD +61 7 5519 4521 | WA +61 408 273 010 | SA +61 417 004 894

Room 2511, 25th Floor Oriental Plaza, 1072 Jianshe Road Luohu Shenzhen, China

Visit us onlne: www.showtimeattractions.com.au

Showtime Attractions to Bring Sesame Street to Life in New Circus Spectacular We Interview Keith Brown from Showtime Attractions Since opening the doors in 1995, Keith Brown and his team at Showtime Attractions have developed into a world-class live events company, offering the best of the best in licensed characters, premium activations, entertainment, touring shows, seasonal activations and amusements. The brands that Showtime Attractions have worked with over their 20+ year journey include Bananas in Pyjamas, Dora the Explorer, Shrek, Trolls and Peter Rabbit, where they won the award for ‘events product or campaign of the year’ at the 2018 LIMA Australia & New Zealand Licensing Awards. Now in September of 2019, Showtime Attractions will bring what is perhaps their most ambitious and spectacular live event to Australia & New Zealand with their all-new Sesame Street Live Circus Tour, which will open in Melbourne.

Indeed, Sesame Street is joining the circus along with a brand new team which will travel around Australia to perform at live shows in a state-of-the-art circus tent developed and built out of Italy. These Sesame Street Live Circus shows will offer 1000 seats per show and ticketing will be handled by Ticketmaster.

With a projected national audience of over 500,000 attending the 90 minute shows throughout the two year tour, it will certainly be something not to be missed across Australia & New Zealand and perhaps even Asia in the future. As a much-loved brand all around the world, Sesame Street’s famous characters will all be in attendance including Elmo, Cookie Monster, Abby Cadabby, Bert, Ernie and Super Grover. In addition to the Sesame Street characters, the events will include acts from Argentina, Switzerland, Germany, Hungary, Brazil, Morocco and more. The music for the show was written locally in Australia and Showtime Attractions have delivered that to Sesame Street which will then be recorded with the actual voices from each character. Not only will the show itself be spectacular, but everything has been thought through carefully including the light boxes at the entry to the show, where children can learn how to draw the Sesame Street characters whilst they wait in line to enter the show. There will also be ‘Elmo’s World’ at the show entrance which is a ball-pit where kids can play.

Speaking to Keith, it is easy to see how exciting this project is for Showtime Attractions and how new and innovative it really is. Says Keith, “We go onto set from Monday the 20th of May onwards to start recording with the whole crew from Sesame Street, where the voices will be recorded on set in New York. There has been so much work put into the theming of the show and making sure that each characters personality is matched to their role in the show. For example we needed to make sure that

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Super Grover was part of something daring, that Elmo would be in a happy environment and that Cookie Monster would be eating. We can also announce that Big Bird will appear in the show and that the children will have the chance to meet Big Bird before, during the intervals and after the show. We are taking Sesame Street to households, not just in cities, but all over the country in our 1000 seat traveling theatre!”

TM and © 2019 Sesame Workshop.

Not only does this activation bring an amazing live show to audiences across Australia & New Zealand, it also gives the industry an exciting opportunity to partner with Showtime Attractions to bring fantastic products to the children. In this era where retail is in a constant state of change and where opportunities can be hard to come by, Showtime Attractions is offering a great platform for companies working with the Sesame Street brand to be involved to further enhance the live shows and their own businesses. Keith explains, “We’re willing to work with other licensees. We could develop our own product but why reinvent the wheel? We are going to be buying volume so we are looking at how we can work with partners. We want to work in collaboration with licensees to drive sales in this hard economy in ways which do not hurt existing retail platforms but rather offer another avenue to market with products sold at our live shows and event merchandise.

Says Keith: “This is our largest talking point here, that people are going to take away with them memories of an amazing experience and their voice can then drive further tickets sales to our shows, which we believe will also translate into retail sales as well.”

We want to make sure that everyone who attends the show can afford to purchase a piece of Sesame Street memorabilia that they can take home to remind them of the show and that they were part of the show.” The other opportunity that is worth mentioning is the official program which will be released in January 2020 and will offer a great platform for all things Sesame Street. Partners can work with Showtime Attractions via their very own pages, something Ticketmaster have already signed-up for to market their products not only at the shows but also via traditional retail channels all to a captive audience of Sesame Street fans in excess of 500,000!

BBC Studios and Disney Strike Global Broadcast Deal for Bluey with Moose Toys Named as Global Master Toy Partner Bluey is set to launch on a global stage as BBC Studios and Disney announce that the first two series will premiere internationally on Disney Junior from late 2019 and the upcoming streaming service Disney+ in all territories outside Australia, New Zealand and Greater China including Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan.

Australian company Moose Toys will be the global master toy partner.

Jane Gould, Senior Vice President, Consumer Insights and Programming Strategy, Disney Channels Worldwide said; “The power of family is a cornerstone of Disney storytelling, and the warmth and authenticity of Bluey’s family dynamic is what first captured our interest in the show. Bluey reminds us all of our own families, and it plays out the small but emotionally epic dramas of day-to-day life in surprising, heartfelt and very funny ways that will engage children and parents alike. We’re excited to introduce Bluey and her family to our audiences across the world on our multiple platforms.”

Charlie Aspinwall, Executive Producer for programme makers Ludo Studio said: “Dreams do come true.

Partnering with Disney and Moose Toys is everything we hoped for Bluey and way more. We can’t wait for kids and families around the world to fall in love with this special show.”

Henrietta Hurford-Jones, Director of Children’s Content at BBC Studios said: “Bluey has bowled people over with its warmth, energy and humour. The way the show celebrates brilliantly observed moments of contemporary family life, role play and imagination has struck a chord with everyone who has watched the first series on the ABC and I can’t wait for Bluey and family to meet the rest of the world.”

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Melbourne-based Moose Toys will be the global master toy partner for all territories excluding Asia. The first range of toys will launch in Australian stores in time for Christmas 2019 and will be available in the US and other regions in 2020.

Menal McGrath, Vice President, Global Licensing at Moose Toys, said: “The reception for Bluey in Australia has been phenomenal and we believe Bluey has what it takes to be a major hit in the pre-school aisle around the world.

Bluey’s quirky and heartwarming stories align perfectly with Moose Toys’ core values to make kids happy.”

Rikesh Desai, Licensing Director, Consumer Products at BBC Studios, said: “This is a hugely exciting deal for us, and we’re delighted to be working with Moose Toys to bring Bluey to fans across the world. Moose Toys’ Australian roots and fantastic slate make them the perfect partner in bringing this Blue Heeler pup to kids everywhere.”

Dustin Lockett, Commercial Director, BBC Studios ANZ, “We are excited to be the lead market for Bluey globally and the partnership with Australian company Moose Toys is a perfect fit. Given the remarkable success of Bluey so far on screens the next step is to extend the brand off-air and the toy partnership is a key component of this and our broader licensing strategy.”

Created by Joe Brumm, Bluey follows the adventures of a lovable and inexhaustible six-year- old Blue Heeler puppy who lives with her dad, mum and four-year- old little sister, Bingo. In every episode, Bluey uses her limitless Blue Heeler energy to play elaborate games that unfold in unpredictable and hilarious ways bringing her family and the whole neighbourhood into her world of fun.

A smash hit with families, Bluey is the most watched series ever on ABC iview with over 90 million plays* and is currently the #1 children’s series of 2019 on metro broadcast television in Australia**. Bluey has also topped the Australian iTunes Kids Chart with the series peaking at #1 and consistently remaining in the Top 5.

Bluey is produced by the Emmy® award-winning Ludo Studio for ABC KIDS and is co-commissioned by ABC Children’s and BBC Studios. Both series received production support from the Australian Government through Screen Australia, and Queensland Government through Screen Queensland.

BBC Studios and ABC Children’s recently announced a second series commission for Bluey, due to make its television debut on ABC KIDS and ABC KIDS iview in 2020.

* Source: Webtrends, OzTAM VPM ‘Begin Event’ data. ** Source: OzTAM (5 City Metro) Consolidated

2019 Mid Year Toy Preview

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The Recorrection of Retail Article by Tony Bugg, Bugg Marketing Solutions/Licensing International For years Kmart, Target and Big W were the destination for toys. Toys ‘R’ Us (TRU) offered a breadth of range and opportunity whislt both Myer and David Jones offered theatre and a unique shopping experience. The wind of change has well and truly taken its toll on the bricks and mortar retail architecture here in Australia. The good news is that consumers of toys will always continue to purchase toys. The challenge for our industry is how do we re-invent a new and sustainable distribution model to make sure our children have access to play. It is no secret that Australia along with the US and Canada is disproportionately represented by retail outlets in relation to population and consumer demand. With a population of 23 million people it was inevitable that this market correction would unfold. It is becoming abundantly clear that the eventual new toy distribution model will be a blend of bricks and mortar retailers using technology and theatre and online platforms offering sophisticated choice options coupled with same day (or even quicker) delivery models to the consumer. Our on-going research around the world suggests that in North America Walmart and Amazon are now the dominant retail platforms for toys. In the UK a similar trend has emerged with Amazon, Argos and Smyth’s toys taking up a large slice of the market. Amazon has recently announced new bricks and mortar stores in the UK. For Australia, Big W is the most committed mass retailer to toys with their mid year sale. This will see some 300 stores devoted to a huge range of toys. From a specialty standpoint, Toyworld, Kidstuff and Toymate have around 200 stores, which is ample for them to take a position of range, experience and value for money.

Market leadership in the online world sits with Toy Universe along with Catch of the Day and Kogon. Once Amazon bed down their business and establish their Prime service and same day delivery, there is no doubt they will also take market share. It is interesting to note that Wesfarmers has recently purchased Catch of the Day. Clearly they see that online is important. This will give them access to an advanced and tech based platform that they can interface with their bricks and

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mortar stores. Perfect for ‘click and collect’. It is also defining that the demise of TRU was largely due to it loosing influence in a changing market. Re-invention is not negotiable in toys. This new and emerging market is also a result of a shifting consumer base, with Millennials and the Z generation continuing to grow significantly.

These new consumers are both tech savvy and also care about things like sustainability, the environment and quality. Toy companies and retailers must listen carefully to these new shoppers.

There is also another emerging trend as shelf space options become limited. Many global brands are now adopting the strategy of opening up their own retail shop fronts. The tradition of working with mixed category retailers significantly limits the SKU counts and range opportunity in store. A dedicated shop front allows for a full range exposure, in store experience, light, sound and emerges the consumer deep into the brand. Australia has always been an innovator in toys. As a means of moving with the market we see Moose Toys recently being appointed as the master toy partner for Bluey (the emerging pre-school smash hit) also Headstart International and Hunter products have embraced the international markets as a way of building scale and volume. There is no doubt that we will figure this new world out. It may take a little time, however you can be sure there will be many more great toy concepts for future generations of children.

H O ME OF A US TRA L IA’S O RI GI N AL N ATU R A L T EE TH I NG TOY A ND EDU CAT IO NA L TOY S To explore global distribution and retail opportunities please contact: Sandra Ebbott sandra@mizziethekangaroo.com www.mizziethekangaroo.com

Squatter Game Promotions Pty Ltd Richard Lloyd e: richard@squatter.com.au m: +61 (0) 419 135 581 squatter.com.au

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The Brand Licensing & Market Specialists As the leading independent Brand Licensing Specialists & Market Intelligence Agency in the business, we pride ourselves on being connected to Brands, Agencies, Retail and emerging trends and we are the go-to organisation to provide you with balanced, researched and up-to-date market intelligence.

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Licensing International Awards Australia & New Zealand October 31st, 2019 Leonda by the Yarra in Melbourne, Australia

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