El Ocho updates

After almost 20 years’ experience in Iberia, El Ocho agency continues to increase its portfolio selecting those brands it considers to have big potential to develop into wide licensing programs. El Ocho has always stood out as an agency specialising in preschool brands, positioning itself as the number 1 in Spain and Portugal with brands such as Los Lunnis, Pocoyó, Peppa Pig and PJ Masks.

The agency has currently been appointed as agents for Bluey, owned by the BBC, and Dino Ranch, owned by Boat Rocket. Their goal will be to build a powerful licensing program so that children can enjoy the characters through licensed products. El Ocho not only focuses on children’s brands, but also works with youth and adult targets. Within these sectors they can highlight two anime brands such as Dragon Ball owned by Toei Animation and My Hero Academia, owned by Crunchyroll. Dragon Ball is one of their icons even after almost ten years representing the brand.

Following growth in this anime trend over the last year, My Hero Academia is positioning itself as another key brand. A significant detail that demonstrates this growth and taste for anime is that leading national and international retailers have requested both brands, creating truly attractive and innovative collections. Pull & Bear, Lefties and Zara from Inditex Group this summer launched models for boys, girls and adults with Dragon Ball and continues to increase their collections with new references for FallWinter. Karactermania and Grupo ERIK have developed a great stationery collection with My Hero Academia which will be launched in time for a BTS campaign.

Regarding promotions, El Ocho are currently in conversations with top companies from the food category in Spain to license Dragon Ball on different snacks, water and pastries.

Interview

Pilar Fernández-Vega, Licensing, Marketing & Promotions Director El Ocho Licencias y Promociones

Can you tell us some of the background to El Ocho? When was the company created and why?

El Ocho Licencias y Promociones is a licensing agency with over 20 years of experience. We are positioned as one of the best independent licensing agencies in Iberia, running some of the most success full licensing programs in the market. We put hard work and passion into every licensing program we create. We select, build and develop brands carefully. We look for IPs that add value, we develop them and create a long term licensing strategy based on a steady progress that does not rush products to retail. We transform licenses into evergreen brands that are loved by all. We partner with the best manufacturers to create the best products that offer unique experiences to consumers through brands. We have close relationships with TV broadcasters to have the best programming and create brand awareness engagement. We meet regularly with key category buyers from top retailers in Spain to ensure they are aligned with the brand strategy. We listen to market needs and work closely with the best partners: owners, licensees, retailers, PR agencies, Meet & Greet agencies and TV.

What were the first properties you represented?

The first major preschool brand in our catalogue was Los Lunnis, owned by RTVE. We started working with it in 2003, positioning it as the number one brand in Spain for more than 5 years. As for the young adult target, in 2003 we also represented Mafalda, a publishing brand. After 20 years we continue to work with the main national and international textile retailers (Inditex Group, El Corte Inglés, Carrefour, Alcampo, Tendam, etc). In our early years, we also represented important and wellknown brands such as Pocoyó, Pokémon, Mr. Bean, Shaun the Sheep and many others.

Can you tell us about some of the most successful licensing programs you have organised over the years?

As I mentioned before, and as soon as we started working in our agency, in 2003 RTVE ap-

pointed us as licensing agent for Los Lunnis. It was the nº 1 brand for several years, achieving a very important licensing programme and licensing all the most important product categories. Another great success was Pokémon, positioning it as one of the most important brands of the moment and our agency as number 2 in the European market. We should not forget to mention another great success, Pocoyó, and finally Peppa Pig was the nº1 and still is one of the most important children’s brands in Spain. El Ocho managed Peppa Pig from 2010 to 2020, and we signed more than 100 contracts in Spain and Italy. And finally, one of our greatest success stories is Dragon Ball, a brand that we have been managing since 2015. We currently have more than 30 companies licensing Dragon Ball products.

What makes El Ocho different from other agencies in Iberia?

El Ocho works with each of the brands it represents as if it were the only brand in its catalogue, and this is probably what differentiates us from other agencies. The whole team studies each brand in depth, and from there, we prepare a strategy that we try to fulfil in order to position it in our markets. The agency puts all its efforts into each brand, making it unique and setting achievable and real objectives. Throughout these almost 20 years we have demonstrated our work as an agency by positioning many brands in top positions in the licensing market: Lunnis, Pokémon, Pocoyó, Peppa Pig, PJ Masks, Mafalda, Dragon Ball, MasterChef, etc

Where are you looking to expand? Where will the company grow next?

These are difficult times for the licensing sector, so we must be cautious and measure our steps carefully. Our objectives are to select the best brands, the ones we trust and know we can work on thoroughly in our territory, Iberia, and with our agency team. As long as we select the best brands, the agency will grow exponentially. We just want to focus on the brands we represent and make them powerful and long-lasting, evergreen brands.