Industry Moves Beverley Cochrane
8th Wonder bolsters team with two new appointments
Plush and wooden toy specialist 8th Wonder has bolstered its team with the appointment of two new members. The company has welcomed Claire Olewnik as senior commercial & business development manager while Beverley Cochrane has joined as a national account manager. Claire brings with her a wealth of knowledge and experience having worked within the toy industry for 15 years. Claire’s previous senior roles at Mothercare and Mookie Toys have equipped her with many skills in sales Claire Olewnik and brand development. She said: “With 8th Wonder’s extensive licence portfolio, it is extremely exciting to be a part of this company and oversee 8th Wonder’s business expansion.” Beverley also brings 15 years’ experience working with licensed and wooden toys from her previous roles at Rainbow Design and Orange Tree Toys as sales manager, and said she is “thrilled to join 8th Wonder and work towards further developing the already fast-growing business”. Commenting on the appointments, managing director Louise Tyrer said: “We are delighted to welcome Claire and Bev to the team. Their wealth of experience, combined with our fantastic team, will be a great asset to the business at this time when we are experiencing such significant growth.”
Bandai UK welcomes new commercial manager Bandai UK has appointed Leanne Royce as commercial manager of its Collector and Hobby Channel. The new position has been created to support the exponential growth of the division, a category that currently continues to flourish within the toy industry. Nic Aldridge, MD, Bandai UK, commented: “We are thrilled to welcome Leanne to the UK business, and to do so at such an exciting time in Bandai’s development as we look to unlock previously unrealised product categories from our parent company in Japan which represent a host of new opportunities for the UK market. This is while continuing to develop our already incredibly successful Collector and Hobby business. We’ll have some extremely exciting announcements to make as we progress through the year which Leanne and her team will be responsible for spearheading as we bring them to market.” With 20 years’ experience in the industry, following roles at Tomy, Flair and most recently Wow! Stuff, Leanne will be responsible for channel and marketing strategies, range planning and distribution development. Bandai UK is uniquely positioned to grow the collector category thanks to its strength and depth of product deriving from homegrown IP development, alongside its distribution lines of brands such as McFarlane Action Figures. Leanne will start her new role at Bandai on 1st August. Leanne added: “My time in the toy industry began over 20 years ago at Tomy, whilst completing my Law degree. It’s true what they say, that once you’re in you never leave. My time at Tomy, Flair and Wow! Stuff has given me amazing experience that has shaped my career today, and Bandai is the perfect next step. It is such an exciting time to be joining the company; especially in the collector category which is going from strength to strength. I am looking forward to fully immersing myself in the collector world and bringing all my experience and passion to continue driving it to the next level.”
Caroline Taylor strengthens John Adams’ sales team as national account manager According to the company, the appointment of Caroline as national account manager will help strengthen the sales team across all John Adams’ key brands, as well as new launches. Caroline joins John Adams Leisure from Epoch, where she worked as a field sales manager and within other sales roles for seven years. John Adams’ group sales director, Bruno Gallone, commented: “We’re thrilled to welcome Caroline to the team. Caroline has over 15 years’ worth of experience in the toy industry and heaps of enthusiasm, which will be instrumental in driving and achieving continued growth.”
Gabe Hicks joins Steamforged Games as senior game designer As senior game designer at Steamforged Games, Gabe will be working on developing new systems and products in the company’s range of own IP and roster of video game licensed games. Gabe is an innovative designer and respected personality in the tabletop games industry and his work includes the best-selling Class Modifier Module, the Essence system design for Renegade Games, and contributions to Flames of Freedom from Andrew McMeel Publishing, Pathfinder from Paizo Publishing and Kobold Press’ Tome of Heroes. Alongside his design work, he is recognised for his successful streaming career, working with Critical Role among many others. Mat Hart, chief creative officer at Steamforged Games, said: “At SFG, we want to work with the best talent in the industry, and Gabe is exactly that. He’s a brilliant designer and a great person, and together we are going to create some truly amazing gaming experiences.” Gabe will be working on developing new systems, and building products in the company’s range of own IP and roster of AAA tier video game licensed games. Gabe commented: “I’m so pumped to join the Steamforged team, especially with the launch of Epic Encounters: Local Legends. These worlds are just getting started and I’m happy to be a part of it.”
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