9 minute read
Industry Moves
Hunter Price announces senior leadership restructure
Hunter Price International has announced its most significant structure change since the business was founded 15 years ago, to underpin the next phase of its growth strategy.
Allana Holmes, who has been with the company for nearly three years as Sales director for the home & lifestyle division, will take on the role of commercial director from this month. Allana will spearhead Hunter Price’s strategic vision, as it looks to continue its recent successes.
As part of company’s evolvement, co-founders Jeremy Winburn and Josh Eden will become co-CEOs. Jeremy, the former commercial director, will work closely with Allana across all commercial departments, while leading Hunter Price’s global growth ambitions across Europe and the US. Under his new role, Josh Eden will continue to oversee and lead the group’s UK and international operations and financial activities as it expands into new territories across the globe.
Allana has been instrumental in transforming Hunter Price’s licensed offer. In 2023, she was shortlisted in License Global’s The Influentials report as one of the leading ‘Disruptors’ within licensing, acknowledging her dedication and commitment to inspiring the industry’s community.
Allana said: “Over the past two years, we’ve honed our overall market offer and played to our strengths, with the aim of future-proofing the business for the long term. I believe our relentless customer-first approach sets us apart, supporting and sustaining our partnerships with a completing, not competing, mindset. We work alongside our customers as an extension of their teams to provide everything from design-led cross category solutions to creative campaigns, which adds real value to their businesses.”
Jazwares bolsters UK leadership team
Jazwares is bolstering the strength of its UK leadership team, elevating Lucy Whitamore to Sales director, UK and Adelle Engelbrecht to Operations director, UK.
Since joining Jazwares from Tesco in 2019, Lucy has proven herself as a talented and commercially astute rising star. In her new role, Lucy will lead the UK and Ireland sales team for all Jazwares brands, shaping and delivering the sales strategy to achieve the company’s regional growth plans. Lucy commented: “It’s a real pleasure to lead such an incredible team, and I look forward to driving our continued success and growth in 2024.”
Adelle joined Jazwares in 2020 and has been a pivotal part of the company’s success during a period of rapid growth. As Operations director, Adelle will lead the customer operations, warehouse and inbound/outbound logistic teams, focusing on strategic growth and implementation of process improvements to maximise output and efficiencies. Adelle said: “I’m delighted to continue my journey at Jazwares, building on past successes, with an incredible team supporting me. Over the last few years, we’ve doubled our UK team and seen phenomenal success across our brands whilst building strong and valued partnerships across all business areas. I’m looking forward to continuing this trend into 2024 and beyond.”
Commenting on the promotions, Holly Oldham, managing director of UK & European distributors, added: “As we continue our growth journey in the UK, we are scaling up, and I can’t think of two better people to take the helm than Lucy and Adelle. Both are passionate, highly motivated and skilful leaders who have contributed immensely to the business’s success.”
Heathside makes senior hires for Master Replicas and Khadou brands
Heathside has announced Ben Robinson as the new head of Brand for Master Replicas. The recently established position will expand on Master Replicas’ vision to redefine high-end collections within the popculture space.
The company says Ben’s extensive background in licensed products will help with the successes that Master Replicas has experienced since its re-launch last year. Ben previously worked at Eaglemoss and, during his 12-year tenure, rose to the position of director of Licensed Product. At Heathside, he will lead commercial activities using his extensive network and passion for high end collectibles to drive innovative collaborations and elevate existing IP.
Ben commented: “I’m delighted to be joining Master Replicas. We’ve got some exciting plans to grow the collectibles sector by tapping into passionate and demanding fanbases, which have been underserved by the current market. There are real opportunities to do something new and different here, and it’s going to be an exciting time.”
Heathside has also welcomed Markus Bhatia as the new commercial manager for Khadou, in a move that once again emphasises the company’s evolution and ambition.
Markus was most recently Buying director at THG, responsible for the Zavvi brand. Prior to that, he has held various commercial roles within Virgin Retail UK and Europe. Markus brings a wealth of expertise to further cement Khadou’s position within the toy and collectibles market, and his understanding of pop culture products, coupled with positioning new and existing brands in the market, aligns well with Heathside’s overarching goals.
Markus said: “I am delighted to be joining the team here at Heathside. Khadou continues to expand its portfolio across many exciting franchises, and I will be supporting the team in its continued growth. I look forward to working with all of our existing partners and establishing new ones that will secure Khadou’s ongoing ambition to be the centrepiece within the pop culture arena.”
Pophouse reinforces senior team ahead of pivotal year
Pophouse Entertainment Group, the Swedish entertainment company renowned for its development of brand-building music enterprises including Abba Voyage and the forthcoming Kiss avatar show, has announced six new senior hires:
COO Linda Höljö has extensive experience in finance, strategic planning and business development, and her skillset will contribute to the company’s ongoing success in building entertainment brands and creating cutting-edge content and experiences. Before joining Pophouse Entertainment, Linda served as CFO of Proact IT Group. She has also held the roles at Quant Service, Ericsson, The Wallenberg Foundations and Investor AB.
Mamma Mia! The Party managing director Sophie Arendt brings a wealth of experience from various leading roles within the entertainment industry, such as general manager at Disney Theatrical Group. With a proven track record of implementing and building high-performing entertainment initiatives, Sophie is well-equipped to spearhead Mamma Mia! The Party’s future endeavours.
Natalia Fontecha, head of Capital Raising and IR, joined Pophouse in 2023 and brings decades of experience. She was most recently managing director of Client and Product Solutions at Onex and has worked at many prestigious companies across sectors and industries.
Sophie McKibbin, head of Business and Legal Affairs joins from Warner Bros, where she worked most recently as director, Legal & Business Affairs for Theatrical Marketing. Her time at Warner included the record-breaking Barbie promotional campaign.
Commercial director Jon Spalding was most recently at Mattel, where he was head of UK Consumer Products & Hardlines EMEA, successfully overseeing programmes for the Barbie Movie. Before Mattel, Jon worked at NBCUniversal, Disney and Entertainment UK, on hardlines, toys and licensing and on franchises including Jurassic World, Minions, Star Wars, Frozen and Marvel.
Ryan Amstad, head of New Production Development, has an extensive background as a creative producer in the music, live entertainment and location-based entertainment space. He has worked on live shows with a range of top international pop stars, and for global brands such as Nickelodeon, Warner Bros, Hasbro and Universal Creative.
Rebecca Jenkins named Paramount VP of Consumer Products
Rebecca Jenkins has been named the vice president of Consumer Products for Paramount Global, in charge of the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and Israel.
Rebecca has been with Paramount for five years in roles of increasing responsibility for licensing and retail, and has a strong track record of landing high-profile, global commercial partnerships, most recently including Lush x SpongeBob SquarePants and Calm x Paw Patrol. Already overseeing Australia, New Zealand and Israel, she will assume leadership of the UK and Ireland with her new position, overseeing some of the largest and most popular entertainment franchises in the world.
“Rebecca is highly strategic, data-driven and creative, leveraging her experience and market insights to secure new business opportunities,” said Jamie. “She has always been a fantastic ambassador for Paramount’s Consumer Products organisation, and I’m thrilled for her to take on this expanded role where she can further lead these markets to success.”
Prior to joining Paramount, Rebecca worked at companies including Warner Bros. Discovery, Universal and Disney, in a variety of roles with local and international remit, spanning home entertainment, video games and licensing.
Rainbow Designs makes trio of appointments
Rainbow Designs is heading into the new year with new appointments to the team, including the recent arrival of a new Brand manager as well as an expansion of the sales team with the recruitment of two new Area Sales managers.
Zara Hynes joined the team in Q4 2023 and has hit the ground running, developing extensive 2024 brand plans for Rainbow’s Peter Rabbit, Paddington Bear, Disney’s Winnie the Pooh, Mickey Mouse and new Lion King collections amongst other storybook favourites. Zara, who has relocated from Ireland, brings with her six years of brand management experience in the beauty and healthcare sector, and says she is thrilled to be embarking on a new professional adventure in the toy industry.
Rainbow is also strengthening and expanding its successful sales team with the appointment of Helen Covell as Area Sales manager for the Midlands and Laura Price in the new role of Northern Area Sales manager. Helen joins Rainbow with over 21 years’ experience in the gift industry, from both a sales and buying perspective, and Laura brings with her over seven years’ experience with top tier brands, most recently in the greeting card sector.
Zara Grindrod, Sales and Marketing director for Rainbow Designs, commented: “I’m delighted to have Zara join us, she brings with her extensive experience in brand management and is already proving a valuable member of our core team, as she develops some exciting 2024 plans for our best-selling licensed brand collections.
“The appointments of both Helen and Laura are part of our strategic growth plans to better serve our customers throughout the UK and provide great support to independent retailers in key territories. I’m delighted to have both these highly experienced and motivated ladies onboard as we head into the new year.”
