Special Feature - Character Options

Pet shop toys

Toy World spoke to Character Option’s marketing manager, Mark Hunt, and The Point 1888’s Gabbi Langdorf about new property Morphle.

Mark, tell us about Morphle – what’s it all about, who is it aimed at and what are its core strengths as a property?

Morphle is a 2D animated comedy, adventure series for kids aged three to six. Available in 12 languages, it teaches lessons about friendship, problemsolving and creativity. Mila's dad runs a magic pet store and has gifted Morphle to his daughter. An energetic little red creature, Morphle can morph into anything: a puppy, a giant truck, a dinosaur or anything that Mila can imagine. Together, the best friends use Mila’s boundless imagination and Morphle’s powers to help the community and have plenty of adventures along the way.

What attracted Character Options to sign the brand?

Morphle is an established brand within the Moonbug portfolio, which is capitalising on changing dynamics in kids’ media by taking IPs and transforming them into global franchises. They had exciting plans to take Morphle to the next level, and we believed we were best placed to create a toy range that supports that growth plan. With a story about a magical friendship that is perfect for pre-schoolers, Morphle has all the attributes we look for in a property and the potential to become a long-term success.

What have the viewing figures been like so far?

We are in a strong position with Morphle. As well as reaching 24m subscribers on YouTube, achieving over 80m views this year in the UK alone, and increasing viewership across the EMEA markets month-by-month, Morphle is also available on the three biggest streaming platforms: Netflix, Prime Video and Apple TV+, ensuring that children can find Morphle on whichever platform they wish. This will be boosted by the launch of Morphle on terrestrial TV this winter, allowing a brand-new audience to follow Mila and Morphle on their adventures.

One of the biggest trends to come out of the pandemic is that children are consuming content in a brand-new way. The rise of streaming means that our previous reliance on TV and prime slots isn't as necessary as it used to be. Moonbug has led the way in providing digital content to children around the world, and retail buyers have recognised that, and responded positively as a result. Terrestrial broadcast is still a huge benefit, and we're delighted that Morphle will be launching on terrestrial TV this winter, to complement the existing strong streaming presence.

How do you see Morphle fitting alongside the more established brands in your pre-school portfolio?

Our pre-school portfolio has a healthy mix of classic and on trend properties: Peppa Pig, Fireman Sam, Ben & Holly’s Little Kingdom, Postman Pat and Teletubbies are all established and have a strong following. They feature characters that resonate with children, as well as storylines and messaging that pre-schoolers really engage with – just like Morphle. Morphle has everything we look for in a pre-school property and we see it fitting seamlessly alongside the other brands and enhancing our overall offering in this category.

How will the initial launch range be structured, and what are your longerterm plans to extend the range?

As the nature of the lead character, Morphle, is to morph into many different things, it offered us so much scope for toy development. The core categories we’ll be launching with are plastic, plush and activity. The range includes highly collectable two-and-a-half-inch moulded figures and mini vehicles, which are scaled for pre-schoolers and designed to encourage imaginative play. Available across a variety of price points, children can collect Mila and Morphle as a Dog, a Cat, a Shark, T-Rex, Race Car, Dumper Truck and more.

A range of soft toys includes an eight-inch talking Morphle featuring authentic Morphle styling - kids can press Morphle’s tummy to hear giggles and speech sound effects. There’s also a Morphle to Orphle Transforming Soft Toy which is reversible, so kids can start with the cute and cuddly red Morphle, then flip it the other way to discover Morphle’s naughty green twin, Orphle.

In terms of activity play, we will also be launching a Morphle Travel Magnetic Scribbler and the Morphle Dough Carry Case. Further development is already underway, which includes extensions to existing categories, including a musical bus and a feature playset for Christmas.

How have you found working with The Point 1888 and Moonbug to develop the toy range?

It’s as though we have worked together for years; in such a short period of time, we’ve developed a real family feel to our way of working. Both teams have vast experience in bringing licensed pre-school brands to retail. With Moonbug, from a product development perspective, we’ve aligned from day one. We both aim to create shows and product ranges that appeal to both kids and parents, and we have fun whilst we do it. It’s been quite magical watching the line progress so quickly, and we are very happy with the result. The team at The Point 1888 is equally ambitious; they have their own way of working that gets the best results for manufacturers like Character Options, and it’s been a real pleasure to formulate a plan together that translates to retailers and consumers.

Gabbi, why does The Point 1888 consider Character Options the right fit for this property?

Quite simply, the company is the best around, and was our number-one choice for Morphle. Some of our team have launched pre-school brands to market with Character Options previously, and we were confident that Character would be the perfect partner to translate the magic, ingenuity, fun and creativity of Morphle into a wonderful toy line. The reality has definitely lived up to the expectation. It's been a pleasure working with them, the Morphle toy line looks brilliant, and we're so excited for it to launch at retail.

CoComelon has been a huge success – what have been the main challenges in launching another pre-school brand at the same time as managing such a runaway hit?

We are proud at The Point to represent many fabulous brands - our brilliant team works hard on securing licensees, retail activations and product development across our whole portfolio, so we are used to managing different brands at the same time. We have had a number of our brands secured and launched on joint space at retail, with fantastic sales for both brands. Additionally, we have been working with our supportive licensor Moonbug for the last year, so have been able to use our experience working with them on CoComelon to plan our launch for Morphle.

What do you feel will stand Morphle out in the pre-school space, both as a programme and as a licence?

Along with an enviable broadcast and streaming presence, Morphle is a series with friendship and teamwork at its heart, appealing to both children and parents alike. Children love the fun, imaginative and child-centred adventures, while parents appreciate the values at the heart of the show - kindness, teamwork and a community spirit. For our licensees and retail partners, the creative opportunities are endless, as Morphle's magical powers allow him to turn into anything that he or Mila can imagine. It is a truly collectible, toyetic property with a huge amount available for customers to enjoy season after season.

How will you be collaborating with Character Options to establish and grow the brand – and what is your long-term aim for Morphle?

We are already working with Character Options on new product development for next year, as well as planning the roll out of the toy range into EMEA for 2022. We will be working closely together on a range of retail activations and marketing initiatives throughout next year, along with our network of sub-agents across EMEA to ensure a strong launch for Morphle in these markets. Our long-term aim is for Morphle to be a top performing pre-school brand across EMEA, year after year. Moonbug continually invests in new content and local language dubs. Along with Character Options, our network of subagents and our licensees, we are confident we have everything in place to achieve this.