111 Toy Column - USE.qxp_NEW LSB 2008 GRID 18/09/2018 08:35 Page 111
TOY SECTOR VIEWPOINT
With movies and big TV shows typically driving the licensed side of the toy business, the past couple of years have seen a shift with toy content itself becoming licences. Reacting quickly to collectable crazes and making the most of consumer demand, is something the toy industry does very well, but how do you know which one to back? The Entertainer’s head of marketing and licensing, Rebecca Naish tells us more.
Inset: A craze can help make or break a year, says The Entertainer’s Rebecca Naish.
Let’s go craze-y I
and Moshi Monsters for example, and more ’ve worked in toys and licensing since 2006, and recently Minecraft. Now we all wait in anticipation over that time I have seen many crazes and for Fortnite and see how we can try and bring trends come and go. Who remembers Gogo some of the gaming spend into the toy market. Crazy Bones? Moshi Monsters? Yoyos? Loom The last ‘craze’ within toys from the entertainment Bands? Frozen? Finger Spinners? Slime? Now we world was PAW Patrol and to an extent PJ Masks. are in the midst of the L.O.L. Surprise phenomenon. Movies, however, haven’t been delivering the sales But how do we spot the next craze? Well, I at retail like they used to. I think we are all hoping suppose that’s the million dollar question. that 2019 will be different with a stronger movie It’s been a relatively quiet year for toy sales being slate – but only time will tell. generated from the movie and entertainment In the toy industry we all live for the next craze. properties. Instead, all the buzz and top new Those who are nimble, take a few risks and are properties have been generated from within the quick to seize the opportunity will win. At The toy world - for example, L.O.L. Surprise, Pikmi Pops, Entertainer we have seen success because we can Squishies and Smooshy Mushy. react quickly and adjust our plans and we have Even when you look back over the last few reaped the benefits of this. We are proactive in Christmases, the big toys such as Hatchimals, trying to spot the next trend. Sometimes we are Furby, Fingerlings and L.O.L. all started life within bang on and sometimes we aren’t. I say this as the toy industry. They were quickly licensed and we are still sat on a lot of loom stock and the ranges expanded to capitalise on the Olympic plush… opportunity. Now L.O.L. Surprise is fully At the same time you need to be licensed for this Christmas it will be building a strong and stable business - a really interesting to see how the core toy craze can help make or range fares as it will be break a year, but you competing for the need to remain consumer spend focused on the core on L.O.L. business and keep We need to keep a firm working to make sure eye on the gaming you have a business world, too, keeping once the craze track on where the has passed. new next big thing Basically don’t will come from. put all your eggs in Think back to Above: Pikmi Pops is just one of the collectable crazes lighting up the toy one basket. Club Penguin space and transferring into licensing.
LICENSING SOURCE BOOK EUROPE 2018
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