Focus On: Licensed Party
Licensed products give people of all ages the opportunity to surround themselves with the world of their favourite characters, with licensed party products making those celebrations extra-special. PPE finds out which characters have made the cut in 2017.
Getting Into
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icensing is huge business right across the globe, with recent studies valuing the international licensed goods market at almost $263bn – and Western Europe alone accounting for around 20% ($52bn) of these sales. Licensed product makes up a significant amount of the costumes, balloons and partyware available and there are plenty of licensors making sure that the classic characters and latest crazes are being well-represented within the market. “We have a long-established licensed portfolio across balloons and party goods, with new characters like Bing alongside evergreen such as Thomas & Friends,” says Mel Beer, Amscan’s licensing director EMEA. “Dress up is now a huge focus for us and has seen extraordinary growth year-on-year.” New licensed dressup from Amscan includes PJ Masks, The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Elmer (ideal for World Book Week 2018) which will sit alongside existing Disney Baby, Trolls, and Barbie costumes. “Paw Patrol continues to perform ahead of our other licensed franchises,” reveals Mel, “so we’ve extended our product offering to include new party accessories. Pokémon and My Little
Pony are also strong sellers and we’ve just refreshed both these party ranges.” Licensed product is also extremely important to Smiffys, where it makes up 15% of the company’s product mix. “Our collection of licensed characters includes a variety of cult classics from Barbie to Hellraiser,” says Sharon Poulter, senior trade marketing manager. “Horror licenses such as Chucky, Michael Myers and Saw obviously perform well during the Halloween season, while evergreen licenses such as Top Gun, Baywatch and Grease generate strong demand throughout the year.” One of the most notable changes in recent years is the growth of Above: These Disney Princess Bubble balloons the children’s licensed from Pioneer Europe category, particularly will never go out of fashion. Left: Creative around the time of Party celebrates the World Book Day; release of Paddington easily the most 2 this November with this great range of cake important season for decorations from sister children’s licensed brand Anniversary House. costume sales. Licensed products are also significant to Pioneer Europe, accounting for a significant share of the business across most of its product categories, from balloons to partyware. “Our strategy has always been to have a mix of evergreen and ontrend licenses,” explained marketing executive Alex
“Licensed product is a big part of the picture for us, especially on tableware. It is always better when there are a few strong licenses available at once and this year has been great for that. We are looking forward to the new Pokemon range and PJ Masks which seems to be really in demand.”
Stuart Wheeler, account manager, Delights Direct
Left: Rubie’s new range of Wonder Woman, Flash, Batman, and Aquaman costumes for both children and adults have launched in advance of the latest Justice League film.
Love. “Classic licenses such as Disney Princesses and Marvel Superheroes never go out of fashion, while more recent hits include Moana and Trolls. In the balloon and partyware market, the majority of sales are aimed at younger target audiences – although of course the parent is buying them – so the designs have to appeal to everyone.” Star Wars has always been a popular license for Pioneer and a brand new range – including a fab Light Side/ Dark Side Qualatex Bubble – has been released for the next movie in the franchise, Star Wars: The Last Jedi, which is hitting cinemas in December. “Licenses are a very important element in the party industry, especially for children. We need to predict which new characters will be popular, which can be difficult – so although it is a very profitable industry, it is important to approach it with caution. As for 2018, there are several popular collections, including Paw Patrol and Minions.”
Krzysztof Malewski, marketing director, Godan Pioneer is also taking advantage of the 2018 movie schedule as new movie Avengers: Infinity War will feature a huge cast of Marvel characters – all of whom feature on Qualatex Bubbles. “There continues to be a never-ending base of new consumers for licensed party products,” says Gemma’s licensing director, Tim Rudd-Clarke. “We have seen great success with several top performing partyware ranges including Peppa Pig and Shopkins. And it looks like our new 2017 licences, PJ Masks and Care Bears, are set to follow this trend.” “From the consumer’s point of view, an off-the-peg, themed party featuring a favourite licensed character is perfect,” he concludes, “and busy parents can be confident that their party will be a success!” Far left: Classic children’s literary character The Very Hungry Caterpillar, from Amscan. Left: Always a popular character for World Book Day, The Cat In The Hat is one of Smiffys’ most successful licenses. SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2017 PROGRESSIVE PARTY EUROPE
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