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PYRAMID DEBUT PRODUCT AT SPRING SHOWS Pyramid International are proud to be exhibiting again at this year’s Spring Fair and Nuremberg Toy Fair. As always, both shows provides them with
For further information, contact Pyramid on +44 (0)116 284 3640. Or visit them at Nuremberg Toy Fair – Hall 12.0 Stand A-09 Spring Fair - Hall 5 – Stand J66-J71
an excellent opportunity to meet customers and showcase some of their portfolio of new licenses and product ranges. One of these new licenses is the Netflix phenomenon that is Stranger Things. Launched in September last year, Pyramid are thrilled to now be able to present a growing range that includes a doormat, stationery items and heat change and metallic finished mugs. These will sit alongside their range of UK produced everyday mugs, posters and wall art, resulting in an excellent retail prospect that reflects the broad appeal of the show. Pyramid have also developed new collections for the Harry Potter franchise. This refreshed range includes debossed, foil Premium Notebooks for each of the famous houses, an Espresso set inspired by potion bottles and a magical ‘glow in the dark’ Patronus mug.
The company will also display, for the first time, a number of new formats, including tech stickers, luggage tags an eco-friendly travel mug as well as a collection of other pieces. These will be available in 2019 and they believe these products add exciting new depth to their range, providing retailers with even greater selling opportunities. 2019 is certainly looking like a great year for cinema with Pyramid having chosen a few key releases to discuss. Q1 kicks off with Lego Movie 2: The Second Part and How to Train your Dragon:The Hidden World, two popular family franchises.There is also DC’s Shazam which will be hoping to capitalise on the recent success of Aqua man and the Secret Life of Pets 2 to name just a few of the things lined up for 2019. On top of this already impressive slate, Disney are set to have an epic year. From reimaginings of beloved classics Dumbo, Aladdin and The Lion King, epic adventures from Marvel and even the return of modern classics such as Toy Story. Disney are offering something for fans across 2019, creating an impressive prospect. Pyramid are perfectly placed to help retailers capitalise on this fantastic theatrical slate, working on ranges across their product categories, including UK produced, posters and wall art, everyday drinkware and badges as well as accessories, stationery, gifting and feature
mugs produced in more exotic places. Gaming is a hugely popular medium with a highly engaged and enthusiastic community. Games from the big studios often rival Hollywood in terms of budget and new releases, while indie developers have carved themselves a smaller by fiercely loyal fanbase. 2018 saw the continued growth and importance of nostalgia with movies and TV shows such as Guardians of the Galaxy and Stranger Things capitalising on this trend. Gaming has seen similar success, with remasters of 90’s classics Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon performing well at retail; making their addition to Pyramid’s license portfolio an exciting prospect and sit nicely alongside their long-running and hugely successful Nintendo license, specifically 80’s created, Super Mario and The Legend Zelda franchises. Products are now available across these properties. Online gaming is also an area which continues to grow every year and is an important focus for the gaming industry. Gamers who play online, often invest a lot of time into these games, fully immersing themselves in the world and build a connection to the world and its characters. Online success can be seen in the hugely popular online role-playing first-person shooter franchise Destiny and the ever popular Call of Duty franchise both of which Pyramid have in their repertoire.
TOY RANGE FOR SARAH & DUCK BBC Studios has announced a UK deal with 8th Wonder to create wooden and plush toy ranges for the hit CBeebies show Sarah & Duck. Both ranges will launch at retail from Spring/Summer this year. The deal marks the first wooden toy range for Sarah & Duck, and will include wooden dominos, blocks, sound puzzles, a skittles set and a train set. The range will join those currently being created by 8th Wonder for Hey Duggee and Something Special, both due to hit the shelves later this year.The talking
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plush toys being created by 8th Wonder for Sarah & Duck will be the first to launch for the brand since 2014. Julie Kekwick, Senior Licensing Manager at BBC Studios said: “We’re excited to be continuing our partnership with 8th Wonder and creating a beautiful range of toys for Sarah & Duck. The wooden toy range and plush range are fantastic additions to our range of Sarah & Duck toys, and we’re looking forward to launching them later this year”. Gary Tyrer at 8th Wonder Ltd said: “We are delighted to work with BBC Studios on the classic Sarah & Duck
brand, we feel the license is a perfect fit for our wooden and plush toys!” Now in its third series, Sarah & Duck continues to be a great performer on CBeebies, growing on its previous series and winning its timeslot for key audiences. Outside of the UK, key broadcasters for the series are NBC Universal Kids in the USA, BesTV and iQiyi in China, ABC in Australia, KIKA in Germany and Disney Channel in Japan. Sarah & Duck can also be seen live on stage in brand new theatrical adventure Sarah & Duck’s Big Top Birthday, which is currently touring Australia.