BLE: Roundtable Seminars, Ink, ‘Oggy,’ Rainbow, ‘Smurfs’

Organizers of Brand Licensing Europe (Oct. 11-13, Olympia, London) announce that for the first time, visitors can take part in a roundtable discussions. Set for Wednesday, Oct. 12 and facilitated by LIMA, the sessions will give tables of 10-12 participants 30 minutes with an industry expert before switching, with enough time to join in three discussions of one’s choice.

Topics will cover: “Ins and outs of celebrity licensing” with Saphia Maxamed (Head of Entertainment Division, Rights Management International), “Is your property ready for licensing?” with Ian Downes (Founder, Start Licensing), “Creating and working with style guides” with Dave Collins (Co-Founder, Power Station Studios), “Revitalising classic brands” with Tim Collins (Director, The Brand Director) and “How to negotiate a licensing deal” with Trevor Jones (Licensing Director, Danilo).

View more program and exhibition highlights and register to attend (for free!) at www.brandlicensing.eu.

In other news:

+     Ink Group (stand C70) is bringing a raft of enchanting, original properties to the show. YouTube and broadcast hit Masha and the Bear (airing on France TV, KiKa, Rai YoYo, Cartoonito, Boing, ABC, Canal Panda, Minimax, Russia 1, SIC and SpaceToon) has recently launched a third season of comical adventures. Mojicons is a new show that goes behind-the-screens with emoticons on a quest to restore order to their digital world. Zafari, created by David Dozoretz, is about a group of animal friends magically imbued with unique patterns and characteristics — presold to France TV, Lagardere TIJI, SRC Radio Canada and SpaceToon; NBCU has picked up global distribution rights.

+     Rainbow (stand C10) will present its hottest new properties, including live-action offering Maggie & Bianca Fashion Friends and two magical animated properties. Regal Academy centers on Rose Cinderella, granddaughter of Cinderella, who enrolls at a special school for fairytale characters’ descendents. World of Winx sees the Winx fairies travel to Earth as scouts for a talent show, only to uncover a strange kidnapping plot which they must go undercover to expose, saving the world’s gifted children from the Talent Thief.

+     Rocket Licensing has announced a raft of new partners for Smurfs: The Lost Village (Sony Pictures Animation, March 31, 2017) in the UK ahead of BLE. Representing the film on behalf of brand owner I.M.P.S., Rocket has inked deals with Aykroyd & TDP (kids’ nightwear), Fashion UK (kids’ day- & swimwear), Inphase (car accessories) and PMS International (gifts, stationery, toys). For the classic Smurfs brand, the impressive partner list has been bolstered with Casa Chicos (babywear), Trademark (adult t-shirts) and Somerbond (adult nightwear & underwear). Movie merch will launch in Q1 2017, complementing new ranges from master toy partner Jakks Pacific.

+     Xilam has launched a third wave of collectible Oggy & The Cockroaches figurines with Gedis Newsstand in Italy. The partnership was originally brokered in 2015 by licensing agent Discovery, with more than 800,000 units sold since. The figures, produced by Grani Partners for Gedis, are so popular that a fourth collection is already in development. Oggy broadcasts on K2 and Frisbee in Italy, where it also has a growing consumer products range across all major categories, including toys.