Category Archives: People

The LEGO Foundation and KIRKBI offer $15.7m of support to children in Haiti and Afghanistan

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The LEGO Foundation and the LEGO Group’s owners, KIRKBI have offered up 100 million Danish Kroner – the equivalent to $15.7m – to support vulnerable children in Haiti and Afghanistan with partners Unicef, the UN Refugee Agency, and Education Cannot Wait.

Through the pledge, 30 million DKK will go to UNHCR, 20 million DKK to Unicef, and 35 million DKK to Education Cannot Wait. The remaining 15 million DKK will be distributed in due course as the needs of the emergencies unfold.

“The humanitarian crises that are happening in Haiti and Afghanistan are unimaginable and only intensified by the COVID-19 pandemic. Both require a response that focuses attention on the immediate and long-term impacts,” said Thomas Kirk Kristiansen, chair of the governing board, The LEGO Foundation, and fourth generation representative of the LEGO owner family.

“KIRKBI and the LEGO Foundation, as the owners of the LEGO Group, have an immense opportunity to respond to the crises. With the grant, we hope to take a targeted approach to support the needs of the people of Haiti and Afghanistan – not least the children who are in a urgent need of protection assistance.”

Before the current political crisis, almost half the population of Afghanistan – 18.4 million people (8.2 million children) – were in need of humanitarian and protection assistance. Since May 2021, over 500,000 people have been displaced, and the rights of women, families and children are gravely endangered.

According to the National Statistics and Information Authority (NSIA), Afghanistan has one of the youngest and fastest growing populations in the world, with 46 per cent of the population (11.7 million children) under 15 years old.

Those who have fled the crisis require immediate and ongoing support, especially families and young children.

John Goodwin, CEO of The LEGO Foundation, said: “These grants are an important part of our ongoing commitment to supporting children affected by crises. We know that by giving attention to young children and their continued access to learning in crisis settings, especially their early stimulation needs, we can make a big positive difference to them immediately and in the long-term.

“Together, we hope to provide more children with access to early childhood and education services needed to develop skills such as critical thinking, creativity, and problem solving. Social and emotional skills are vital for children to overcome the stressors caused by crisis situations, and to build resilience and adapt to the needs of the rapidly changing world.”

The 7.2 magnitude earthquake that struck Haiti on August 14th, followed by Tropical Storm Grace, has left half-a-million Haitian children with limited or no access to shelter, safe water, healthcare, and nutrition.

With COVID-19 still an imminent threat to the health and safety of Haiti’s population, the loss and damage associated with these most recent natural disasters only further compounds the dire situation so many children and families are experiencing.

“As a global fund dedicated to education in emergencies, our First Emergency Response is one of impatience. Education cannot wait until the emergency is over. Thanks to the rapid support by the LEGO Foundation we can now establish safe learning spaces for children, and provide mental health and psychological social support without delay,” said Yasmine Sherif, director, Education Cannot Wait.

“Early Childhood Education needs are central to our response, alongside other components of quality education. In Afghanistan, this additional funding will enable us to continue implementing community-based education to target the most vulnerable children, with an emphasis on girls.”

To learn more about how LEGO Foundation supports children around the world, visit www.LEGOfoundation.com.

In addition to the 100M DKK grant from the LEGO Foundation and KIRKBI, Ole Kirk’s Fond has supported the people of Afghanistan with a 50M DKK grant to Red Cross in Denmark. Visit www.olekirksfond.dk for more information.

Obituary | Those Licensing People founder and MD, Russell Dever, passes away

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The vivacious and engaging founder of licensing agency, Those Licensing People, Russell Dever (aged 62), passed away on 11th August having sadly taken his own life after a long battle with depression. 

Renowned for his passion in children’s entertainment and content, his affection for the genre led him to found the Leeds-based licensing agency in 2013.  

Over the last decade his client portfolio has represented some of the world’s most-loved classic children’s brands, which he rejuvenated with his boundless energy and enthusiasm for the industry he embraced. Clients he has represented include Sooty, The Magic Roundabout, Roobard & Custard, and The Little Prince. Russell’s personality shined at industry trade shows and events where he was a regular exhibitor and sponsor, with an unwavering support for the licensing community and those who became his friends, not just clients or contacts.

Alongside his licensing business Russell was also respected in the children’s broadcast industry, having created and produced a number of children’s TV series, including the hit Little Monsters. It was his success in children’s entertainment which led the creative entrepreneur to expand his career into the licensing industry, for which he became so passionate.  At the time of his passing, Russell was also working on several production projects to be showcased at upcoming trade shows, where he relished networking with industry executives.  

In 2017 his youngest daughter, Leah Dever, joined the business and will continue her dad’s work with their existing clients.  She says: “There are just no words to explain this loss to our family; we are all incredibly heartbroken. We kindly ask for flowers not to be sent, however notes, cards and words of condolence are very welcome. Russell is survived by his much-loved wife Janine and daughters, Abigail and Leah. 

A tribute website to Russell has been set up where people can access the funeral information for 8th September, and donate to the mental health charity, Mind. www.russelldever.muchloved.com

BBC Studios to drive Bluey licensing growth across the Americas with new SVP of consumer products and business development

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BBC Studios – Americas has promoted Suzy Raia to the role of senior vice president, consumer products and business development, where she will oversee and provide licensing planning for the hit preschool franchise, Bluey alongside Doctor Who, Top Gear, His Dark Materials, and Natural History Unit programming.

Tara Maitra, chief commercial officer, BBC Studios – Americas, said: “Bluey has quickly grown to become a favorite brand among preschool-aged children and their families due in large part to Suzy’s fastidious devotion to the brand, as well as her keen insight into smart consumer product strategy.

“This well-deserved promotion acknowledges Suzy’s leadership in developing the Bluey franchise so successfully in such a short time, as well as for the positioning of the brand for continued, record-breaking growth in the future.”

Since joining BBC Studios in 2018, Raia has been responsible for driving the licensing and consumer products strategies across its portfolio of properties for the US, Canada, and Latin America. Her purview includes product licensing across multiple genres, including factual and natural history content, drama series, science fiction, and children’s animation.

Raia said: “I am living and breathing Bluey every day, and could not ask for a better brand in which to be fully immersed. We have launched a robust licensing program in the US, with extensions in Canada and Latin America alongside our Master Toy Licensee Moose as well as many other best-in- class licensees. All I can say is, the best is yet to come.”

Prior to BBC Studios, Raia built her career over 19 years at Nickelodeon, where she most recently served as the vice president of partnerships and collaborations within the consumer products division. In that role, Raia executed ground-breaking deals including Moschino X SpongeBob, Jeremy Scott X Ren & Stimpy, Story X Nick 90’s, TMNT X Melo (Carmelo Anthony), and SpongeBob(RED).

Raia also served as vice president of apparel and accessories for over 10 years, tripling the business during her tenure with hit properties including SpongeBob SquarePants, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Paw Patrol, Dora the Explorer, Blue’s Clues, and more. Earlier in her career, she worked across a variety of categories which included activity, toy, back-to-school, stationery, and seasonal, with an expanded oversight across Viacom properties including Nickelodeon’s children’s portfolio, Comedy Central’s South Park, and Paramount’s The Godfather, Audrey Hepburn, and many more.

Funko EMEA appoints regional sales director to spur its ‘phenomenal European takeover’

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The pop culture specialist, Funko has bolstered its EMEA sales management team with the appointment of the former MGA Entertainment sales director, Karen Athill.

Joining the European arm of the US headquartered collectables specialist, Athill takes on the role of regional sales director, where she will lead the regional sales team as Funko continues what it has dubbed its ‘phenomenal European takeover.’

During her tenure at MGA Entertainment, Athill helped to spearhead the company’s growth within the UK through a vastly successful sales strategy for brands like LOL Surprise, Rainbow High, Little Tikes, Baby Born, and Baby Annabel.

Prior to this role, she headed up sales for the UK at Rubie’s – the world’s largest manufacturer of licensed costumes and accessories – where she delivered multi-channel strategies across their vast portfolio of products in both hard and softlines.

Athill said: “I’m delighted to be joining the Funko family. Its huge range of license partnerships offer unlimited opportunities and I’m thrilled to be working on such a diverse product range spanning multiple categories.

“Additionally, the ongoing portfolio expansion (Loungefly to name just one) make this an exciting time to be a part of the business. It’s great to be back in a cross-category environment and I cannot wait to be working with the talented Funko team and look forward to supporting our EMEA retailer partners towards further growth.”

Malcolm Ottley, vice president of sales at Funko (EMEA), added: “We are delighted to have been able to secure someone with Karen’s proven experience to help strengthen our retailer relationships throughout the UK, France and Iberia regions.

“Karen will lead our sales teams in those regions, further enhancing our strategic partner relations and continuing to drive our category expansions across our Pop! collectibles, toys, games and softlines through our thriving Loungefly business.”

Obituary | Licensing International’s Bill Burke, 55

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The long time licensing industry executive and SVP Marketing and Communications for Licensing International, Bill Burke, passed away suddenly at his home on August 9th, at the age of 55.

Prior to joining Licensing International, Bill was SVP Marketing for CBS Consumer Products, where he led Global Marketing (including Retail), International Licensing, and Licensing Operations for iconic brands like Star Trek. Before that, he held senior positions with HIT Entertainment, Sesame Workshop and Foot Locker.

“Bill was already a beloved and admired person within the industry when he joined the Licensing International team in February,” said Maura Regan, president of Licensing International.

“In his brief period with us, and for those who hadn’t the pleasure of working with him previously, he quickly became a friend, creative spark and trusted sounding board for everyone on staff. It’s a measure of the man that he particularly enjoyed mentoring our interns, making sure that they got as much out of us as we got out of them.

“We will miss him personally and professionally.”

Bill is survived by his wife Patty, daughter Erin and son Ryan. Visitation and funeral arrangements are to be announced shortly.

Martin McLaughlin to lead The Point.1888’s new marketing agency Story.1888

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The Point. 1888 has detailed the launch of a new marketing agency, Story.1888, a new business arm that will be headed up by specialists in the marketing and advertising sectors, alongside a line-up of licensing and retail veterans to deliver new services such from product branding and style guides to content creation and brand management.

The new agency will be led by Martin McLaughlin, who joined The Point.1888 in June 2019, having previously delivered communications, advertising, and brand partnership planning for brands like T-Mobile, Cadbury, Amazon, Warner Music, and Ford. Since joining the team, he has grown a book of clients as well as its marketing and creative division.

The Story.1888 offering will include creative services such as product branding and style guides, product marketing, strategy, content creation and campaign management. The agency launches with three clients already on its books, including the retro animated hit, The Raccoons, and Comic Relief. McLaughlin and his team will work to create a global hub for fans around the world to celebrate the animated property, while carrying out strategic and creative work for Comic Relief.

McLaughlin said: “It’s not the norm for a brand licensing specialist to launch a marketing agency but it’s the most obvious next step. The licensing industry is great at creating amazing products, but not always so effective at telling the brand story and connecting the product purpose to the consumer. Connect those dots with a retail hat on and you can create really powerful moments that drive consumer love and revenue.”

The Point.1888’s managing director, Will Stewart, added: “Our business has experienced rapid growth thanks to talent, grit and strategic thinking. Pre-pandemic we saw there was a need for specialist marketing support for our brand licensing clients and we have taken our time to find the right team and approach to make it work. I’m thrilled to be able to reveal this exciting development for our business and cannot wait to see it grow.”

The Story.1888 team will be in attendance at BLE and will be taking meetings with interested parties to walk through their credentials and approach.

Jazwares appoints new commercial and licensing director amid continued ambitious plans for European growth

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As part of the company’s ambitious and ongoing growth strategy for the European market, toy maker and licensing specialist, Jazwares, has appointed a new European Commercial Director and European Licensing Director.

After almost two decades at Argos and Sainsburys, most recently as the Buying Manager for Sports, Leisure, Outdoor Toys & Nursery, Matt Stent joins Jazwares as its new European Commercial Director, reporting into Jonny Taylor, SVP Europe. Stent will be responsible for growing Jazwares’ business in Europe both through its regional offices and third-party distributors.

Meanwhile, Sam Bourne, the former Head of Licensing and Brand at Rubie’s Masquerade, brings a wealth of experience within licensed consumer goods to her new role as European Licensing Director. Reporting into Global VP of Licensing, Sam Ferguson, her role will focus on ensuring Jazwares delivers commercial value and results to global licensing partners, as the business continues to grow.

In addition to both of these appointments, Jazwares has expanded its UK team with a further ten hires to fill newly created positions across licensing, sales, marketing, operations, and business intelligence.

“We are thrilled to be adding such strong talent to our team, to match our growth both in the UK and across Europe,”  said Jonny Taylor, SVP Europe. “Exciting times ahead.”

Mattel welcomes Oxford Vaccine professor Dame Sarah Gilbert to its Barbie Role Model line-up

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Vaccinologist and a member of the team behind the development of the Oxford vaccine, Professor Dame Sarah Gilbert has been welcomed into the ranks of Barbie Role Model by Mattel, who has honoured the scientist with the production of a Barbie in her own likeness.

Professor Gilbert is the Saϊd Professor of Vaccinology at the University of Oxford and Project Leader for ChAdOx1 nCoV-19, a vaccine against the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2 which is now in use in many countries around the world.

In recognition of her achievements, Mattel has not only produced a Barbie in her own likeness to be a part of the Barbie Role Model line-up, but is to make a donation to Professor Gilbert’s chosen STEM-focused organisation, WISE (Women in Science & Engineering) in the UK. The organisation supports the outreach resource, My Skills My Life; created to inspire girls to consider a career in STEM.

The programme allows girls to explore personality types and matches them with relatable role models who have rewarding and successful careers in STEM, ultimately, opening eyes and minds to the endless possibilities in STEM.

Professor Dame Sarah Gilbert said: “I am passionate about inspiring the next generation of girls into STEM careers and hope that children who see my Barbie will realise how vital careers in science are to help the world around us. My wish is that my doll will show children careers they may not be aware of, like a Vaccinologist.”

WISE analysis highlights that just 24 per cent of the STEM roles across the UK are taken up by women and highlights the wide recognition that women are underrepresented globally in STEM fields.

The Barbie brand has detailed its own commitment to the cause, recognising Professor Gilber among five other STEM and healthcare professionals around the world who have worked tirelessly in the fight against Covid-19 since the pandemic began.

The all-female line-up are experts in their fields, who have shown unprecedented courage and tenacity against the virus and achieved greatness in their chosen careers.

“Barbie recognises that all frontline workers have made tremendous sacrifices when confronting the pandemic and the challenges it heightened,” said Lisa McKnight, senior vice president and global head of Barbie and Dolls, Mattel.

“To shine a light on their efforts, we are sharing their stories and leveraging Barbie’s platform to inspire the next generation to take after these heroes and give back. Our hope is to nurture and ignite the imaginations of children playing out their own storyline as heroes.”

Professor Gilbert leads the line up that also features Amy O’Sullivan, RN (US), an emergency room nurse who treated the first Covid-19 patient at the Wycoff Hospital in Brooklyn, Dr Audey Cruz (US), a frontline worker from Las Vegas who joined forces with other Asian-American physicians to fight racial bias and discrimination, and Dr Chika Stacy Oriuwa (Canada), a psychiatry resident at the University of Toronto, Canada, who advocated against systemic racism in healthcare.

The line is made complete with Brazil’s Dr Jaqueline Goes de Jesus, a biomedical researcher credited for leading the sequencing of the genome of a Covid-19 variant in Brazil, and Australia’s Dr Kirby White, a general practitioner who co-founded Gowns for Doctors, a gown that could be laundered and re-used, allowing frontline workers to continue seeing patients during the pandemic.

In the UK, previous Role Models recipients include Broadcaster Clara Amfo, Fastest Woman in British History, Dina Asher-Smith, Champion Skateboarder Sky Brown, Activist & Model Adwoa Aboah, and Boxer Nicola Adams.

Silvergate Media appoints its first chief diversity officer in new commitment to ‘amplify diverse voices’

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Silvergate Media has appointed its first chief diversity officer in the form of Shelli Rottman who takes on a new dual role with the firm as its EVP of Business and Legal Affairs.

In her position as both chief diversity officer and EVP of business and legal affairs, Rottman will oversee Silvergate’s growing diversity and inclusion programme currently guiding the company’s pledge to create a more equitable and welcoming working environment while, at the same time, amplifying fresh, diverse voices through mentorship and guidance.

Rottman joined Silvergate Media in 2011, and over the past decade has played a major part in heading up the company’s Business and Legal Affairs team, supporting global licensing, content distribution, business development, and production.

Prior to joining Silvergate Media, Rottman served as in-house counsel in the entertainment, fashion and publishing industries, including at Chorion, Liz Claiborne (now Kate Spade) and Condé Nast.

Silvergate recently made a commitment to magnify diverse voices throughout its creative slate with the investment in a new production ¡Vamos!, based upon the award-winning Spanish and English language work of Mexican-American author Raúl (González). Similar projects, with an emphasis on exploring different cultures and traditions, are also under consideration.

“I am thrilled to be able to make a meaningful impact in an area that is important to me,” said Rottman. “The overwhelming support for embracing new and emerging talent from different communities is clearly evident in the company’s philosophy and its substantial investment in new and exciting productions. 

“This is an amazing opportunity to help promote and guide the next generation of diverse storytellers and their work.”

Waheed Alli, chief executive at Silvergate Media, added: “With her unique outlook and industry expertise, Shelli is the perfect choice to lead our efforts in shaping a more diverse and inclusive company culture and to align those values with our overall business strategy.”

The Insights Family expands again with new offices, new starters, and a new venture into Poland

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The kids, parents, and family market intelligence outfit, The Insights Family is expanding once again; moving to a larger office space in Manchester city centre, opening a satellite office in Mayfair, London, welcoming three new starters to the company and launching its Kids Insights and Parents Insights businesses into Poland.

The latest flurry of developments for the firm form part of a plan to expand rapidly, following a number of big client wins that includes the media giant HBO Max, the retailer HMV, and the leading media agency, GroupM.

The company has now welcomed Jennifer Knott to the role of senior research manager who joins following a six year stint at Manchester City Football Club where she worked across a variety of research and digital media analyst roles. The team also welcomes Tushar Palawat and Emer Sheffield to its development and data science team, as junior data scientist and UI/UX designer, respectively.

Meanwhile, the Insights Family is continuing its global expansion, increasing its real-time data on children, parents, and families, with Poland being its latest market. This will see the business survey more than 410 Polish kids, tweens, and teens, and 200 Polish parents of children aged between one and 16 every week.

Poland becomes the company’s 18th operational market – following the addition of Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, and Indonesia earlier this year. This means the company now surveys a family member every 60 seconds.

Nick Richardson, CEO & Founder of The Insights Family, said: “The first half of 2021 has seen the business and every member of the team make incredible progress. We have seen a significant increase in client demand for our products and services as more and more organisations realise that traditional market research and data is no longer fit for purpose.

“Our new offices will enable us to provide an environment in which our team will further prosper, and coincides with the launch of a number of new initiatives as we look to be global leaders in every sense of the word.”

 The company also recently launched its latest tool, the IP INDEX™, which enables brand owners, brand partners, and retailers to identify the performance of their IP in relation to thousands of others, across multiple media types.