Tag Archives: Banijay Brands

Banijay Brands cooks up MasterChef condiments with Baxters

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Banijay Brands has cooked up a tasty new partnership with the food manufacturer, Baxters to develop a range of branded marinades, dressings, and table sauces for the popular cooking IP, MasterChef.

The new deal – covering the UK and Eire, the Nordics, Benelux, Germany, Czech Republic, and the Middle East – will see the MasterChef food products land at retail later this year. It will also partner with previous MasterChef UK champions Ping Coombes, Thomas Frake, and Saliha Mahmood Ahmed to feature the winning chefs on the packaging.

Each of the champions will vouch for their ‘Champions Choice’ of products, and create bespoke recipes and tips on how to best use these.

Grown over 150 years and four generations, Baxters sits on shelves around the world. The collaboration with Banijay Brands has produced an exciting array of products that stay true to the ethos of MasterChef, giving home cooks the ingredients to transform their dishes from ordinary to extraordinary.

Alice Bernardi, director of international brand licensing at Banijay Brands, said: “With food being such an integral element of MasterChef, it was extremely important for us to find the right partner; with the experience, retail presence, and most of all, passion, for the brand.

“We’ve found all of these elements in Baxters Food Group, and we are confident that together we will bring a product range to consumers that will surprise and delight everyone.”

Matthew Bowler-Jones, European sales director at Baxters Food Group, added: “We are delighted to be partnering with Banijay Brands to launch this innovative new range of condiments. Combining both companies’ passion and strength in food and flavour is sure to be a recipe for success.”

Created by Franc Roddam, MasterChef is the world’s most successful cookery television format with 63 local adaptations, broadcast in over 200 countries and watched by more than 300 million people globally. MasterChef has a digital footprint of more than 34 million fans totalling in excess of 4 billion views across YouTube, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

The MasterChef brand extends into huge range of commercial activities across consumer products, experiential, publishing, and digital.

Simon’s Cat expands global paw print with ZenWorks and lands raft of new licensing partners

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Banijay Brands has detailed a raft of new licensing deals for its digital content sensation, Simon’s Cat, spanning fashion, crafting, puzzles, and accessories, as well as securing new developments for the brand across the Japanese market through its new agent, ZenWorks.

Kicking off with the latest additions to the licensing programme, Simon’s Cat is continuing to expand across categories with partners including Fashion UK on board for ladies’, mens’, and kids’ apparel, accessories, and essentials for the UK market, and Wulydermy who will be launching a selection of craft kits for UK release this year.

Meanwhile, the global online retailer and manufacturer, Ecell, will launch Simon’s Cat phone covers in Q3, while Heye has just sold out of the first print run of its 1,000-piece Simon’s Cat puzzle. Pinfinity will be releasing a range of augmented reality Simon’s Cat branded metal pins, and the Australian medical wear specialist, Dr. Woof, has signed a deal which covers branded medical and clinical apparel.

This all sits alongside the official Simon’s Cat webshop refresh, managed by key e-commerce partner, Star Editions, which also released a collectable limited edition branded coin to coincide with the new store look.

Following the success of its previous Simon’s Cat releases, leading social commerce platform, Spring, is extending its partnership with the brand to deliver an extensive range of products this year for worldwide distribution, which will include a collaboration with Rubik’s Cube, bespoke apparel drops, and a limited edition ‘Kitten Care Kit’ collection of pet products.

Further global developments for the brand sees Banijay Brands appoint the licensing agent ZenWorks Licensing to represent the Simon’s Cat in Japan. On top of this, and following the success of its initial partnership, apparel specialists Quanshang in China has renewed its deal for a second year.

Jane Smith, group director, brand licensing at Banijay, said: “Simon’s Cat is such a lovable brand that resonates with fans all around the world. The extensive licensing programme, that continues to expand, is testament to its enduring popularity.”

Simon Tofield, creator of Simon’s Cat, added: “I am always amazed that there are so many Simon’s Cat fans all over the world. Our audiences are incredibly passionate about Simon’s Cat and it is wonderful to be able to offer them such a brilliant array of products.”

The Simon’s Cat brand enjoys international success across multiple categories including gaming, publishing and apparel. There have been more than 90 million digital sticker downloads, in excess of 20 million mobile gaming downloads and over 2 million books sold across 30 countries.

Simon’s Cat has over 18 million fans and subscribers across social platforms, with the iconic films totalling more than 2 billion views. Recent successes include the brand-new match-3 mobile game, Simon’s Cat Story Time, from developer Tactile Games, which launched last month, exclusively on Apple Arcade, Apple’s award-winning game subscription service.

Banijay Brands partners with Tactile Games to launch latest Simon’s Cat title, Simon’s Cat: Story Time

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Banijay Brands has teamed with Tactile Games to launch a new mobile app game based on the popular animated property, Simon’s Cat. Launched on Apple Arcade, the new title Simon’s Cat: Story Time follows the success that the IP has seen in the mobile gaming space to date.

Simon’s Cat: Story Time sees Simon and his cat face down the threat to the tranquility of their suburban life in the shape of a huge building site. Together, they mobilise their neighbours to help restore the mysterious wasteland before the diggers can destroy it all.

The game will challenge p[layers to solve match-three puzzles to help the community rebuild the gardens under the critical eye of the curmedgeonly next door neighbour, Mr Potts. This is the gaming adaptation for the Simon’s Cat IP, following the success of the previous app games such as Simon’s Cat: Crunch Time, and Simon’s Cat: Pop Time.

The Simon’s Cat brand enjoys international success across multiple categories including gaming, publishing and apparel. Simon’s Cat mobile games have in excess of 20 million downloads, more than 90 million digital sticker downloads and over 2 million books sold across 30 countries.

Simon’s Cat has over 18 million fans and subscribers across social platforms, with the iconic films totalling more than 2 billion views.

The property is one from a library of globally revered IP under the Banijay Brands umbrella, joined by the likes of MasterChef, Temptation Island, Peaky Blinders, Survivor, Deal or No Deal, The Inbetweeners, Big Brother, Mister Maker, and more.

Take a first look at the new Peaky Blinders: Faster Than Truth card game from Steamforged Games

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Fans have been offered a sneak first peek at the upcoming Peaky Blinders: Faster Than Truth card game, a tabletop gaming title developed by Steamforged Games under a licensing agreement with Banijay Brands and Caryn Mandabach Productions.

The card game is scheduled for release on February 26, 2021 and will pay homage to the award winning series that follows the misadventures of the Shelby family as they fight to maintain an empire across the lawless streets of 1920s Birmingham and beyond.

In Peaky Blinders: Faster Than Truth, players can take a walk down those very streets as they try to gather resources to beat their rivals. Players use cards to gain resources and money as well as hinder their opponents. To get through the game, players must rely on their ability to bluff and garner intelligence as they make and break alliances in the bid to come out on top.

The game has been designed for two to six players with a playing time of 30 minutes. Check out the first images of the card game below.

Take a first look at the new Peaky Blinders: Faster Than Truth card game from Steamforged Games

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Fans have been offered a sneak first peek at the upcoming Peaky Blinders: Faster Than Truth card game, a tabletop gaming title developed by Steamforged Games under a licensing agreement with Banijay Brands and Caryn Mandabach Productions.

The card game is scheduled for release on February 26, 2021 and will pay homage to the award winning series that follows the misadventures of the Shelby family as they fight to maintain an empire across the lawless streets of 1920s Birmingham and beyond.

In Peaky Blinders: Faster Than Truth, players can take a walk down those very streets as they try to gather resources to beat their rivals. Players use cards to gain resources and money as well as hinder their opponents. To get through the game, players must rely on their ability to bluff and garner intelligence as they make and break alliances in the bid to come out on top.

The game has been designed for two to six players with a playing time of 30 minutes. Check out the first images of the card game below.

Peaky Blinders masterminds wine deal with French vineyard Vignobles Bardet

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The renowned French vineyard, Vignobles Bardet, has partnered with Banijay Brands and Caryn Mandabach Productions to launch the first, official, Peaky Blinders wine.

Inspired by the multi-award winning drama, Vignobles Bardet has created two red wines – a Saint-Emilion and a Saint-Emilion Grand Cru – which will initially be available in France before being made available for export via local distributors in key markets across Europe and Asia.

Born from the highly-regarded Bordeaux region following research in 1920s wine in partnership with the win historian Jean-Michel Chevet, the offerings are set to give the buyers the opportunity to ‘immerse themselves in the world of the international hit drama.’

Jane Smith, group director, brand licensing of Banijay Brands, said: “In Vignobles Bardet we have found an established and creative partner to create an authentic product, which is perfectly suited to the Peaky Blinders brand.

“This collaboration has created two fine reds that will give fans an authentic taste of the 1920s in the very style that would be shared at the Shelby table.”

Thibault Bardet, Vignobles Bardet, added: “It’s easy to imagine a character like Thomas Shelby importing his own wine from our great-great-grandfather Jean Roy on the prestigious Saint-Emilion region of Bordeaux and we believe these reds are exactly what he would have chosen. We are extremely proud to produce a product that captures the true essence of Peaky Blinders.”

Jamie Glazebrook, executive producer of Peaky Blinders for Caryn Mandabach Productions, said: “Peaky Blinders continues to be a journey into the unexpected. In series five, Churchill outlines Tommy Shelby’s progress as ‘a tent, then a boat, then a house, now a mansion.’ To which we can now add a vineyard. We could not be more delighted with this collaboration, the results of which are truly delicious.”

This year Banijay Brands has developed an extensive licensing programme for the global hit in partnership with official Peaky Blinders brand owner, brand curator and producer Caryn Mandabach Productions. This includes a collaboration with Curve Digital for Peaky Blinders: Mastermind,  Hodder for The Official Peaky Blinders Quiz Book,  a card game with Steamforged, the first stationery products in Brazil with Tilibra, Thornbridge Brewery for the first endorsed “Shelby” beer, and various product ranges spanning apparel, gifting, men’s grooming and more. 

Peaky Blinders is distributed by Banijay Rights and has sold in more than 183 countries and is widely available internationally on Netflix i including the USA.

The Banijay Brands portfolio includes MasterChef, Temptation Island, Peaky Blinders, Survivor, Deal or No Deal, The Inbetweeners, Big Brother, Mister Maker, Operation Triunfo, Eat Well for Less, Simon’s Cat, Mr Bean, Don’t, Sunday Brunch, Tipping Point, The Biggest Loser, Ready Steady Cook, Black Mirror, Miss France, Maddie’s Do You Know?, Wipeout and Crystal Maze.

Interview: Ready Steady Cook whips up fresh new licensing take for the modern audience

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Of the many changes necessitated by the arrival of the pandemic, a common experience that we have all shared over the course of the past nine months of lockdown, is that – in some capacity or another – it has made home cooks of us all. With more time spent in the home, it was inevitable that even more time would be spent in the kitchen.

Toss this into the same salad bowl as the matter that coronavirus has forced many of us to think more carefully about the money we are spending, and underlined the importance and value of the sustainability message through a heightened consumer awareness of environmental issues, and it would appear that the relaunch of Banijay’s hit afternoon TV series, Ready Steady Cook couldn’t have been more timely.

Over the course of the decade that has passed since Ready Steady Cook was last on air, things – the world – has certainly changed. Consumer sensibilities have shifted, sustainability is a topic increasingly on the minds of shoppers, and our relationship with food and its value has evolved somewhat, and as it finds new life on the BBC once again, it is all of these points that the popular cooking challenge television show that first surfaced some 25 years ago, is looking to encapsulate.

Following the announcement this week that Banijay isn’t just re-heating, but firing up a whole new audience passion around the Ready Steady Cook IP, Licensing.biz catches up with Alice Bernardi, director of international brand licensing at Banijay Brands, to discover how licensing will be promoting the show’s new values for an audience of reinvigorated home cooks.

Can you tell us why now is an exciting time to be relaunching the licensing plans around Ready Steady Cook?  

It’s an incredibly exciting and appropriate time to re-launch the licensing programme around Ready Steady Cook because the world has changed a lot since the show was last on air in the UK – over 10 years ago – and times have certainly changed. Our attitude to food, it’s provenance, preserving the climate and our increased awareness of eating a balanced diet have all contributed to a different culinary environment. More than ever sustainability and ethically produced food are part of our day to day thinking as we make purchase decisions around what to cook with.   

There are a number of initiatives that the show is adopting to reflect this – for example, plastic bags have been replaced with re-usable jute bags, single plastic use is avoided with glass being used as much as possible, recycling is so important as part of the show with colour coded waste bins both on set and backstage, local suppliers are used as much as possible and given the show is produced in Scotland this gives a fantastic range of great fresh and seasonal produce and at the end of the day, unused fruit and vegetables and non-perishable goods are delivered to a local food bank.  

So the production team works incredibly hard to deliver this key element of the show which as we all know could not be more relevant nor important in 2020.  An additional element which remains so relevant is cooking on a budget and making sure that we don’t throw away our surplus food but find a way to re-use it. 

Households everywhere are challenged with weekly budgets and finding a way to cook wholesome and tasty food cost effectively at the same time as being aware of the impact food has on the environment is a compelling proposition. In the most recent series, we are using the same values as 15 years ago with contestants who had a shopping budget of just £3.50 up to £10 which adds an additional challenge given inflation, but wanted it feel inclusive, which is what we want to reflect in the licensing programme, there will be something for everyone.  

What is the strength of Ready Steady Cook here in the UK? How has it maintained its popularity over the years?

You can’t underestimate the power of a legacy show with such high awareness. Ready Steady Cook aired for 16 years on the BBC and is still much loved and recognised – the green peppers and red tomatoes are such strong icons which are instantly recalled by so many of us today. 

Many of today’s audience still remember coming home from school and watching the show when they were young and now can enjoy it as families with their kids. Originally it was broadcast in the same slot at 4.30pm, stripped daily on BBC 1 and was also on iPlayer. The show’s ratings were very strong, delivering a highly desirable younger audience of 16 to 34 year olds alongside adults aged 35 to 54. The show regularly performed above the slot average and has a consolidated audience of 2.35m viewers beating the BBC 1 slot average by 34 per cent.   

Internationally, the show has travelled to over 25 markets including the US, Australia, Brazil, France, Germany the Middle East and the Nordics. The simple format, combining a cooking challenge on a budget remains the same but with added timed food challenges and more curved balls from unpredictable audience participation which enhance the viewing experience. 

Having Rylan Clark Neal (X-Factor, Celebrity Big Brother) at the helm brings a new energy, charisma and passion to the show, appealing to both younger and older audiences, and is a hugely popular presenter here in the UK so is a big draw for audiences. And because he’s not a chef, I’m sure he makes those who are less talented in the kitchen feel a lot more included.

Rylan is the ideal foil to the five new chefs who have the task of completing the challenges and is able to hold the show together in a humorous and quick-witted way, keeping the pace and energy levels high. We have also made sure to reflect the current diverse range of foods we all now love, and our chefs feature recipes from all over the world so there’s something for everyone to relate to. 

Basically, the original and central message of brand is still as relevant as ever – cooking on a budget, in very little time – but with the important element of sustainability front and centre, which ultimately resonates with the viewers and is why it continues being so popular for all ages.

Lockdown seems to have encouraged more home cooks, and more home cooking than ever before. How will you be tapping into this new found audience through licensing? What are the key audiences you are looking to tap into here?

Exactly, lockdown made home cooks out of many of us! The world has never cooked at home more through pure necessity and with a focus back on the kitchen, cooking, whether you are enjoying an evening alone, with friends or family, it has become an even more important part of our daily lives as we connect through food.  But we have less money than before, so we need to cook carefully and hopefully responsibly. 

We still want to experiment with dishes and try new things, so this show encourages us to do this whilst still living within our means. So hopefully Ready Steady Cook offers everyone something they can take away and apply in their own lives. Our demographic is broad as cooking speaks to everyone so our licensing programme will offer cost effective products which are true to the ethos of the show and can be used by everyone and anyone with no barrier to entry.

What licensing deals will you be coming out of the starting blocks with? How will this set you up for a wider programme to roll out?  

Our initial licensing programme will focus on the core categories of publishing, foodstuffs and kitchenware. We see storage containers, measuring and recycling tools as key product lines. We’re also keen to develop an experiential offering so people can enjoy the brand in person and have fun with it – hopefully this space will open up more next year.   

Partnerships with organisations in the sustainability area are also a key area of focus to ensure the brand DNA extends off screen into real life practises. Great value for money resonates with today’s consumers and this will be factored into our licensing programme. We also know that consumers care more and more about what they eat and where in comes from both for health reasons and for environmental reasons. Therefore, we plan to offer consumers a range of products that will incorporate all of these elements and make Ready Steady Cook the standout brand in relation to sustainability.

What sort of retail partnerships will you be targeted with the licensing programme?

As we all know the retail landscape is in flux with the impact of lockdown. Consumer’s behaviour patterns have changed with online and value more dominant than ever. We will respond to this and partner with the best and most appropriate retailers to deliver the best consumer offering.  We are open to multi territory partnerships delivering scale and working with organisations to amplify the sustainability message.

Banijay launches its licensing and merchandising division Banijay Brands

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Banijay today announces the launch of Banijay Brands, a division dedicated to all areas of commercial activity, including brand licensing, merchandising, gaming, gambling, and music. The division will be led by the newly appointed chief commercial officer, Owain Walbyoff.

The new operation will represent an extensive and diverse portfolio covering entertainment, scripted animation, game shows, and kids, from MasterChef, Peaky Blinders and Deal or No Deal, to Simon’s Cat, Mr Bean, and Crystal Maze.

Following the recent acquisition, Jane Smith, group director, brand licensing will lead the licensing area, overseeing key brands from the world’s largest international content catalogue, comprising of more than 88,000 hours of original programming. She will also work with the network of teams in local markets to further expand the business.

Smith joined Endemol Shine in 2018, where she has substantially driven the growth of properties such as MasterChef, Peaky Blinders and Simon’s Cat within licensing and merchandising. 

Banijay Brands will launch at next month’s Festival of Licensing with senior executives available for meetings at the virtual conference.

Walbyoff, said: “Without a doubt we are a market leader in this space, and I look forward to seeing how we bolster the IP even further. Jane is a highly-experienced, strategic executive with vast industry knowledge, and with some of the world’s biggest brands in our portfolio, the possibilities are endless.” 

Jane Smith, group director, brand licensing of Banijay Brands, added: “Banijay Brands represents an incredibly compelling catalogue of globally-renowned, cross-genre brands, which we will be bringing to the Festival of Licensing. By partnering with the very best licensees in the business, we aim to create innovative and impressive products that our audiences and fans will love.”

The Banijay Brands portfolio now includes MasterChef, Temptation Island, Peaky Blinders, Survivor, Deal or No Deal, The Inbetweeners, Big Brother, Mister Maker, Operation Triunfo, Eat Well for Less, Simon’s Cat, Mr Bean, Don’t, Sunday Brunch, Tipping Point, The Biggest Loser, Ready Steady Cook, Black Mirror, Miss France, Maddie’s Do You Know?, Wipeout and Crystal Maze.