Tag Archives: WildBrain CPLG

WildBrain CPLG to build lifestyle licensing programme for The Metropolitan Museum of Art

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The entertainment, sport and brand licensing agency, WildBrain CPLG, has signed a deal with The Metropolitan Museum of Art to exclusively represent the iconic New York institution as it looks to build out a licensing programme across EMEA.

Housing it under its Lifestyle division, WildBrain CPLG will assemble a licensing programme for The Met designed to appeal to families, millennials, and a diverse international audience across categories, including homewares, apparel, accessories, stationery, gifting, toys and activities, health and beauty, and collaborations.

The licensing agency will create a merchandise programme that combines The Met’s collections and art works, with the diversity and energy of New York and the museum’s mission to ‘collect, study, conserve and present significant works of art across all times and cultures in order to connect people to creativity, knowledge and ideas.’ The team will initially focus on building product ranges that utilise assets from a cross-section of The Met’s 17 curatorial departments and are tied into current fashion and homeware trends.

Victoria Whellans, group brands director at WildBrain CPLG Lifestyle, said: “The Metropolitan Museum of Art is one of the world’s most dynamic and inspiring museums and we’re very excited to add this prestigious institution to our expanding Lifestyle portfolio. As we begin building a unique licensing programme which will reinforce The Met as both educational and accessible, we look forward to bringing fresh, authentic and unexpected product ranges to a diverse selection of consumers across EMEA.”

Lisa Silverman Meyers, head of licensing and partnerships at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, added: “WildBrain CPLG has a unique passion for storytelling and shares our belief in the power that museums have to foster understanding through art and culture. Their dedication to our goal of bringing The Met to new places in new ways, paired with WildBrain CPLG’s proven track record of success throughout EMEA makes them an ideal partner for the Museum.”

Founded in 1870, The Metropolitan Museum of Art lives in three iconic sites in New York City – The Met Fifth Avenue, The Met Breuer, and The Met Cloisters. The museum is home to two million works spanning 5,000 years of art and ranks as the most-visited art museum in the Western hemisphere.

The Met is also the number one tourist attraction in New York City, with over seven million visits and 30 million web visitors in 2019. The Met celebrated its 150th anniversary on 13th April 2020.

WildBrain CPLG cleans up with Kärcher across Europe

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The entertainment, sports, and brand licensing powerhouse, WildBrain CPLG has been appointed the licensing representative of the cleaning technology brand, Kärcher across Europe.

Working with Alfred Kärcher SE and Co, WildBrain CPLG will bring the brand under its lifestyle division and work to develop a licensing programme that will target both adults and kids across categories including workwear, role play toys, and promotions.

Kärcher is an established manufacturer of home and professional cleaning equipment, recognised for products including pressure washers, window vacuum cleaners, hard floor cleaners and more. The German company is family-owned and operates worldwide, with its products sold by over 130 companies across 72 countries.

Victoria Whellans, group brands director, WildBrain CPLG Lifestyle, said: “Kärcher has an impressive reputation for quality, reliability and innovation globally which gives the brand significant potential in the licensing space across multiple categories and demographics.

“We’ve already had a great deal of interest in the brand and look forward to sharing more details on the first wave of collaborations shortly.”

WildBrain CPLG promotes two as it forms new territory teams for Northern and Southern Europe

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The entertainment, sport, and brand licensing agency, WildBrain CPLG, has promoted two of its management executives to head up territory teams across newly formed regions for Northern and Southern Europe.

John Taylor (pictured top left), who is based in London, has been named VP Northern Europe and managing director UK and France, while Pau Pascual (top right), based in Barcelona, has been named VP Southern Europe and managing director Iberia and MENA. Both will report into Maarten Weck, WildBrain CPLG’s EVP and MD.

Weck said: “I feel confident that under our new European management regions, spearheaded by the highly experienced John and Pau, we will be able to further synergise our pan-European offering to drive growth for licensors and continue the strategic evolution and expansion of WildBrain CPLG. Congratulations to both John and Pau on their well-deserved promotions.”

Reporting to Taylor under WildBrain CPLG’s new Northern European hub are Brenda Draaisma, managing director for Benelux, Slawomir Ekiert, managing director for Central Eastern Europe and Nordics, and Anna Artyukhova, managing director for Russia and CIS.

For the Southern European hub, Maria Gurrieri, managing director for Italy, Greece and Turkey will now report into Pau Pascual. Sibylle Gondolf, managing director for Germany, Austria and Switzerland will continue to report into Weck.

WildBrain CPLG expands its German commercial sales department with double hire

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The entertainment, sport, and brand licensing agency, WildBrain CPLG is expanding its commercial sales department in Germany with two new hires in the form of Sarah Rosenstock and Lisa Gruczek.

Rosenstock (pictured right) has been brought in as the unit’s new commercial director, while Gruczek (pictured left) takes up the role of senior sale manager.

Rosenstock returns to WildBrain CPLG from the in-house licensing agency of Hubert Burda Media KG where she held the position of head of brand cooperations and led the brand licensing sales division. Prior to this, she held roles at ProSiebenSat.1’s SevenOne AdFactory, Burda Intermedia Publishing and also at WildBrain CPLG.

In her new role at WildBrain CPLG, Rosenstock will be responsible for driving the company’s activity and strategy in the German market across its portfolio of brands. She reports into Sibylle Gondolf, managing director at WildBrain CPLG Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

Meanwhile, Gruczek joins WildBrain CPLG following a six-year tenure at Hubert Burda Media KG where she helped build the brand licensing division for an array of publishing, lifestyle, design and celebrity brands. Prior to this, Gruczek held roles at Alex Springer AG and Colosseum Music Entertainment.

At WildBrain CPLG she will report into Rosenstock and support the commercial sales team, with a focus on the apparel and accessories, toys and games, publishing, and beauty categories

Gondolf said: “With many years of experience in brand licensing between them, Sarah and Lisa are the ideal candidates to augment our Commercial Sales team in Germany. The pair bring a wealth of expertise as well as exciting new ideas, and I’m confident they will both play a crucial role in driving forward the success of our growing brand portfolio in the region.”

WildBrain CPLG expands its German commercial sales department with double hire

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The entertainment, sport, and brand licensing agency, WildBrain CPLG is expanding its commercial sales department in Germany with two new hires in the form of Sarah Rosenstock and Lisa Gruczek.

Rosenstock (pictured right) has been brought in as the unit’s new commercial director, while Gruczek (pictured left) takes up the role of senior sale manager.

Rosenstock returns to WildBrain CPLG from the in-house licensing agency of Hubert Burda Media KG where she held the position of head of brand cooperations and led the brand licensing sales division. Prior to this, she held roles at ProSiebenSat.1’s SevenOne AdFactory, Burda Intermedia Publishing and also at WildBrain CPLG.

In her new role at WildBrain CPLG, Rosenstock will be responsible for driving the company’s activity and strategy in the German market across its portfolio of brands. She reports into Sibylle Gondolf, managing director at WildBrain CPLG Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

Meanwhile, Gruczek joins WildBrain CPLG following a six-year tenure at Hubert Burda Media KG where she helped build the brand licensing division for an array of publishing, lifestyle, design and celebrity brands. Prior to this, Gruczek held roles at Alex Springer AG and Colosseum Music Entertainment.

At WildBrain CPLG she will report into Rosenstock and support the commercial sales team, with a focus on the apparel and accessories, toys and games, publishing, and beauty categories

Gondolf said: “With many years of experience in brand licensing between them, Sarah and Lisa are the ideal candidates to augment our Commercial Sales team in Germany. The pair bring a wealth of expertise as well as exciting new ideas, and I’m confident they will both play a crucial role in driving forward the success of our growing brand portfolio in the region.”

WildBrain CPLG grows Greece office with Alice Marinou and Despina Chrisidou

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The entertainment, sport and brand licensing agency, WildBrain CPLG is growing its Greece office with the appointment of licensing industry experts Alice Marinou and Despina Chrisidou, joining as commercial director and senior retail and sales manager, respectively.

Marinou (pictured left) joins WildBrain CPLG following an 18-year tenure at The Walt Disney Company where she most recently held the position of senior licensing and retail manager for fashion for 11 years. In her new role at WildBrain CPLG, Marinou will be responsible for driving the company’s activity and strategy in the region.

She will report into Maria Gurrieri, managing director at WildBrain CPLG Italy, Greece, and Turkey.

Meanwhile, Chrisidou’s (pictured right) previous experience includes a tenure at Mattel Consumer Products as country manager for Greece where she was responsible for driving the company’s licensing efforts in the region. At WildBrain CPLG, Chrisidou will report into Alice Marinou and focus on hardlines, publishing, and food and beverage.

Maria Gurrieri said: “Alice and Despina bring an outstanding level of expertise, knowledge and passion for growing franchises and we are very excited to welcome them to the WildBrain CPLG Greece team.

“We have a diverse and colourful portfolio in the Greek market, including brands such as PAW Patrol, Peanuts and Emoji to name just a few, and I look forward to working closely with Alice and Despina as we propel the success of all our brands even further.”

On top of this, WildBrain CPLG is boosting its wider international team with new hires across its territory offices, including: Urszula Anglik as retail and sales manager for Central and Eastern Europe, who joins from FOX Networks Group, Abdel Yakoub as sales manager for Benelux, who joins from Libbey Inc, and Ross Melland as product development coordinator for Benelux, who has spent the last decade as an Art Director in advertising.

Completing the new hires is Nayade Martin Perez who joins as retail licensing manager for Spain from fashion licensee Padma Textiles, and Artem Basharin as licensing manager for WildBrain CPLG Pullman in Russia, who previously worked in fashion retail.

MGM’s Pink Panther slinks into new footwear deal with Diadora and LC23

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WildBrain CPLG has secured a deal on behalf of Metro Goldwyn Mayer with the contemporary fashion brand LC23 and popular sportswear company Diadora for a footwear collaboration inspired by the iconic Pink Panther.

Thanks to the partnership brokered by WildBrain CPLG Italy, fans can now slink across the scene like the titular characters through a collaboration sees the launch of two limited edition trainer designs inspired by the elegance and surreal humour of the brand.

Resulting from a Spring/Summer 2020 partnership between LC23 and Diodora, the trainers offer a new take on two of Diadora’s most popular styles – the Diadora Rebound Ace and Whizz Run – and feature bright embroidery style patch appliqués of both Pink Panther and Inspector Clouseau.

Maria Gurrieri, managing director at WildBrain CPLG Southern Europe, said: “The long-standing collaboration between LC23 and Diadora is recognised for producing bold, high-quality and playful products which we knew would make them the ideal partners to expand Pink Panther’s fashion offering.

“This new collaboration perfectly encapsulates Pink Panther’s witty and colourful spirit, and we look forward to seeing young adults sporting the new collection across Italy and farther afield.”

MGM’s iconic character, Pink Panther, started life in the front and end credits of the legendary detective series of the same name more than 50 years ago. Its popularity spawned TV series, specials, comics and merchandise and remains an icon of the era.

WildBrain CPLG launches Lifestyle division to be run by group brands director Victoria Whellans

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The entertainment, sport and brand licensing agency, WildBrain CPLG is launching WildBrain CPLG Lifestyle, a new formalised division to oversee and drive revenue for its lifestyle and corporate properties.

WildBrain CPLG Lifestyle will be headed up out of London by Victoria Whellans, who has been promoted to group brands director with immediate effect, and will be responsible for developing strategies for new and existing partners.

She will also over see the directing of consumer products roll-outs and securing pan-regional partnerships in key lifestyle categories.

Whellans will work with a dedicated sales executive and WildBrain CPLG’s 14 regional offices to oversee the company’s growing lifestyle portfolio which currently includes: Absolut Vodka; BBC Earth; IRONMAN; Osprey London; Parental Advisory; Perfetti Van Melle’s confectionery brands Chupa Chups, Mentos and Smint; and  Yale University.

Previously senior business development manager, brands, Whellans has been with WildBrain CPLG for three years and reports to WildBrain CPLG’s, EVP and managing director, Maarten Weck.

Weck said: “The launch of WildBrain CPLG Lifestyle demonstrates our commitment to supporting our corporate and lifestyle brands, which are often new to licensing and require high-level, strategic roll-out plans.

“With Victoria’s impressive industry knowledge and tenacious approach, she is the ideal candidate to head up this new initiative and maximise the consumer products potential of these brands across Europe.”

Whellans added: “We have a fantastic portfolio of lifestyle and corporate brands so it’s hugely exciting to have the opportunity to head up the newly created WildBrain CPLG Lifestyle division which will be fully dedicated to these properties.

“I look forward to working closely with licensors and our regional teams to develop and implement impactful strategies for each brand, which will deliver long-term growth and open up new sources of revenue.”

WildBrain CPLG teams with creator Alessandro Enriquez to launch Line Friends designer capsule collections

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WildBrain CPLG has brokered a new deal with the creator and influencer Alessandro Enriquez to launch Line Friends designer capsule collections with some of the biggest names in Italian fashion today.

Featuring signature characters Brown, Choco, Cony, and Sally, Line Friends originated as a collection of stickers for the mobile messenger app, Line and its 200 million active users worldwide. It has since made its presence known across the lifestyle and fashion space.

Developed in collaboration with Enriquez, the collection is the latest instalment of the influencer’s annual Fashion Comics project for Pitti Bimbo. It debuted at the event’s 90th edition in Florence last month.

The project saw designers including Monnalisa, Mc2 Saint Barth, Diadora, Pinko Up, Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini Kids, 2Star, and Akep launch new capsule collections each inspired by the popular Line Friends character brand.

Monnalisa unveiled its range of velvet printed patch sweatshirts and a dress with tulle application on the shoulders, MC2 Saint Barth launched a collection of swimsuits for adults and kids featuring Choco and Sally, and Diadora debuted all-over print sweatshirts.

Meanwhile Pinko Up designed a range of sweatshirts in black and pink, while the Philosophy di Lorenzo Serafini Kids capsule collection celebrated Line Friends with a cotton sweater and sweatshirt featuring Brown, Sally, and Choco prints.

Enriquez said: “The Fashion Comics Project created with Line Friends, in collaboration with Pitti Bimbo, has been hugely successful due to the quality and mix of products, the calibre of the brands involved and the impressive feedback from media.

“It was fantastic to see Brown, Sally, Choco, and Cony be such a hit with visitors of all ages at Pitti Bimbo, and I’m confident the popularity of these characters will continue to grow in our country as they have done in the rest of the world.”

Maria Gurrieri, managing director at WildBrain CPLG Southern Europe, added: “It has been an incredible creative process combining the distinctive visual style of Line Friends with the visionary Alessandro Enriquez and innovation of our Italian designers.

“The fantastic response to the capsule collections at Pitti Bimbo shows how exciting this new Fashion Comics collaboration is and we’re sure it will be a huge hit with consumers across Italy.”

Rebecca Morris makes return to licensing as client service director with WildBrain CPLG

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Rebecca Morris is making her return to WildBrain CPLG, taking up the newly created role of client service director, heading up the rebranded client services unit, previously the business development team, based at the company’s head office in London.

The Client Services team is focused on managing licensor relations, centralising sales and marketing information and streamlining processes between licensors and WildBrain CPLG’s 14 regional offices.

Morris will report to Steve Manners, VP business development at WildBrain CPLG and WildBrain Spark. She previously held the position of director of product development and brand assurance at WildBrain CPLG for three years, before stepping away from the industry.

In her new position, Morris will lead a team which includes Gaby Dior, senior client services manager (previously senior business development manager); May Chiem, client services executive (previously business development executive), and the recently appointed Ellie-Rose Cousins who joined earlier this month as client services executive.

Additionally, WildBrain CPLG has promoted Sophie Bloomfield to head of creative services. Previously design manager, Bloomfield has been with WildBrain CPLG for three years and will now lead the creative services team which is responsible for all aspects of the WildBrain CPLG branding, style guide direction and development, trend reports, trade marketing, creative strategy and look books in addition to creative pitches to licensees and retailers.

Bloomfield reports to WildBrain CPLG’s EVP and managing director, Maarten Weck, and works with designers, Yana Maslova, who is based in the company’s Russian office, and Marika Colombo, who is based in the company’s Italian office.

Weck said: “With these latest developments, it’s already shaping up to be a significant 2020 for us as we take important steps to ensure we’re delivering the best possible service for all our partners. We’re delighted to welcome back Rebecca to head up the Client Services team, which has a new name to better reflect its activity, and to promote Sophie to spearhead the invaluable offering of our Creative Services department.”

Morris added: “I’m delighted to return to WildBrain CPLG and I’m very much looking forward to working closely with my fantastic team to ensure we’re identifying and maximising growth opportunities for our partners, while ensuring efficient and streamlined processes for our internal teams across all local territories.”

Bloomfield said: “As we continue to support both our licensors and internal sales and retail teams with creative pitches, style guide direction and trends, I’m very much looking forward to expanding our work across the portfolio and delivering both creative and commercially competitive projects for our partners.

“We’ve got some exciting creative projects in development and I look forward to seeing these come to life over the coming months.”