TnP were out and about at this year’s Brand Licensing Europe (BLE) that finished its three day blast of deal making, inspiration networking and trend spotting on Friday. The general feeling was that it had been another great show with good footfall despite the rail disruptions.
The rail strike and threat of London underground walkouts was not enough to dampen the spirits of visitors to Brand Licensing Europe as numbers showed the event was up on last year’s.
As well as a 19% year-on-year rise with almost 10,000 attendees, the show, held at London’s ExCeL, drew record numbers of retailers, with 1,166 turning up over the three days, up 31% on last year and the highest in the show’s history. Visitor numbers had beaten last year’s by lunchtime on the second day of the three-day event.
“This year’s retail presence has been incredible, with really strong attendance from fashion and toy retailers. We’ve also seen an increase in gift and novelty retailers as well as value retailers like Poundland, Matalan, Pepco and Primark. It’s brilliant seeing the retail strategy we introduced in 2021 really paying off to the benefit of the entire industry,” said head of retail Laura Freedman-Dagg.
We spoke with some of the exhibitors to find out how it went and the plans they have in store.
Cat O’Brien. Director U.K. Licensing Consumer Products, Hasbro
“It’s been a fantastic show of high energy and progressive conversations around the Hasbro brands,
“Right now, we are celebrating a lot of anniversaries, with the 50th for D&D, 40th for Transformers and 20th for Peppa Pig, Next year will also mark the first for Transformers with the CG animated Transformers One movie arriving in the autumn.
“Peppa will see many high profile collaborations come to life in 2024 as we celebrate 20 years of Muddy Puddles. Partners include, Baby Mori, Emma Bridgewater, Trotters/Liberty, and many more. The noise will be loud for Peppa in 2024 as we party the full year with all of our partners.
“My little Pony continues to ignite the imagination of our core audience of girls, giving them the freedom to dream big. The depth of this brands heritage also means My Little Pony has a strong teen/young adult following, particularly in Toy and Fashion. This year we celebrated 40 years of My Little Pony with bespoke fashion and beauty ranges and the original Pony was re-released for girls, teens and mums.”
Celine Buccomino. Head of Licensing. Wombles Operations Ltd
“BLE has been better than we imagined although this is testimony to the Wombles heritage. There’s more to come – 30 books, a new crafts line, and an upcoming film release.
“The Womble motto is ‘Make Good Use of Bad Rubbish, and this environmentally friendly message was a reflection of the growing environmental movements of the 70s. We continue to champion sustainability, a love of nature and the importance of community today with the Wombles Litter charities across the UK. These are community litter picking groups bringing people and communities together for a good cause.
“The Wombles are definitely back! And doing a lot of good.”
Helen Genia, International Hardlines Director & Country Lead for Italy, Moonbug Entertainment
“The Rail strikes definitely didn’t help on Wednesday but overall it’s been a very busy show and we have been really happy with attendance levels and the enthusiasm for our brands.
“We have seen a lot of visitors from Europe, the Middle East, Australia and Asia, as well as those closer to home. They were especially excited about our Little Angel animated preschool musical show and the new toy range, which will launch in Autumn 2025, . And then there’s the Blippi series, which will continue to delight our fans, with new partnerships and adventures.”
She continued: “We’re excited about our brands for 24/25, and we are seeing the success of the CoComelon Peek a Boo JJ Dancing Doll, which has just hit the shelves. We talk a lot about show to shelf and have taken this one stage further. It fosters interactive play, ties back to the content and combines motorised movements with song favourites from the show, with a bespoke advert launching on 16 October with a key retailer.”
Natalie Harvey, Executive Director of Sales, Acamar Films
“This BLE has been tremendous for Acamar. We have met with so many of our partners to share our plans for Bing, including our upcoming purpose-led UK brand campaign, international partnerships and new channel launches. We will have a lot to announce over the coming weeks.”
