Bulldog Licensing, one of the licensing industry’s leading agencies, showcased a range of its plans for the year at Las Vegas Licensing Expo 2024. Bulldog once again promoted a show-stopping selection of brands, headlined by the world-renowned classic property Care Bears, toy phenomenon Magic Mixies, the iconic Me to You character brand, evergreen hit Sesame Street, the much-loved, classic crime-fighting franchise Totally Spies, the iconic comedy character Mr Bean and one of the most successful children’s publishing brands of the past 25 years, That’s Not My….
Care Bears continues to show incredible growth more than forty years after the property first appeared on greetings cards and inspired one of the most successful licensing programs of all time. The brand has continued its upwards trajectory with further strong growth in 2024. This can largely be attributed to its clear and relatable brand identity. Indeed, the Care Bears have grown through various looks and styles, but the rainbow colors, lovable characters, and unique belly badges, along with the core messages of kindness and caring, remain the same.
The program is seeing huge retail traction across multiple categories, ranging from plush through to apparel, accessories, and homewares, making Care Bears one of the must-have multi-generational brands in the UK.
Bulldog is also building on the incredible success of Moose Toys’ Magic Mixies toys range, which began with the Magic Mixies Cauldron. This special toy comes with a spell book and everything else needed to mix a potion to create an interactive magical Mixie pet. The range has been a runaway hit since launch, both in its own right and now as the inspiration for a variety of licensed products.
All products are aimed at the children’s and tweens’ market and are designed with help from the comprehensive Magic Mixies style guide, which makes full use of the colorful characters, logos and imagery that have underpinned the success of the brand in the toy and plush space.
Nightwear, publishing, food and drink containers, bags, and accessories are just some of the Magic Mixies-inspired products at retail already – and many more licensing extensions are signed or on the way.
Magic Mixies is a hit on streaming services too! Magic Mixies webisodes, which first launched on YouTube and Kidoodle TV in May 2022, have also been available on Netflix since early 2023 and are boosting an already phenomenally successful brand.
Since 1995 Carte Blanche has partnered with best-in-class licensees to bring to market best-selling Me to You products across many categories including apparel, print on demand, food, gifting and nursery – selling over 8.5 million licensed products in 2023 alone. Tatty Teddy is already one of the most popular character brands on the market with 83% brand awareness among UK adults, and has a full, cross-category licensing program with enormous appeal, particularly among adult women, children and infants, showing strong growth at retail across multiple categories. 62% of UK adults have purchased a Me to You product in the last three months, highlighting the consistent consumer demand for the brand.
Now Bulldog Licensing is taking the extraordinary reach of Me To You’s signature character Tatty Teddy and the nursery property Tiny Tatty Teddy to the next level in 2024. Recent licensing deals include Brand Threads for nightwear, Pawprint Family for patches and pins and Craft Buddy for arts and crafts kits, while a network of international agents is now working with Bulldog to build on the brand’s strong presence in international markets.
Sesame Street is one of the best-known and most beloved children’s brands in the world, engaging fans of all ages while delivering on its mission to help children everywhere grow smarter, stronger and kinder.
Sesame Street is a key focus for Bulldog in the UK. Working on behalf of the global non-profit organization Sesame Workshop, Bulldog Licensing has announced numerous deals for Sesame Street as it continues to grow its presence at UK retail in 2024. In addition to Just Play’s master toy program there is a rapidly growing pre-school licensed product range at all major retailers. Sesame Street also has strong appeal to the adult market, inspiring successful ranges of apparel, badges, embroidered patches and more.
This strong retail and licensing performance comes at a time when Sesame Street programming is enjoying a hugely successful and growing broadcast and digital reach on Amazon Kids+, Tiny Pop, Channel 5’s Milkshake! pre-school programming block, and a YouTube channel attracting an incredible 94 million annual views in the UK and Ireland as well as a strong social media presence.
Produced by Banijay Kids & Family label Zodiak Kids & Family France, animated spy-fi series for teens and tweens Totally Spies! originally ran from 2001 for six seasons, hooking a generation of fans with its iconic aesthetic and powerful female leads. A new series has been confirmed, introducing the brand to a whole new generation of fans. It will launch from later this year around the world with co-producers Gulli (France), and Discovery Kids LATAM. It will also air across EMEA and the US with Warner Bros Discovery.
The initial licensing focus for Bulldog is on a strong adult nostalgia market keen to revisit an entertainment classic which has been viewed over 2.1 billion times on YouTube. Some of the early categories targeted will be apparel (daywear and nightwear), fashion accessories, tech products, health & beauty and stationery. Licensing industry interest is already strong, with the first deals expected to be announced soon.
For 2024, Bulldog Licensing has also been appointed by leading children’s entertainment powerhouse, Banijay Kids & Family, as UK licensing agent for Mr Bean – the iconic comedy character that has been wildly popular for nearly 35 years in both live action and animated formats, both on TV and in films.
Mr Bean tries to solve apparently minor problems presented by everyday tasks and often causes major, and hilarious, disruption in the process. The visual and often non-verbal comedy that drives the character has ensured there have been no language barriers to a success that has brought Mr Bean high awareness and enormous popularity in close to 200 countries. Mr Bean also has a staggering online presence that has attracted 19 billion lifetime views on YouTube and placed the property at the number one spot for TV and film brands on Facebook worldwide.
Bulldog Licensing will be building on Mr Bean’s existing licensing presence and pursuing new and expanded opportunities in kids’ and adults’ markets in 2024, focusing on both the iconic original series and the highly popular animated series. Imagery from both live and animated formats will inform a licensing campaign which will target multiple categories including (to name only a few) homeware, stationery, t-shirts, toys, collectables, bags and greeting cards.
Published by Usborne, That’s Not My… is the bestselling touchy-feely book series for babies and toddlers and a gifting favorite for new-borns as their first book. Featuring bright pictures, with patches of different textures, the books are designed to develop sensory and language awareness. There is also a little white mouse for children to spot on every page.
The humor, bright colors and distinctive That’s Not My… illustrations have inspired a delightful range of baby wear/accessories, kids wear, apparel, footwear and luggage from some of the UK’s major names in licensed apparel. Other licensed products currently available include wall stickers, bags and a gift range. That’s Not My… is firmly established as an evergreen property that is a part of the childhood of millions of children and, having recently launched at retail in the US, the fan base is ever growing. Bulldog will be targeting a wide range of categories ranging from toys and apparel to nightwear and games for the US, while continuing to build on the already established UK licensing program.
Bulldog Licensing Group MD Rob Corney says: “Vegas has arrived at a perfect time for Bulldog. With exciting new signings like Totally Spies and Mr Bean to introduce and momentum continuing to grow behind established hits like Care Bears and Sesame Street, this is great opportunity to highlight our strong brand portfolio and success to an international audience.”