BBC Studios – Americas promoted Suzy Raia to senior vice president of consumer products and business development, as she continues to oversee and provide strategic licensing planning for the Bluey franchise.
Based out of New York, Raia joined the company in 2018 and is responsible for driving licensing and consumer products strategies across BBC Studios’ portfolio of properties in the U.S., Canada, and Latin America.
Her role involves product licensing for intellectual properties across multiple genres, including factual and natural history content, drama series, science-fiction, and children’s animation. In addition to Bluey, she will work with BBC brands Doctor Who, Top Gear, His Dark Materials, and the Natural History Unit programming.
Before joining BBC Studios, Raia spent over 19 years at Nickelodeon, most recently as vice president of partnerships and collaborations within the consumer products divisions. Before that, she was vice president of apparel and accessories for over 10 years. Throughout her career, she worked across the categories of activity, toys, back-to-school, stationery, and seasonal.
“I am living and breathing Bluey every day, and could not ask for a better brand in which to be immersed,” Raia said. “We have launched a robust licensing program in the U.S., 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.”
BBC Studios recently added eight new license partners for Bluey, which has been renewed for a third season on Disney Channel, Disney+, and Disney Junior in all territories outside Australia, New Zealand, and China.
“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,” said BBC Studios chief commercial officer Tara Maitra. “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.”