Forbidden Planet International, a leading chain of 18 pop culture retail stores, is pleased to announce the appointment of Andrew Staff as its new Managing Director. Andrew has extensive experience in the retail sector, having previously served as CEO of Notcutts Garden Centres, COO of the EMEA region for Funko and more recently MD of Builders Merchants UP Building Products. Kenny Penman, a founding Director at Forbidden Planet International, said: “We are delighted to welcome Andrew as the new Managing Director of Forbidden Planet International. Andrew brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the role, and we are confident that he will be a great asset to our team. We look forward to working with him to continue growing the Forbidden Planet brand.”

The Insights Family – the global leader in kids, teens, parents, and family market intelligence, and MarTech company of the year – has  launched its inaugural Brand Management Playbook 2023 (https://go.theinsightsfamily.com/brand), which looks to uncover, present, and discuss the key components of building a compelling brand in the kids, teens, parents, and family space.

The Licensing Shop Inc (TLS) has announced it has signed a manufacturer’s representation agreement with Bubblegum Kids, the avantgarde character brand created by NHL Player Zach Hyman. Hyman is also an award-winning children’s book author and the C.E.O. of Soar Gaming Inc. Launched in 2021, Bubblegum Kids is an innovative brand combination of viral animated shorts, social media content and limited-edition NFTs on the Ethereum blockchain which sold over 2 million dollars within the first 24 hours with an additional 10 million dollars of secondary (third party) sales within the first year. Each of the distinctly designed characters have unique hairstyles, eyes, bubblegum color, clothing and accessories styled with nostalgic reverence to retrospective pop culture.