Including Macmillan Children’s Books launching a year of celebrations for Dear Zoo’s 35th.
Macmillan Children’s Books is to launch a year of celebrations to mark the 35th anniversary of Rod Campbell’s Dear Zoo in 2017. The programme will include a collaboration with ZSL London Zoo – The Dear Zoo Trail – which will open through the Easter holidays, as well as anniversary publishing, including a special hardback gift edition. Retailers will be encouraged to get on board with a host of Dear Zoo events supported by bespoke kits including activities, festive bunting and display materials. A storytelling event will tour all the major literary festivals throughout the year. A new stage performance of Dear Zoo will round off the celebrations in autumn 2017. Macmillan will also be working with licensees throughout the year including Milly & Flynn, Aurora and Paul Lamond Games.
Julie Jones has been appointed managing director of Redan Publishing. Julie has been joint md for the past three years – she originally joined the company in April 2003 as marketing manager.
Mad Beauty has picked up Packaging Design of the Year at The Beauty Awards 2016 for its Never Too Old Vintage Kellogg’s collection. Products in the range include bath and body items, as well as stationery, beauty cosmetic bags and accessories.
Aardman is teaming up with the Dragons’ Den winning Timberkits for a new range of Shaun the Sheep products. The mechanical model kits will feature the characters from Mossy Bottom and is the first licensed brand to be picked up by the company, which was backed by Touker Suleyman on the BBC2 show.
Smiley has launched a new fashion collection with Zara stores worldwide. The range includes handbags and apparel separates for women, all featuring the Smily icon. For children, Zara has also introduced a bomber jacket featuring sewn on sequinned patches.
WP Brands has been appointed as the exclusive licensing agent for Animal Jam in Australia and New Zealand. The company will now work directly with Peeko, which handles the worldwide licensing rights for the property on behalf of WildWorks.
LIMA is hosting its first Canada Holiday Event on Thursday December 8 at Corus Entertainment in Toronto. The educational and networking event will include speakers from the likes of NBA Canada, Nelvana Enterprises and Retail Council of Canada among others. A panel of licensees led by LIMA’s Martin Brochstein will also discuss ‘Compelling Reasons for a Licensee to take on a Licence’.
Sanrio is partnering with 3DShook for a new 3D printed jewellery line featuring Hello Kitty and My Melody. The Israeli start-up, which is based in Tel Aviv, will launch lines in silver and 18k gold plating with prices starting from €55.
Disney’s latest animation Moana has got off to a strong start in the US, taking $81.1 million over a five-day opening weekend. The movie is now the second largest Thanksgiving opener ever, just behind Frozen ($93m).
Nelvana has secured a number of new partners across a number of territories for its Little Charmers preschool brand. New licensees coming on board include Ravensburger, Panini, Warm Up, Educa Borras, Media Service Zawada, Giunti and Dulcop among others.
Hello Kitty is getting into the festive spirit with the launch of a digital advent calendar from Zoobe Messenger Entertainment. Fans can unlock a free GIF each day from December 1-25.
MD Licensing has teamed with Citterio – a specialist in packaged cooked meats and snacks – to bring an Alvinnn!!! and the Chipmunks‘ version of its three-in-one snack UnDueTris! to retail across Italy.
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