Range has exceeded expectations says retailer’s assistant merchandiser for older boys jersey.
Next is celebrating considerable success with its range of Pokémon apparel, with it being its biggest licence within the older boys jersey category.
Matt Kinsella, assistant merchandiser for older boys jersey, told The Source that the range had exceeded expectations, with it receiving a “massive reaction”.
The retailer was fast to react following the popularity surge of Pokémon Go last summer, getting designs onto shelves by mid September.
“We were expecting it to be big and we wanted to be one of the first onto it,” said Matt. “The range exceeded expectations of what it would be – we had a massive reaction across both retail and our Directory sales.”
The retailer worked with Fashion UK on the range and has five/six designs across t-shirts and sweatshirts, featuring characters such as Pikachu, Squirtle and the Poké Ball among others.
New styles are also being planned and Matt is confident that new additions to the gaming franchise will give the apparel a further boost.
Mickey Mattu, director of Fashion UK, commented: “We are delighted with how well our Pokémon boys’ range has performed in Next and are in advanced discussions for extending the range throughout 2017.
“We are working closely with Pokémon to ensure that the brand remains on trend and that our new lines become a must-have item for older boys across the country.”
Mathieu Galante, senior market development manager at The Pokémon Company International, Europe, continued: “Pokémon translates brilliantly into apparel and working with our best-in-class licensees we’ve created some stand out ranges which are delighting our fans young and old alike.
“We are really pleased with the fantastic success Fashion UK has had working with their older boys range in Next and look forward to extending our range with this key retailer this year.”
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