Category Archives: Retail

Fears surrounding pensions surface as Debenhams puts administrators on standby

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With the accountancy firm KPMG on standby to handle an insolvency process, Debenhams has reportedly failed to make a top-up payment to its pensions scheme this month, meaning that around 10,000 members could be worse off if the company enters administration.

On Friday, April 3rd, news emerged that the 242-year-old retailer was preparing to make a decision on whether to file for bankruptcy. This would be the second time the struggling retailer had fallen into administration, following a process 12 months ago when its current owner launched a CVA.

The potential administration would come just days after Debenhams put the vast majority of its workforce on furlough after it was forced to temporarily close its stores due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The department store has said that it intended to reopen the business after the lockdown and will continue to trade online for the time being.

However, for some 10,000 employees, an additional worry has emerged when The Sunday Telegraph reported that Debenhams had failed to make its April top-up payment – something that had previously been agreed with trustees.

A Debenhams spokesman said that the money had not been transferred as per the agreement, and that permission had not been sought from the Pensions Regulator.

The company’s pension scheme is also reportedly in significant debt.

It has been outlined, however, that filing a notice of intention to appoint administrators would be designed to protect Debenhams from legal claims from creditors during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Pensions Regulator has also recently announced that companies could access a three month pension contribution holiday over the COVID-19 disruption period.

It is expected that Debenhams will detail its decision surrounding administration this week. The retailer has been left with hundreds of millions of pounds of inventory on order from suppliers that it no longer requires due to the temporary closure of all non-essential shops to help stop the spread of COVID-19.

Licensing chatter: 10 questions with Riverside Brands’ Ashley Holman

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In these unprecedented times for the global community, it’s nice to keep connected – and for an industry as reliant on peer to peer networking as the licensing business, maintaining those connections with our industry colleagues is paramount. That’ why Licensing.biz is kicking off a new series of interviews to get to know a bit more about the people driving it forward.

Continuing our Licensing Chatter interview series, we catch up with the founder of Riverside Brands and Licensing.biz Power 50 alumni, Ashley Holman

Hello Ashley, hope you’re staying safe and well! to kick us off, can you tell us how you got into the licensing business?

I’m one of the few people that actively looked to get into licensing from the outset. While studying for a degree in Marketing at university I was introduced to a number of people by my father in all sorts of industries from Banking to Specialist Ship Insurance Brokering. One introduction was to David Scott from Rainbow Productions who invited me for a beer with Ian Downes from Start Licensing and himself one half term…

They gave me an overview of the industry, the different roles that existed and how it all fitted together as an industry. Following a visit to Brand Licensing Show Europe in 2003 as a visitor I was amazed at the scale of the industry and the size of the commerce but at the same time the fun nature of the subject matter …….(including the Roy Lowe & Son boys walking around in Elvis suits for good measure).

I then knew that it was licensing over insurance for me… Following my graduation, I then managed to secure a role selling advertising into the industry with LicensingPages which gave me a great network and experience before a stint at Coolabi in my first licensing role. From there I moved to Nickelodeon where I had various licensing roles over a 12 year period before setting up Riverside Brand at the end of 2018.

That must have given quite a varied perspective of the industry – what have been the biggest changes you’ve seen in the space over that time?

I’ve spent most of my career in the kids’ space of the industry and the main shift there has been the sheer level of competition. Previously for kids content, consumer products was seen as the icing on the cake commercially but now with so many shows, so many different platforms, CP is a core revenue driving element to a kids IP from the outset.

More day to day in the workflow; retail is now the first element to onboard, with licensees then much more likely to partner once they know there is demand. This is in contrast to around 2005 to 2007, when it was a much more licensee first approach.

What then Ashley, has been the proudest moment of your career to date?

The day I got the Companies House registration certificate for Riverside Brands Limited. Setting up my own business is something I have wanted to do since the very first moment I started my career and I came very close a number of times over the years in doing it, however to have finally taken the plunge and received the industry support that I have been lucky enough to have been afforded has been incredible and I am truly thankful.

Have you got a favourite licensing deal/partnership on the CV – what makes it stand out for you?

Tough one to answer this as I have been fortunate to work on a number of great partnerships from multi-million dollar strategic partnerships which are exciting to be a part of, to smaller yet innovative ones too. A couple that stand out have to be:

My first deal at Nickelodeon was for a range of SpongeBob Real Musical Instruments with John Hornby Skewes and Sons. It was their first foray into licensing, it went on to win a number of awards, was a great commercial success for both them and Nickelodeon and they were still a partner nearly 12yrs later when I left…

Of course, the first licenses which I signed as Riverside Brands on behalf of ZURU for its brand Rainbocorns were very special too which were with Danilo, Fashion UK and Roy Lowe & Sons. I am grateful for their support so early on and the other partners that are now onboard with all the brand I work on.

What are some of the biggest hurdles the licensing business is facing at the moment?

Given we are in the midst of frankly an unbelievable moment in time, aside from the immediate issues of stores being shut, the longer term impact is likely to be the reduction of support of new/smaller brands in or coming to the market. Retailers will likely be incredibly risk adverse for a considerable period of time as they look to rebuild themselves. This will have a big impact into the licensing world with IP that perhaps would have been given shelf space, now likely to get a reduced opportunity to show it can work.

Therefore online will become even more important to get right to ensure you stand out from the crowd.

What conversation do you think the industry needs to be having right now?

Aside from the obvious of when will stores re-open, it will be around how do all sides involved work together with fairer commercial terms for all to ensure everyone can survive the coming 18months or so.

No one knows what the full impact will be or when things will be ‘back to normal’, if indeed they ever do so open dialogue will be key.

Retail is one of the biggest topics of talk at the moment – what do you think the future relationship between retail and licensing looks like?

There is always the balance between own brand/label and licensed brands and the margin mix buyers try to achieve between the two. However there is no denying that with the right brand, you will sell more of the same generic product so it’s about better partnerships between all those involved which is a term that gets thrown around a lot but if done properly will ensure there is a great long term relationship between retail and licensing for years to come.

If retailers get burnt time after time after a ‘big sell in’ and promise, then licensed space will only get less and less.

What would be your dream brand to work with or licensing deal to establish?

If I could work on Peppa Pig / Hey Dougie and Fireman Sam / PJ Masks right now, then I would be a hero in my household. Failing that, there are a number of gin licensed deals being done at the moment so I’d love to get a partnership away in that category… not just because I’m a gin fan, of course.

What is the best part of your job?

We get to talk about fun things like cartoons and toys, yet it is part of a huge commercial industry where no two days are the same. I love working on bringing products to market through a great working partnership between the brand owner, licensee and retailer and ultimately seeing a child’s joy through the product they are using / playing with. That gives great satisfaction.

What advice would you give to anyone starting out their career in licensing?

The industry is really welcoming and there are a lot of people out there that will offer you great advice and help you as much as they can (as they did for me all those years ago) so don’t be afraid to ask.

Also, put yourself out there as much as you can, this is a very sociable and close industry. Hard work gets rewarded but be patient and try and get involved and learn as many of the different aspects to the business even if that is informally from colleagues and peers as it’ll give you a greater perspective of the way it all fits together.

Finally, you’ve got to enjoy what you do otherwise you’ll never be good at it if you don’t.

Carte Blanche’s Me to You partners with Tesco for Mother’s Day £1,000 shopping spree competition

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Carte Blanche Greetings’ award-winning Me to You brand has partnered with Tesco for the seventh year running to offer customers the chance to win a £1,000 shopping spree for Mother’s Day.

The campaign will roll out across 400 of the supermarket giant’s stores, and will be hosted online, as well as promoted across all of Me to You’s Mother’s Day gifting and cards, including pajamas, mugs, and chocolates.

Customers to the store can enter the free prize draw simply by entering the competition URL promoted on Me to You Mother’s Day product and submitting their details online.

Me to You marketing manager, Grace Elphinstone, said: “We are really excited to be partnering with Tesco for the seventh year running on this Mother’s Day activity. We are delighted that Tesco has recognised the synergy between the Me to You brand and this special occasion, allowing our product portfolio to own the Mother’s Day space in store, offering customers a one stop solution for their Mother’s Day gifting and the ability to shop across categories for the brand they love.”

Rainbow’s 44 Cats leaps into UK retail spearheaded by Lisle Licensing

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Rainbow’s 44 Cats has landed on its feet across UK broadcasters and retail thanks to a growing popularity on channels such as Pop TV, Nick Jr, and Nick Jr Too, as well as a licensing programme spearheaded by Lisle Licensing.

Already a nightwear collection from TDP Textile Aykroyds is poised to enter the UK market through F&F and Amazon, while the UK’s official toy partner Simba Dickie’s Siso Toys has started distributing the all-cat collection to retailers including The Entertainer, Argos, Amazon, and Asda from this April.

The toys – created by master toy partner Toy Plus – are based on the key elements of the series: music, creative play patterns and collectability. From interactive plush toys to figurines, from play sets to musical toys, each item is deeply linked to the show.

Since its debut in the UK, global content group Rainbow’s 44 Cats has been consistently growing, with the show reaching millions of viewers and increasing audiences. The first season of 44 Cats started airing on Pop TV, Nick Jr and Nick Jr Too in 2019 and is already enjoying popularity across the world.

The 52 x 13’ animated series is a mix of music and cuteness telling the daily adventures of four kittens.

Consumer product deals are in place with UK partners including John Toys and Amscan developing products with multi territorial deals and others such as Sony Music, Dreamtex, Redan Publishing, Fashion UK, Ravensburger, Clementoni, Chicco & Bip.

“After captivating TV, social media and streaming platforms around the world, the brand is set to amaze with an extensive pr and marketing plan for both trade and consumer audiences,” said Rainbow.

McDonald’s to scrap plastic toys from Happy Meals by 2021

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McDonald’s has joined the fight against plastic waste having detailed plans to remove plastic toys from its Happy Meals from 2021.

In a press release, the company stated that from next year every Happy Meal in the UK will include either a soft toy, a paper-based toy or a book, as opposed to a toy made from non-recyclable plastic.

McDonald’s went on to state that the initiative will remove more than 3,000 metric tons of plastic from its business. It also marks the biggest reduction of plastic by McDonald’s UK and Ireland to date.

“We care passionately about the environment and are committed to reducing plastic across our business including within our Happy Meal,” said Gareth Helm, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of McDonald’s UK and Ireland.

“Families have high expectations of us and we’re working as hard as we can to give them the confidence that their Happy Meal is as sustainable as possible. Getting that right is a big responsibility, but we believe the changes we’re making today have the potential to make a big difference.”

From this month, McDonald’s is going to trial paper packaging for Happy Meals toys, the first time this has been done by the restaurant in the UK. From August, paper packaging will be used to wrap books in Happy Meals, a move which will help remove 200 tonnes of plastic from the business by 2021.

Later this year, McDonald’s will give customers the options to choose between a toy or a book with Happy Meals before it carries out a five week toy amnesty across the nation, asking for customers to return any unwanted plastic toys to restaurants.

The company will then recycle the plastic from the returned items to create play equipment for Ronald McDonald House Charities in the UK and Ireland.

Fashion and Furnishing retailer Laura Ashley files for administration

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The high street fashion and furnishing name, Laura Ashley is to file for administration, having failed to secure a £15m emergency loan to keep the firm from collapse.

Laura Ashley operates more than 150 British stores and employs some 2,700 people. It has stated that rescue plans for the high street name had failed due to the coronavirus outbreak.

In a statement, it said: “The Covid-19 outbreak has had an immediate and significant impact on trading, and ongoing developments indicate that this will be a sustained national situation.

“Discussions with stakeholders have been ongoing and the directors are in advanced discussions for the provisions of third-party debt funding. However, based on the company’s revised cashflow forecasts and the increased uncertainty facing the group, the company expects that it will not be in a position to draw down additional funds from third-party lenders in a timely manner sufficient to support working capital requirements.

“MUI Asia Limited – the investment company that controls Laura Ashley – has confirmed that it is unable to provide financial support in the required timeframe.”

The retailer said it intended to appoint Robert Lewis and Zelf Hussain from the accounting firm PwC as administrators to Laura Ashley and its subsidiaries, Premier Home Logistics, Laura Ashley Investments, and Texplan Manufacturing.

Four weeks ago Laura Ashley narrowly avoided collapse after agreeing an emergency deal with its main lender, the US band Wells Fargo. It then announced new plans to revive the ‘timeless’ designs of its late founder in an attempt to breathe new life into the heritage brand.

On Friday, Laura Ashley said it had “not yet seen a significant financial impact due to Covid-19” but did warn that the virus had “the potential to negatively influence future trading as a result of reduced footfall.”

The RHS appoints Danilo as its diaries and calendars partner

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The Royal Horticultural Society has appointed the licensed calendar, greetings cards, gift wrap and diaries publisher as its new calendar and diary partner.

The coming year will see Danilo produce a wide range of 2021 RHS calendars and diaries. The items will feature photographic images of RHS gardens, the RHS Chelsea Flower Show and plant portraits, alongside illustrative images selected from the RHS Lindley Collections.

The range will feature a number of product formats, including the RHS Chelsea Flower Show Slim Calendar, RHS Gardens Square Calendar, and the RHS The Collection A5 Diary. Also available will be the RHS Gardens Slim Diary, RHS Fruit and Flowers Slim Calendar, and the RHS Illustrated Slim Diary.

The collection will be completed with the RHS Easel Calendar and the RHS Family Organiser.

Two deluxe products will also feature under the new partnership: An RHS A3 Calendar with botanical illustrations from the RHS Lindley Collections – in a special tear-off format so the artworks can be framed, and an RHS Collectors Gift Box Set featuring the RHS Gardens Square Calendar, the A5 Diary and a pen in a deluxe box.

The calendars and diaries will be available at a wide range of book, card and gift shops, as well as supermarkets, department stores and RHS shops from September 2020. They will also be widely available at online retail, including rhsshop.co.uk and danilo.com. A selection of these products will launch at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in May 2020.

The market for the range is expected to be RHS members and gardening enthusiasts as well as gift givers of all ages.

Dan Grant, licensing director, Danilo, said: “Not only is the RHS the world’s best-known gardening charity, enjoying unmatched levels of awareness, but it has supplied an extraordinary selection of beautiful photographic imagery and artwork to inspire the designs of our calendars and diaries. We are delighted to be working with the RHS on this range.”

Cathy Snow, licensing manager, RHS, added: “Danilo is highly recognised and well regarded in its industry, with innovative and award-winning product designs.

“This range wonderfully reflects the varied and inspirational work of the RHS and will be popular not only with lovers of gardens and gardening but with anyone who loves calendars and diaries that are both useful and beautifully designed.”

The RHS appoints Danilo as its diaries and calendars partner

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The Royal Horticultural Society has appointed the licensed calendar, greetings cards, gift wrap and diaries publisher as its new calendar and diary partner.

The coming year will see Danilo produce a wide range of 2021 RHS calendars and diaries. The items will feature photographic images of RHS gardens, the RHS Chelsea Flower Show and plant portraits, alongside illustrative images selected from the RHS Lindley Collections.

The range will feature a number of product formats, including the RHS Chelsea Flower Show Slim Calendar, RHS Gardens Square Calendar, and the RHS The Collection A5 Diary. Also available will be the RHS Gardens Slim Diary, RHS Fruit and Flowers Slim Calendar, and the RHS Illustrated Slim Diary.

The collection will be completed with the RHS Easel Calendar and the RHS Family Organiser.

Two deluxe products will also feature under the new partnership: An RHS A3 Calendar with botanical illustrations from the RHS Lindley Collections – in a special tear-off format so the artworks can be framed, and an RHS Collectors Gift Box Set featuring the RHS Gardens Square Calendar, the A5 Diary and a pen in a deluxe box.

The calendars and diaries will be available at a wide range of book, card and gift shops, as well as supermarkets, department stores and RHS shops from September 2020. They will also be widely available at online retail, including rhsshop.co.uk and danilo.com. A selection of these products will launch at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show in May 2020.

The market for the range is expected to be RHS members and gardening enthusiasts as well as gift givers of all ages.

Dan Grant, licensing director, Danilo, said: “Not only is the RHS the world’s best-known gardening charity, enjoying unmatched levels of awareness, but it has supplied an extraordinary selection of beautiful photographic imagery and artwork to inspire the designs of our calendars and diaries. We are delighted to be working with the RHS on this range.”

Cathy Snow, licensing manager, RHS, added: “Danilo is highly recognised and well regarded in its industry, with innovative and award-winning product designs.

“This range wonderfully reflects the varied and inspirational work of the RHS and will be popular not only with lovers of gardens and gardening but with anyone who loves calendars and diaries that are both useful and beautifully designed.”

Universal Brand Development launches new Jurassic World retail campaign with Smyths Toy Superstores

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Universal Brand Development has launched a new Jurassic World retail marketing initiative with Smyths Toy Superstores, a campaign that kicked off with a special screening of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom at The Vaults on London.

The event featured hours of immersive activities and the opportunity to play with new products from the recently refreshed cross-category consumer products programme. Digital gaming experiences, themed food and drink and an authentic dinosaur-stampede complete with costumed adults running for their lives also featured.

The invite-only soiree was co-hosted by the YouTubers Gorgeous Movies who took over the Smyths Instagram account, posting live updates using the #EnterJurassicWorld hashtag. The campaign continues post event with Gorgeous Movies creating bespoke Jurassic World content from the day for its YouTube channel of more than 1.7 million subscribers.

In addition, Smyths has also been posting footage highlights from the day on YouTube and across its Facebook page with a retail call to action.

 Continuing to expand Jurassic World’s retail footprint remains a top priority for Universal Brand Development as the brand nears its third decade with new product ranges and refreshes coming through.

Fans can look forward to the new upcoming Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous animated series from DreamWorks Animation, Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment for Netflix due to hit screens later this year, and the third installment in the Jurassic World film series, entitled Jurassic World Dominion, which will premiere in summer 2021.

Fuzzballs is primed for success as Scribbler expands its licensed card range

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The popular character brand Fuzzballs has found success with the stationery and greetings retailer, Scribbler, who has just detailed its plans to expand its range of Fuzzball licensed cards.

The Fuzzballs greetings range now features over 12 different birthday, novelty, and holiday cards in store, as well as over 100 cards online that span a rang of holidays and occasions. Fuzzballs also boasts a line of 25 cards that can be personalised with photos and messages.

Created in 2013, Fuzzballs sprang into life as a popular web comic. The property now boasts over 300 different licensed products available worldwide, including shirts, stationery, books and homewares. Fuzzballs has built up a global audience of fans with its more than 70 million iMessage and Instagram stickers.

The property’s licensing programme is currently managed by Rocket Licensing.

Its expansion within Scribbler reflects the growing popularity and recognition of the Fuzzballs brand at retail. Its card range aims to tap in to the ‘cute humour’ that has made the brand such a digital sensation.

“It is so exciting to see how positive customers have been at Scribbler to our initial range of Fuzzballs cards and clearly wanted even more,” said Marc Sach, creator of Fuzzballs.

“To so quickly have Scribbler ask us for an even larger range of cards just shows the mainstream market clearly wants more Fuzzballs in their lives and we are thrilled to see Fuzzballs take on an even large presence both in store and online at Scribbler.”