Tag Archives: Dick Bruna

Miffy pops up at Westfield London this summer

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Miffy’s first UK food pop-up launches this summer at Westfield White City, when Dick Bruna’s classic character takes over Ichiba, Europe’s largest food hall, on 11 July (until 30 September 2022).

This summer’s take-over of Ichiba aims to delight Miffy’s broad audience – from families with young children to adult design fans, Westfield shoppers, London tourists and Instragrammers looking for the latest foodie vibe.

Located in Westfield’s new extension on the lower ground floor, Ichiba will deck out its 17,400 sq ft of dining and retail space with Miffy’s familiar form, including eye-catching window vinyls, brightly coloured POS and backdrops, plus a giant 2m high Miffy lamp (the perfect prop for selfie-lovers).

For the in-store dining experience, Ichiba’s chefs will serve up Miffy-shaped buns filled with red bean paste, carrot-shaped buns filled with matcha custard, matcha buttercream Miffy cookies, plus a range of Miffy-inspired lattes.

An exclusive Japan Centre x Miffy tote bag will be available in-store at Ichiba and online at japancentre.com, plus other Miffy merchandise including on-the-go coffee mugs, plush, books, interior gifts and cooking utensils. Bunny-shaped baking pans and cookie cutters will be available to purchase so visitors can recreate the Ichiba x Miffy cookies at home.

Highlight PR, which brokered the 12-week pop up, is supporting the activation with an extensive marketing campaign, including a giant display unit filled with Miffy plush located in Westfield’s parenting area (part of a #FindMiffy social challenge to drive footfall to Ichiba), a paid influencer partnership with Great British Bake Off finalist Kim-Joy, plus a day of free family activities in-store on Saturday 23 July, comprising origami craft activities and a costume appearance.

Marja Kerkhof, MD of Mercis bv, which manages Miffy creator Dick Bruna’s worldwide copyrights, says: “Despite her Dutch roots, there is nevertheless a great synergy between Miffy and Japanese culture. This promotion with Ichiba will give the brand fantastic exposure in the UK within a luxury retail environment. It is also perfect timing ahead of the Year of the Rabbit in 2023.”

Rocket Licensing to rep Miffy in the UK and Eire

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Mercis, which manages the works of Dick Bruna, has appointed Rocket Licensing to represent global icon Miffy in the UK and Eire.

Mercis has been keen to secure a new home for Miffy after previous manager DRI Licensing’s decision to wind down the company.

Marja Kerkhof, MD of Mercis, says: “Our mission is to share Dick Bruna’s work, and Miffy, with as many people as possible, but always with respect for art and the world of a child. It is never easy to make this kind of decision when working with someone’s oeuvre, but it is my belief that Miffy will be in good hands with Rob, Charlie and the Rocket team. We look forward to this collaboration and the exciting possibilities it could bring. But first let’s focus on 2023, Ýear of the Rabbit!”

Rob Wijeratna, Joint MD of Rocket Licensing, adds: “We are so excited to welcome Miffy on board at Rocket Licensing. She is a classic design brand and is instantly recognisable across generations, cultures and languages. Her iconic status is largely down to the simple, impactful design and the key core values of fun, imagination and simplicity.

“Miffy’s licensing programme spans all ages and categories and has featured some exciting collaborations and experiential events, and as we approach the Year of the Rabbit in 2023, our team is really looking forward to building on that and taking the consumer products programme to the next level.”

Miffy partners with BYBORRE for knitwear and accessories collection

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Miffy – the iconic bunny character created by graphic artist Dick Bruna – is launching  a new limited-edition, responsibly sourced men’s knitwear and accessories range.

The collection has been created by BYBORRE, a Dutch textile innovation company committed to democratizing the textile industry by offering transparency, reliability and freedom in textile creation.

To achieve this, BYBORRE uses its award-winning software platform Create™ to allow the design, sampling and production of textiles all in one place in the company’s Amsterdam-based knitlab, or via its transparent ecosystem of suppliers. This approach means less waste and more design freedom for the company and the creators with which it collaborates.

Dick Bruna’s illustrative style – recognised worldwide – captures the essence of a character or story with just a few lines and a small range of colours.

BYBORRE has mirrored this style, producing a capsule collection of refined menswear where the simple designs play with the scale of Bruna’s artwork; some garments feature large-scale linework, others feature smaller repeat patterns, some just feature subtle imprints of Miffy’s iconic silhouette. The palette of colours, like Bruna’s, is limited.

The collection spans men’s staples such as a suit jacket, trousers and button tee, as well as key pieces that have featured in previous BYBORRE limited edition ranges but have evolved here – including an open-back vest, layer shirt and an A-type jacket.

The range also includes lifestyle accessories comprising a versatile everyday bag, a large woven blanket, a FIDLOCK equipped Keycord and a classic 5-Panel cap.

Marja Kerkhof, MD of Mercis, which manages the Miffy brand, says: “The new BYBORRE collection is an important step in the evolution of our global collections for the Miffy brand. Not only is the range responsibly produced – something we want more of our licensees to consider – but it also showcases Miffy’s design kudos and unisex appeal, together with the creative flexibility Dick Bruna’s work offers.”

Borre Akkersdijk, CCO of BYBORRE, adds: “It has been a privilege to pay homage to Dick Bruna’s art in our 10th Limited Edition. We hope it will inspire creators worldwide ‘to be part of something bigger’ by creating consciously bespoke textiles that don’t impact the planet.”

The Miffy BYBORRE limited edition range is now available from Selfridges in the UK and www.byborre.com

Miffy celebrates 65th anniversary with a year of licensing and collaborations success

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It’s been a 65th anniversary celebrated in style for Dick Bruna’s iconic white bunny character, Miffy, whose fans have been ‘spoiled by an array of new products’ released throughout 2020.

A highlight of the milestone year – and not one to be forgotten anytime soon – has been the Miffy Design Challenge, in which brand owner Mercis invited design and fashion students from across the world to re-imagine the character by designing a new outfit for a 3D Miffy.

No fewer than 82 highly creative entries have been whittled down to 10 winners, each of which has been produced as an exclusive, limited-edition plush collection by Dutch licensee, Bon Ton Toys. Launched in the UK with a competition via the Miffy Shop. fans were given the chance to win one of the exclusive winning plush toys before it is launched to retailers across the world.

This summer saw the launch of a high-end collection of Miffy bags and purses from Strathberry, as well as a new range of craft kits from Stitch and Story that brought Miffy and friends, including Poppy Pig and Boris Bear brought to market. Licensed to Charm launched a range of silver and gold Miffy-inspired jewellery for the teen and adult market, while still to come is a new Miffy Christmas charm from the gift partner Magpie, and bamboo plates will follow recent tinware lines.

In publishing, Dick Bruna became the star of the latest edition of Thames & Hudson’s series The Illustrators which celebrates our greatest illustrators and acts as an introduction to the art and techniques of Bruna including his creation of Miffy. A new treasury of four Miffy classic stories was also published by Simon & Schuster in October. 

Translating well into fashion across the ages, Tobias and the Bear launched a new baby and toddler collection with a new distinctive and stylish unisex handwriting. A partnership with Next in girlswear has been rewarded with a Licensing Awards nomination, while another success story for this year was the Miffy NHS Heroes T-Shirts initiative.

Alicia Davenport, licensing director at DRi Licensing, said: “In spite of this year’s many challenges we were happy to be able to celebrate Miffy’s milestone birthday with so many genuinely beautiful and innovative new collections. And as we come to the end of this celebratory year, it has been a wonderful pinnacle for Miffy to be selected as a Finalist in the prestigious Licensing Awards, Classic Licensed Property category.”

Miffy celebrates 65th anniversary with exclusive Maggie & Rose partnership

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Maggie & Rose, the global family members’ club, has teamed up with Dick Bruna’s classic children’s character, Miffy, to celebrate the little white bunny’s 65th anniversary this Easter.

The collaboration launches in London on Mother’s Day, Sunday, March 22, with a Miffy-themed afternoon tea available at the newly opened Maggie & Rose public café in Islington.

Set against a backdrop of Dick Bruna’s signature artworks on display in the café, guests can nibble on savoury sandwiches, Miffy cookies and orange macarons, washing the treat down with a healthy carrot shot.

The Miffy Afternoon Tea costs £12 each for adults (£15 to include a glass of Prosecco), and £5 each for children. Available from March 22 to April 14.

From March 30, the partnership will roll out into the classrooms and brasseries of the Maggie & Rose London clubs in Islington, Chiswick, and Kensington. Members and non-members can enjoy Miffy-themed art and cooking classes, storytelling and dressing up. The activity will run until April 14.

Maggie & Rose’s head of marketing, Anna O’Riordan, said: “We aim to bring families together in ways that are creative, educational and fun – whether that be through our clubs, classes or nurseries. Dick Bruna believed in allowing space for a child’s imagination.

“This mirrors Maggie & Rose’s approach to learning which centres around the process of creativity as being key to a little’s one development.”

The Maggie & Rose clubs located in China and Hong Kong will also be celebrating Miffy’s 65th birthday later in the year.