Miffy's On
the Make
FROM PUBLISHING
TRENDS (JULY 2002)
There
may have been no mega-hit property at this year’s Licensing
2002 International show — notwithstanding the media
hootenanny over Lemony Snicket — but even in this somewhat
gun-shy climate, which saw licensing industry retail
sales dip 4% last year, deals were being dialed up at
the Javits Center on June 11-13. First in line, perhaps,
were former Golden Books colleagues Stephen
Weitzen and Rich Collins, whose merchandising,
licensing, and publishing operation Big Tent Entertainment
was working overtime to promote its first property,
Dick Bruna’s Miffy, whom they represent
in North America on behalf of Dutch publisher Mercis.
While she’s a major hit in Japan (where there are 36
dedicated retail stores, and $1 billion a year in sales),
the adorable little bunny has never quite hopped in
the US, despite the fact that worldwide book sales exceed
80 million units, spanning 100 titles in 40 languages
(with 37 titles available in the US). But having grabbed
North American licensing rights from United Media,
Big Tent signed ten new licenses at the show, including
Gund for plush and a deal with Sony, plus
a firm US deal for distribution of a 3-D animation TV
series. But Big Tent’s first order of business entails
some remedial work on the book program. US publishing
rights had been licensed to Kodansha, and titles
had the odd flavor of being translated from the Japanese,
rather than Dutch. After tweaking the existing titles,
however, Big Tent will be adding to the list, confident
that Miffy can melt the hearts of a sizable US audience.
Another substantial first exhibitor was Classic Media,
a company spawned as a separate entity when Golden Books
was jointly acquired by Random House and the
entity now known as Classic Media, which divided up
the spoils. The company represents the hallowed Golden
properties (that puppy, that rabbit), as well as those
acquired by Golden in its last years, including Lassie,
Underdog, and Casper. No deals to report
yet, but lots of interest. Incidentally, no exhibit
sparked quite as much interest as the FDNY Fire
Truck, as New York’s firefighters are now actively in
the licensing business to forestall the ripoff trade,
with all royalties going to the Fire Safety Education
Fund.
Elsewhere at the show, and having already conquered
much of the civilized world, Hungry Minds licensing
mavens Marc Mikulich and John Hislop were
seen scheming more far-flung franchises for their Dummies
imprint. Initial licensing forays were via video (Yoga
for Dummies) and interactive CD-ROMs, which kicked
off in France and are now on tap in Germany, with 10
titles targeting personal finance, creating greeting
and business cards, and the like. Then there were chocolate-chip
cookie baking kits in the US, and now consumer electronics
are on the horizon, via Gemini Industries (Home
Theatre Hookups, Home Networking, and Computer
Setup). But that’s not all, folks. Stay tuned for
the four-hour Pregnancy for Dummies TV series,
which airs this fall on the Discovery Channel,
and not to be missed are the nine sets of “conversation
cards” — card decks, themed by book title (Public
Speaking for Dummies, Dating for Dummies)
— that have been licensed to Table Talk, a division
of The BookSource, the St. Louis wholesaler.
(The BookSource’s Sandy Jaffe, who bought the
paper goods company Peaceable Kingdom two years
ago, also reports new deals with Dr. Seuss, Ian
Falconer’s Olivia, and Thomas the Tank
Engine.) For those who just can’t get enough, Bally’s
casino is testing a Winning for Dummies slot
machine, and Basic Solutions will be releasing
massage kits in fall ’03, which will go in perfectly
decadent style with the four page-a-day calendars set
for the UK in ’03: Sex, Wine, Golf
and Beer for Dummies.
©2002
Publishing Trends
