IntroductionUnder the weak sales trend this year, overseas toy manufacturers have played the "emotional card", trying to rely on classic and nostalgic brands such as "Phoebe" and "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" that were once smash hits and gradually fell silent to attract consumers. But if you think that these brand IPs are as "cheap and good" as China's classic domestic brands, then you are very wrong.
Classic Care Bear.The battle for classic IP is getting more and more fierce*: China and Foreign Toy Network (CTOY-GDTA) Editor: Jane Salas
According to Licensing International and market consultancy Circana, sales growth rates for licensed products are generally higher than the overall market (review:2.With 48 trillion licensing businesses, these sectors are the most profitable）。In the field of toys specifically, sales of licensed products already account for more than a quarter of total toy sales. In particular, the success of this year's "Barbie" movie has made the market once again pay attention to the attractiveness of classic IP to product sales. It is understood that this summer alone, Mattel sold 3$500 million Barbie doll, a significant increase of 25% from last year.
Barbie movie authorized doll.
In addition, there is Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Smash Bros. The launch of this film has also boosted the sales of related licensed toys. According to Karl Aaronian, head of marketing and product development at its main toy licensor, Playmates, this is the third major reboot of the IP, which has released dozens of new toys this year, more than half of which use the classic style of the original turtle.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles dolls from Playstar Toys.
This also means that the classic licensing products are highly risk-resistant, so the gold content of the classic licensing has increased (review:Clever use of IP authorization to revitalize "idle" assets), which has intensified the competition difficulty of manufacturers for classic nostalgic licensing, which is mainly reflected in the following three aspects:Licensing fees have risen significantly. According to Jonathan Cathey, CEO of Loyal Subjects, which has already licensed nostalgic classic IP IPs that became popular in the 80s and 90s, such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Teletubbies, and Rainbow BriteA few years ago, it cost about $100,000 to sign a mainstream IP, but now the same IP license can cost anywhere from $500,000 to $1 million. In some cases, royalties on authorized sales have risen from 6%-8% in the past to 12% or more.
Rainbow Fairy and Strawberry Doll classic nostalgic dolls from Loyal Subjects.
Authorization requirements are high. Jonathan Cathey also said that due to the large number of competitors, the threshold for competition has also been raised accordingly, at least with extensive experience in manufacturing, ** chain and retail distribution. "It's not enough to be willing to pay licensing fees, you also have to have a complete industrial package to ensure the success of the project, in order to gain the trust of the IP party. ”
He also complained that the time given by the IP side to the manufacturer to prepare the project is getting shorter and shorter. Generally speaking, the IP party will ask the authorized applicant to provide information such as the new product concept, marketing plan, distribution plan, launch strategy, etcIn the past, there were still 2 months to prepare, but recently the shortest period has even been shortened to 10 days, which is a great test of the strength of the authorizing applicant.
Jay Foreman, CEO of Basic Fun Toys, which has been licensed for classic and nostalgic product lines such as Tonka Tin and Lite Brite, said that in order to obtain the authorization of Care Bears (a warm bear IP that became popular in the early 80s with greeting card patterns and related toys are also popular), the company has done a lot of work: such as enriching the personality of the characters, increasing the image color, Convince mainstream retailers such as Target and Walmart to adjust their shelf arrangements from toddler to big kid areas to expand the product audience. After more than a year of repeated improvements, it won the authorization of this IP plush collection line in 2020.
Bear toys with richer colors and more trendy plays.
Less exclusive licensing. The reason why classic nostalgic IP is classic is because it has withstood the test of the market and time, so it is limited and scarce, as the so-called "classic IP is sought by hundreds of schools of thought in hand", so in order to maximize benefits, the IP party divides the authorization scope of the same IP more and more finely, forming a situation where several companies share IP, and it is becoming more and more common.
Foreign media have reported that for the same type of product, the IP party has authorized the same IP to 3 companies to produce 3 toys of different sizesOr produce toys at different prices for different companies;In addition, one is authorized to sell in mass channels such as supermarkets and the other in professional channels such as comic book stores and boutiques.
But the downside of this is that there are too many similar products on the market, which dilutes the profits of each licensee.
In 2017, due to the excessive distribution of IP licensed products, the annual sales of Star Wars-related toys fell for the first time in three years - and this is not an exclusive experience of Star Wars, the four popular IPs released in the same year: Transformers, Cars, Despicable Me and Spider-Man, all of which did not meet expectations. Therefore, the IP side should consider how to strike a balance.
Retro trend, big children's consumption dual drive
The popularity of classic IP is related to the resurgence of the retro trend and the rise of children's toy consumption.
This year's economic downturn, but the first consumption stimulus policy has been canceled, and the trend of market consumption is not clear. In response to this uncertainty, retailers have been more cautious in placing orders this year. Due to the "impulsive decision" of stockpiling last year, even retail giants such as Target and Walmart took months to cut prices** to get rid of unnecessary inventory.
Amanda Cioletti, vice president of Informa Markets, the organizer of the large-scale licensing expo overseas, said that in times of economic volatility, retailers tend to favor classic toys because their sales are more stable and stable. This makes it more likely that classic nostalgic toys will have access to limited shelf space offline, as they have had sales success and a group of adult parent fans who have grown up, and this group of fans will also pass on their love of classic nostalgic IP to the next generation.
A 40-year-old "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" superfan who lives in San Francisco said: He watched "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" on TV at the age of five, and since then he has fallen in love with this IP, collected 40 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles dolls, and still lined up to watch the movie of the same name when it was released in 1990.
Now his son is also in love with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Father and son watch old cartoons, read comics and look for the first classic style dolls at a flea market. This summer, they also watched the new movie Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Smash Bros. together and bought a new retro-style doll.
These are not the only ones. More and more adults are buying toys for themselves. According to market research firm Circana, the U.S. accounts for about 25% of the country's total toy sales, amounting to about $9 billion (Read more:Sales of such toys have soared, with five European countries selling 32.5 billion last year）。The growth momentum of the toy market now comes mainly from the 12-year-old+ group. And adult fans who have already married and had babies also choose updated and improved versions of classic nostalgic IP toys for their children. Juli Lennett, Toy Analyst at Circana, noted: "Touching the heartstrings of parents and even grandparents is a great way to market your product. ”
*: China and Foreign Toy Network (CTOY-GDTA) Editor: Jane Salas