If you attended Direct Marketing Days New York in June, you may have noticed that the Javits Center seemed a bit more animated than usual.
And no, I’m not talking about the exhibitors being extra peppy. I’m referring to what was happening in the hall next to DMDNY: Licensing International 2006. That show is where anyone with any kind of licensable property — from Angelina Ballerina to Zippy the Pinhead and everything in between (including the New York City Department of Sanitation) — goes to drum up interest from vendors in plastering those icons on toys, clothing and everything imaginable.
The show was overwhelming to this first-time visitor, and I’m familiar with a lot of licensed characters on two fronts. One, I’m a huge pop culture geek and two, I have a 3-year-old son who’s a prime target for a lot of this stuff.
Still, one feels bombarded with branded properties immediately upon entering the show (the ghost of Elvis’ brand was in the building looking for opportunities, as was the Pink Panther hawking, yes, Pink Panther Diamonds). Since most of my time had to be spent next door at DMDNY, I decided just to wander through Licensing Land like a tourist and take in the sights.
I quickly realized the show felt a lot like high school, complete with cliques and caste systems. The big guns were doing most of their business behind the closed doors of elaborate high-walled booths. Pikers wandering by the Warner Bros. booth could pick up a snazzy Scooby-Doo/DC Comics paper shopping bag, but weren’t allowed to see the wizard behind the curtain.
Then there were the medium-sized booths, with more wares on display to tantalize prospects. BBC Worldwide had a nifty booth with oodles of “Doctor Who” toys from the United Kingdom on display. The Dalek was the most popular toy in the U.K. last Christmas season, according to a BBC rep, who didn’t know if the Sci-Fi Channel was picking up the second series of the latest “Who” revival. (Don’t say I don’t ask the important questions.) And it also should be noted here that the BBC is gearing up to celebrate the 10th anniversary of “Teletubbies” next year with a huge promotional push. You’ve been warned.
Finally, there were the smaller booths with new characters. A lot of the folks manning these stands seemed desperate to get someone — anyone — to take a look. After a while I even stopped pausing near the small booths, because I felt sad when I accidentally got someone’s hopes up.
Some small entrepreneurs took matters to the hallways, combing the crowd to find prospects. One very exhausted looking man stopped me on what was the last day of the show and asked me if I worked for Target, maybe because I carried a red purse. When I said no, he sighed and said “Do you work for any retailer?”
Of course, hooking up with such a big chain store can help a new character line tremendously. A new animated series based on Wendy Ann Gardner’s “Naughty Naughty Pets” books will soon debut on Cartoon Network. But the brand got a huge boost this spring when Target asked Gardner to create a bunny character on an extremely tight deadline as the centerpiece of the retailer’s Easter promotion. (No fool, she designed the new rabbit in two days.)
As I wandered the exhibit hall, I realized that the Pavlovian reactions I have to some brands must run pretty deep. I couldn’t have turned and walked in the other direction any quicker when I was faced with a booth trumpeting the American debut of products featuring the Doodlebops, a Canadian kids band my son enjoys but I can’t stand. But my head whipped around quickly with interest when I heard Wiggles music streaming from the Hit Entertainment booth. My son loves them and mom will admit she dances along too. (And just try to get concert tickets — getting good seats to the Stones is an easier task.)
Then, of course, there’s the general convention-floor silliness. At the Dreamworks booth, I saw a Japanese man get so excited at the prospect of having his photo taken with Shrek that he charged toward the ogre, tackled him in a bear hug and nearly knocked him over. (Apparently, no one told the man it wasn’t the real Shrek.)
Over at the Viacom booth, there was more fun with photos. Visitors could create a “South Park” character and get it emblazoned on a luggage tag, or have their picture taken against a green screen and be superimposed in a shot with Jack Black in costume from “Nacho Libre,” preschool sensations The Backyardigans or SpongeBob SquarePants. (Yes, there is a photo of me flipping burgers with the porous yellow one in The Crusty Crab. No, you may not see it.)
One big difference from DMDNY was that there were more folks clearly just roaming the hall looking for goodies. The funny thing was that there actually were more knickknacks up for easy picking at “our” show. Speaking of which, did you get one of those nifty light-up martini glasses? I wish I could plug who gave them away — I saw them being carried everywhere but never spotted the booth giving them out.
Whoever poured that idea, a toast to you!
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