“Presenting To Retail: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly”

David NiggliSeptember 29, 2009

David Niggli

A 20+ year veteran in retailing who most recently was President and Chief Merchandising Officer for FAO Schwarz.

Career has included business relationships with major studios, property owners, mass and specialty manufacturers, independent designers, illustrators and authors.

1

A Licensor/ Retailer Encounter

Licensor- I have this new property I want to show you. It’s a new kid’s TV show.

Retailer- What’s it about?Licensor- Oh, it’s an adorable program about a dog and his owner who is a little boy, who is his best friend. It’s like Clifford meets Curious George.Retailer- Where and when will it be on?

Licensor- Well, we are waiting to hear what markets it will be in, but I am sure it will be in all the majors.Retailer- What will the product be?

Licensor- Oh we are talking to Mattel and Hasbro, and the apparel guys.Retailer- What is your distribution plan?

Licensor- Well, Wal Mart is really interested.Retailer- Why don’t you come back to me when you know more specifics.

2

What Are The Best Ways For A Licensor To Get A Retailer’s Attention!

3

Know The Property Inside And Out

In this world of multimedia, where content is in abundance, the job of a licensor is harder than ever to get attention for your brand and/ or property.

If you are not an expert on the property how do you expect the retailer to get excited about it?

4

You Need To Know The Following;

Who are the main characters and what their key personality traits are.

Be specific in character descriptions, for example don’t say it is a inquisitive character, explain in context of the property what makes the character inquisitive.

Define who are lead characters and who are secondary and what is the relationship between them.

What is the world that the property lives in; literally and in detail define what is the environment that it exists in?

Are there any limitations to the character, are there products or retailers that are not a proper fit for the property?

5

Know Who The Ultimate Consumer Is For The Property

You need to know the following;

What is the age of the consumer

What is the sex of the consumer

What are the financial demographics of the consumer

Are there multiple target consumer groups that the property can appeal to

Would the property appeal to a collector base6

Have A Point of View On What The Product Should Be

You need to have a perspective on the following;What are the product categories that make sense for the property; if you know the property inside and out this will lead you to the right product mix.

Have an idea of what type of manufacturers are right for the property; what is the quality, price, design capabilities and distribution that you are looking for.

7

Where Should This Property Be Sold

You need to identify the following;

Is it a mass property

Is it a specialty property

Is it both, and if so how do you distinguish between the two

Target specific retailers that you feel is the ideal home for the property

8

Once You Have Completed All The Previous Steps You Are Now

Ready To Present To Potential Retailer Partners

First Step-List Your Target Partners In Highest Order Of Preference

Remember The Best Partner May Not Be The Biggest!

9

You Presentation Should Include The Following;

A detailed bio of the property, its characters and the overall DNA of the brand

Style guides or a style guide power point and/ or presentation boards. Illustrate the look and the feel of the brand through graphic treatments and presentations

Show how the property could look in their stores or on their website

If the property is going to be multi-channel illustrate how this retailer can be unique with it

What is the marketing support and define what promotional opportunities there are

What are the potential eyes for the property (how many theatres on opening day, what time slot will it be on, etc,)

10

Last But Not Least Make The Retailer Understand Why This Property Is A

Must For Them And How I t Can Make Them Uni que!

11

Tips For Your Presentation

Do not be vague. Make sure your presentation has direction and a point of view specifically for the retailer you are presenting to.

On the other hand, once you state your case allow the retailer to take it in and interpret for themselves. They know their venues the best and may know things that you are not aware of. You are laying the groundwork that they will hopefully take off from.

If you are giving out a licensee list, make sure that the licensees are on board. Nothing is worse than getting a licensee list that the retailer calls to see what a licensee is doing and having them say, oh I don’t know about that one, or I am not sure if we are going to do anything with this.

Even if you have taken the property to other retailers, and they have passed, don’t convey this in your presentation. No one wants to feel that they are being presented to by default.Think out of the box. There are many new types of channels of distribution that should be researched and considered. They may not be the biggest, however if they are successful it could lead to bigger opportunities down the road.

Be concise, time is precious make sure you convey in a timely manner and make sure you use whatever time you have to get your key points across.

Be passionate! Your approach should not be, “I wanted to see what you thought of this property”, rather “I have a new property that is so right for you and let me tell you why.”

12

Licensors Who Know Their Properties Inside And Out

Barbie-Mattel

Harry Potter-Warner Brothers

Star Wars-Lucas Films

13

Direct To Retail

14

What Makes It Appealing To A Retailer?

It offers a point of difference from their competitors

It offers an opportunity for exclusive product

It offers unique promotional opportunities

15

What Makes It Appealing To A Licensor?

Secures distribution right up front

The product investment from the retailer will insure you get key placement

It gives you an actual retailer stage to showcase your product to potential other partners

It can be a good way to test a property on a smaller scale

16

What Are The Risks For A Retailer?

Investing inventory dollars and retail space to an unproven property

Exclusive products do not usually have an outlet to return

If it is not successful, you are looking at a big markdown

17

What Are The Risks For A Licensor?

It limits distribution and potential volume

If it is not successful it can tarnish the brand with other retailers

18

Direct To Retailer Programs I Admired

”Little Miss Spider”-Target

”Twilight”-Hot Topic

”Muppet What Not Workshop”-FAO Schwarz

19

What Are The Retailers Responsibilities In The World Of

LicensingBe proactive and don’t wait for them to come to you, be on constant lookout for movies, TV shows, performers, books, sports, designers, etc. that fit your brand and go for them.

Bigger is not always better, sometimes smaller properties may be just right for your customer base.

If you can, go to the licensing show, and make sure you walk the whole thing.

Especially if you are doing a direct to retail program, make sure you know the property DNA.

20

What Are The Licensors Responsibilities In The World Of

Licensing Don’t over license a property. Less can be more.

Within categories if you have more than one licensor, clearly define the parameters and limitations of their license.

If a license is going to exist in mass and specialty clearly define each market and make sure that the product is unique to each channel of distribution and that it makes sense to the customer.

If you plan to launch in specialty make sure the launch period is enough time to make their investment successful.

21