Engaging characters for profit

The main idea which defines character licensing is the way a character is interpreted in accordance with the prevalent market scenario. There revolves a story around every character and people eventually relate to it thereby giving headway to licensing. Licensing opportunities provide brand owners to leverage on the popularity of a character at the same time the property owner (in this case it is the character developer) to spin money from this secondary channel. It does not only include getting engaged with the property but also developing a certain level of likeability towards it. 

Leveraging on character licensing

A major chunk of today’s consumers comprise a fashion-conscious class who are very particular as to how they want to dress up and what they want to flaunt, and the likeability and acceptability towards characters like Barbie, Spider Man, Mickey Mouse justify the consumers’ desire to possess them. Classic characters like Mickey Mouse and his friends had entered the Indian market almost two decades ago and generations of children have grown up watching them.

As an effective marketing tool, character licensing enables retailers to drive sales up and create differentiation in a competition-driven market. Mr Prateek Maheshwari, Director, IFF Overseas Pvt Ltd, says, “With the growing number of channels targeting children and the number of character-based programmes being aired on them, children today are more familiar with the characters, and not only that, they love them and have a liking towards them. Hence, nowadays in comparison to the same products which they were buying in terms of clothes or toys or bags, children today are more conscious as to what they want to see on the clothes they wear or the bags they use.” “Out of 100 per cent of our licensed business, more than 35 per cent is contributed by character licensing,” adds Maheshwari. IFF Overseas promotes Brand Concepts which is the premier resource for licensed fashion, sports and entertainment accessories. Sanjeev Narula, Managing Director of Lilliput Kidswear Ltd reveals, “Character Licensing contributes 5 per cent to the total turnover of Lilliput.”

Media: the biggest peddler of characters

Media takes the full credit to popularize the animated characters though various entertainment programmes. In the last five years consumers have learnt a lot about different stories and characters via the two Disney channels - Disney channel and Toon Disney. Ms Roshini Bakshi, Regional Director, Disney Consumer Products, Asia and India

added, “Having given live act to characters like Hannah Montana, the focus is maximum on the character. The idea is all about the kind of values any of these characters stand for and how these are perceived by the kids and the families.’’ Both an adult and a six-month-old toddler can be fond of and flaunt a Mickey Mouse or a Donald Duck character. Mr Narula explains how children today are swayed by the popular characters which have become household names: “As a child is constantly exposed to animated characters through media, the attraction towards these characters grows leading to an increase in the demand for character licensed merchandise. Kids today want branded character merchandise to form a part of their everyday lives, thus we at Lilliput provide the same through our wide range of character-based collections.”

The research work involved

Mr Maheshwari elaborates on the research work that goes into a selection procedure for a character, “The research work involved in this segment is more product based. In other words, it depends on which character one would like to see for that particular product.”

“The selection of a character is primarily based on the appeal of the character within the target audience. We generally select those cartoon characters that have a high-recall value and are a craze within the kids. For example, we offer a wide range of kids apparels with characters like Ben 10, Power Puff Girls, Bob the Builder to name a few”, opines Mr Narula.

Brand extension: exploring new avenues             

Character and entertainment licensing has witnessed terrific activity in the last five to seven years and thus the children's entertainment market is steadily gaining pace and kid's broadcasters are concentrating on licensing and merchandising space. Commenting on the tremendous influence that character licensing commands over the kids, Ms Bakshi says, “From the time a child wakes up in his room till the time he comes back home, he or she has it available in more or less every product category. In his/her room the products speak about the lovable characters which include lights, bed linens, mats and even the wall paint.”

Disney has about 100 licensees across various categories in India. For instance, Disney Nerolac paint was launched four years back in India. In the fine jewellery category, Swarovski and Popley are the two prominent licensees. Last year Manish Arora had launched Lion King and the Jungle Book clothing line and the year before saw the launch of Mickey as the warrior. The very recent development being the ‘Mickey Rock’ collection available at all Reebok stores across India. Also, Nicktoon character Dora is soon to be launched on puzzles, notebooks and school bags. 

More to happen in the future        

Retailers see a bright future and think character licensing is an ever-expanding channel for boosting sales. “Unlike previous times, today there are ample of cartoon characters and the number increases day by day. Thanks to the cartoon channels and animated movies that increase the passion for these characters within kids. Thus, the rise in the demand of character licensed clothes is directly proportional to the ever increasing craze for cartoon characters,” views Mr Narula. “Being a very lucrative and potential segment, character licensing, if explored properly by the licensee or the product manufacturer, has a great future. Only pre-requisite is that the quality of the product should justify the character,” comments Mr Maheshwari with a note of alert.