Bulldog Licensing will be showcasing a strong and successful portfolio of brands at this year’s Brand Licensing Europe event.

Amongst these is licensing juggernaut Gogo’s Crazy Bones – the famous collectible brand that is a huge hit across the world, beating all competition in the toy collectable market in the UK, Spain, Germany, Benelux, South Africa and Australia/NZ. Selling in huge numbers in parts of Eastern Europe, the Nordics and Italy, where it launched more recently, Gogo’s has also stormed to the top of the ratings charts in France and more recently the US where it is now the biggest selling toy collectable right across retail from Walmart to Walgreens. High levels of TV advertising and promotional activity help to support a huge worldwide licensing programme and Gogo’s is represented across a vast range of categories, including publishing, apparel, greeting cards, stationery, back to school, celebration cakes, top trumps, calendars and giftware. Licensees include Random House, Poetic Gem, Alpa, Winning Moves, MV Sports, Eaglemoss, SA Greetings, National Entertainment Network and Imagination Games.

Another Bulldog brand that needs little introduction is Monkey – the star of the classic advertisements for ITV Digital and PG Tips. The little knitted primate has become an established cultural icon and one of the most saleable brands in Britain for the 16-34 year old consumer. A strong merchandising programme has enjoyed huge pick-up across the retail spectrum and includes apparel from BCI, plush from Posh Paws, posters from GB Eye and greetings cards and calendars from Danilo, whilst Bluebird Brands is producing a wide range of products including fashion bags, laptop bags, plush bags and purses as well as a homewares line that will include aprons, hot water bottles, mugs and tea towels. Licensor for the Monkey brand is Comic Relief, meaning that all licensed products sold will help the charity.

Another hugely successful property appearing on the Bulldog stand will be Goochicoo – the hit design-led brand that is going from strength to strength. Created by The Backland Studio, the property features a range of fantastic little characters accompanied by slogans such as ‘Give Peas a Chance‘ and ‘The Piddler’. Licensing partners include Poetic Gem for apparel, publisher Little Star, Izziwotnot for bedding, MV Sports and Leisure for talking plush toys and doll accessories, and Bluebird Brands for a range of merchandise that includes mugs, luggage, and travel and car accessories. Goochicoo greeting cards are also a huge hit on Moonpig.com and Father’s Day 2011 saw the property come in as top seller for the retailer.

Also making an appearance at BLE will be LIFE – the world’s most respected source of photojournalism. LIFE magazine is the legendary publication that continues to enthral millions of people with special issue books and the LIFE photographic library is a vast stock of pictures, many made famous by the magazine itself, that includes some of the world’s most recognisable photographs, including historical pictures dating back to the Crimean war, snaps of legends such as the Kennedys and Winston Churchill, world-famous landmarks like the Empire State Building, and incredible images of the world around us - ranging from shots taken in outer space to nature at its most powerful and beautiful. In total, around 10 million pictures are available to license and combining these with the iconic LIFE logo presents a fantastic merchandising opportunity. A burgeoning licensing programme includes an apparel range from Poetic Gem that is currently available in Next and River Island, and a range of greetings cards and postcards from Is It Art that is set to be presented to major retailers soon.

Bulldog will also be showcasing iconic football brand Shoot, which has been attracting huge amounts of interest since first being presented to the licensing sector last year. Shoot has captivated successive generations of football fans with sharp, incisive writing and contributions from the stars of the game, before moving into the digital era by becoming the first football magazine to be made available around the world on the Web. Shoot’s enormous Web presence at www.shoot.co.uk has been viewed by millions since it launched in 2009 and the web audience continues to grow at an incredible rate. Bulldog has also brokered a deal with top digital content specialist The Magazine Cloner that allows football fans to access Shoot magazine through an app on mobile devices such as the iPad, iPhone and Android, and available on Mac and PC downloads. A thriving licensing programme includes Portico for greetings cards and gifts, Samuel Eden for socks, Poetic Gem for adult apparel, and Iron Gut for framed wall art and includes an online shop in development courtesy of the Official Web Shop, which will offer a full range of Shoot-branded merchandise

Bulldog has also been working with Build-A-Bear Workshop – a familiar high street presence with 45 company-owned stores in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. The stores are a hit with parents and children alike and allow guests to choose a furry friend and then specially personalise it at eight different stations. The retailer also offers a range of fantastic clothing and accessories to outfit stuffed animals. Bulldog has received an enormous response to the licensing programme for a brand which is one of the most-talked about brands in the UK amongst the target demographic of girls age six through 12 and announcements will be made soon regarding key partners.

Classic animation property Roobarb and Custard is also part of the Bulldog portfolio. The property is proving to be a real hit with consumers with Mogzilla on board for publishing, Poetic Gem for apparel, Museums and Galleries for greetings, PMS for amusement plush, and Riviera for canvas wall art. The property has also attracted the attention of leading animal charity the PDSA, which has appointed Roobarb and Custard as brand ambassadors – the duo are helping the charity raise £1m through a range of activities across retail and online, as well as a text campaign that will see mobile users receive a free Roobarb and Custard screensaver in return for donations. Images of Roobarb and Custard are also set to appear on the PDSA’s fleet of vehicles and across a raft of activities currently in development.

Two other classic brands on the Bulldog books are Batfink and Roland Rat. TV legend, hunky superstar and self-appointed knight of the realm Sir Roland Rat is proving a big hit in the licensing sector; apparel from Poetic Gem is selling well whilst Posh Paws has launched a new Roland plush range featuring plush, talking plush, keychains and ceramics, which has already been snapped up by Play.com, Forbidden Planet, Past Times and Harrods. Batfink is also proving to be a retro gem, with tens of thousands of branded T-shirts selling each quarter.

Another huge brand in the Bulldog stable is Monster Jam – the family entertainment brand that features stadium and arena based racing and freestyle stunts from some of the world’s premier monster trucks. The Monster Jam European tour is currently packing stadiums as it roars through the UK and Benelux, and is watched by millions of television viewers through Bravo in the UK and RTL in Benelux. The brand even has its own YouTube channel, which is proving a massive hit with fans, with over 14m viewings recorded for some of the most popular videos. Monster Jam’s licensing presence is equally impressive, with the property represented across categories including card games, toys, video games and construction toys through top licensees such as Mattel, Activision, K’NEX and Lanoo.

“We have strengthened our portfolio considerably over the last twelve months and all our brand are experiencing positive growth in terms of both sales and profile,” says Bulldog MD Rob Corney, “we will be looking to build on this success by exploring further opportunities for all our brands at BLE.”