Aurora World to create plush line for hit Line Friends brand BT21

BRANDORA Editorial Staff - December 2019

Aurora World – a leading character and content company with a vast global reach in the plush market – has been awarded a pan-European plush toy license for BT21, a series of characters loved by millennials worldwide derived from global character brand Line Friends. The agreement was brokered by WildBrain CPLG.

The contract, which runs from 1 June 2019 – 31 Dec 2021, will see Aurora World launch plush versions of the eight BT21 characters – Koya, RJ, Shooky, Mang, Chimmy, Tata, Cooky and Van – in 50 European countries.

Aurora World’s Design and Research Institute is developing the plush line, which will feature all eight characters in a range of soft toys, plush keyrings and cushions. The plush range is expected to be available at retail from the start of 2020. Aurora will distribute the new high-quality BT21 products through its established and admired global distribution network in Europe and international markets.

The combination of Aurora World’s strong market awareness and wide European and international distribution network with the enormous number of followers and brand strength of both BT21 and Line Friends is expected to guarantee significant sales for the plush line in both European and global markets.

Line Friends began life as a series of characters based on the digital stickers from the global messaging app LINE. The success of the characters has inspired spin-offs, including BT21, which is the first IP from Line Friends Creators, a project formed to create new characters for the Line Friends.

BT21 comes with an original story, in which Prince Tata from Planet BT, who has been traveling with Van, crashes on Earth. In order to spread love, Tata decides to become a star. Tata and Van then meet six new friends – Koya, RJ, Shooky, Mang, Chimmy, and Cooky – and become ‘BT21’. They now dream of becoming the most famous band in the universe, THE UNIVERSTAR! Will BT21 become Universtar, and spread love around?

Through its engaging characters with appealing histories, the Line Friends brand has captured the imagination of young generations everywhere. In fact the BT21 characters have received an enormously positive response from all around the globe, notably at the many Line Friends stores in Korea, China, Japan, the USA and other markets and regions.

Jay Noh, Director of Content Business, Aurora World, says: “The amazing success of both Line Friends and BT21 in multiple markets guarantees strong demand for high-quality plush product – and quality has been central to our plush success from the beginning. We are delighted to be working with this incredible brand and are sure that this highly significant agreement will be a major talking point throughout the character license industry during this year and throughout 2020.”