Rocket Licensing’s latest signings are building up a strong presence in the run-up to what the independent licensing and brand development company expects will be its busiest BLE ever.

On stand F005 visitors will hear about quality properties from a select and balanced portfolio of brands boasting an appeal ranging from preschool to adult and covering iconic names, film and TV hits and best-selling games and books. They include the Hornby Hobbies Ltd brands — Airfix, Scalextric, Corgi and Hornby — the Dangerous Book for Boys, the True Blood TV phenomenon, iconic film titles such as Reservoir Dogs and Rocky, the UK’s top-selling trivia brand I Never Knew That… and pre-school hits like the popular CBeebies drawing and painting programme Get Squiggling!

Hornby Hobbies
It was at Brand Licensing Europe 2009 that Hornby Hobbies Ltd and Rocket Licensing together launched a licensing programme for the Airfix, Scalextric, Corgi and Hornby hobby ‘superbrands’ aimed at both kids and adults. At BLE 2010 the company will be highlighting the wide range of licensing deals made since then and the enormous potential of these iconic brands.

Greencore’s Scalextric cake is already a major hit at Marks and Spencer. Scalextric apparel, dress-up, coin-operated rides and melamine, and Airfix apparel, confectionery and cards, all aimed at the 4-12 year old range, are on their way to retail in 2011. The adult-oriented Hornby Hobbies Ltd campaign has also taken off, through licenses for T-shirts, nightwear and underwear, as well as gifting, greetings cards, virtual racetrack games and music compilations. Many more deals are in the pipeline or close to announcement.

The Dangerous Book for Boys
The Dangerous Book for Boys licensing campaign, with over 30 partners worldwide, has successfully transferred the values and appeal of the book to a carefully selected and designed range of products, including a double award-winning range of science kits from Interplay.

True Blood
Hit vampire drama True Blood has already become one of TV’s must-see series across a wide age group ranging from 18 to 50+. UK licensed product already at retail includes T-shirts, sweatshirts, calendars, cards, posters, pin badges and prints. However, licensing activity is expected to grow significantly in the fourth quarter in the wake of the imminent arrival of the second series of True Blood on FX, with Channel Four set to air the new episodes of the hit series later this year.

Get Squiggling! and I Never Knew That…
Two much more recent Rocket signings already attracting a great deal of interest from the licensing industry are based on properties that make learning fun: the CBeebies pre-school art and drawing favourite Get Squiggling! and the enormously popular I Never Knew That… series of books highlighting stories and facts about places and people around the British Isles. Opportunities for Get Squiggling! already being pursued include publishing, cards, apparel and, of course toys, with a special emphasis on creative play. The merchandise potential of I Never Knew That… as a brand is also strong, notably in the adult gifting market, with possible categories ranging from homeware and accessories to board games and much more.

Rocky and Reservoir Dogs
You can also come to the Rocket stand to hear about the continuing strength and development of two film classics with a recognition factor that spans multiple generations: Rocky and Reservoir Dogs. Rocky is a brand that resonates not just with older fans but with teens and tweens who never saw the first film but instantly relate to its themes of success through adversity reflected through Rocky-branded t-shirts, posters, arcade machines and — of course — robes.

The imagery and style associated with Reservoir Dogs are familiar even with an audience too young to have seen it when it first appeared. Rocket has already begun to pitch prospective licensees including apparel, gift and dress-up companies, with an initial market focus on males of 18 upward buying from record retails, specialist outlets and on line.

Rob Wijeratna, Joint Managing Director of Rocket Licensing, says: “We are in our third year of growth with a balanced portfolio of terrific brands from a variety of different media. There will be some major announcements about our new acquisitions at Brand Licensing Europe 2010 and we look forward to continued growth and development in 2011 and beyond.”