Toy Tuesday: This is What's Up, Doc!

Of all the brands I have encountered in the world of toys and licensing, Looney Tunes was one of the most rewarding, successful, and fun projects to work on. The New York Times reported last week that "Warner Bros. is embarking on a five-alarm rescue effort for Looney Tunes", the franchise often called one of the studio's crown jewels.

When I was a Senior Product Manager at Tyco Toys, we held the master toy license for Looney Tunes, and I was responsible for coordinating all the efforts across the program for all the different brand teams at Tyco who were developing and marketing Looney Tunes toys. It was both interesting and challenging to align boys, girls, games, activities, and mini vehicles in an organization where brand teams were accustomed to working independently.

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The Looney Tunes brand itself was challenging to market as toys. It doesn't have a clear focus toward either boys and girls, and while the characters have always been well known and well loved, they're not necessarily kids' favorites. Competing against other brands with humor components like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles or Spongebob Squarepants is a big challenge.

Despite these challenges, Tyco was able to achieve some success due to a well integrated retail and marketing program as well as a great working relationship with the people at Warner Bros. Consumer Products, from whom I learned what it is to be a demanding yet fair licensor.

The New York Times article implies that Looney Tunes is in trouble today, with worldwide sales of licensed products at "only" $1 billion. With new TV programming on the way, I sincerely hope that the entertaining and irreverent Looney Tunes brand regains the notoriety it deserves.

Looney Tunes toys by Tyco