Some new innovative products are perfect for what the industry refers to as "Slicensing Opportunities." This is the process of carving out small segments of broader categories, with the aim of creating incremental volume. This was such a product line, and we received nearly universal interest from the IP owners that I presented it too. So we started off with the two most powerful and best-fitting licenses of all. Shout-outs to Steven Fink, Steve Casino, Christie Yeoh, Mason Fiske, Paul Meshreky, Stefanie Ju and Jon Marquez! Toy Stories Chapter 27: Pulp Heroes!

We were at the Licensing Expo when we met with Steve Fink from Bang Zoom. We were a year into the new company, and they had shown us nothing to date! This time, Steve showed us a new collectible concept made of folded paper that pops to life.  We bought it on the spot! 

Next, I was able to locate some pop-up book engineers through a publishing contact, and put them in touch with Steve Casino, who was BZ’s lead designer on this. Steve’s art-direction was second to none, and we had a truly unique product that we could pitch to potential licensors. And what better licenses than Marvel & Star Wars! Christie Yeoh & Stefanie Ju made the deal-making relatively painless, and we were off! Mason Fiske on Star Wars and Marvel’s Paul Meshreky were incredibly helpful in approvals, and especially in selecting the authentic comic book art for the products’ storage sleeves, so that you really got the sense that characters were literally leaping from the pages of real comic books! I brought in talented Jon Marquez to deliver the comic book look on package, and he delivered, as always!

Kids in focus groups loved Pulp Heroes, but the real target was collectors and Marvel & Star Wars enthusiasts, celebrating authentic comic book culture!