Horton and the Kwuggerbug and More Lost Stories

The title of this post is the title for the second collection of Dr. Seuss's forgotten magazine work. Early in his career Dr. Seuss published a series of illustrated stories for children in magazines. Random House is now publishing those stories. More about Dr. Seuss is revealed in Inside Dr. Seuss Inc. Dr. Seuss has had phenomenal success with Seuss movie adaptations alone grossing more than $1.1 billion worldwide. Sales of Dr. Seuss books are still going strong with sales of 4.8 million units last year.

Ford Mustang 50 Years Old and Looking Good

More than 9 million Mustangs have been sold in the past 50 years. They still look sharp as you can see in First Ford 2015 Mustang rolls off line in Flat Rock From The Detroit News. Mustang merchandise makes up 40 percent of Ford's $2 billion licensed merchandise retail sales. Doing the math that's $800 million, marking the Mustang as an elite licensed product brand.

Wolfgang Puck is on a Roll

Five good suggestions are found in 5 Brilliant Business Lessons from Wolfgang Puck. Wolfgang Puck has had remarkable success promoting his brand. His lessons are: cook up something new; listen to your customers; be unpredictable; TV is just a tool, and; stay hungry. He's 65 and still going strong. Now he is looking at getting into the hotel industry. Don't count him out.

Elvis is Alive!

Elvis is Alive! Sort of. You see Elvis Presley™ Virtually Comes Back To Life . Pulse Evolution Corporation is set to develop a virtual "King of Rock 'n' Roll". This will include "holographic" performances in live shows. Has Elvis left the building? Apparently, not yet. Thank you very much.

Education Doesn't Matter, Touchdowns Do!

Steve Almond in College Football Is Ruining Education argues that college football is doing more harm than good. In his view football has become more important than the essential educational mission of a university. For example, he points out that up to a third of Division I football players do not graduate. The impact of athletics is easily seen when ESPN in 2012 paid $7.3 billion to broadcast college football playoffs for the next 12 years. Mr. Almond estimates total revenues for the nation's 125 major programs at a gazillion dollars. That's a big number.

Pitfalls to Avoid in Brand Licensing

A useful list is found in The 10 Most Common Brand Licensing Mistakes. The first three mistakes seem to have a common theme, trying to do too much. The first three are: 1) biting off more than you can chew; 2) getting in over your head, and; 3) creating unrealistic expectations. If you turned this list around and made it a list of 10 goals for properly managing brand licensing, you probably would be on your way to success.

Lego by the Numbers, 650 Billion Pieces and Counting

The article  After 80 years, LEGO continues to innovate, inspire generations of builders has a list of impressive numbers about Lego. For example: laid end to end, the number of Lego bricks produced in 2012 could circle the Earth 18 times; with an estimated worth of $14.6 billion, it is now the world's most valuable toy maker, and; 45.7 billion Lego bricks were produced in 2012 (about 5.2 million per hour). Many franchises have been converted to Lego block form including: Star Wars, Disney Princesses, Lord of the Rings, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and the Simpsons. You can even find Elvis in Legos.

Tour the World in October

Now's your chance to see Europe, China, and the Middle East. You just have to convince your boss that you need to attend the important licensing shows in October. You can start with Brand Licensing Europe 2014 (BLE) Oct. 7-9 where London Gears Up for Biggest BLE Ever. It's then off to the China Licensing Expo in Shanghai from Oct. 14-16. Finally, you fly to Dubai for Licensing Dubai held Oct. 27-28. I'm sure somewhere someone has convinced their boss that this is a good idea.

Suzy's Zoo Expands Its Presence in China

In Suzy's Zoo makes further in-roads in China details of new partnerships to sell Suzy's Zoo merchandise in China are revealed. Lawless Entertainment and Dina Asia Pacific are joining with Bei Lu in this endeavor. Lawless Entertainment and Dina Asia Pacific are agents for Suzy's Zoo, while Bei Lu has sales and marketing experience in China. Baby apparel and accessories using Suzy's Zoo characters will be developed. The merchandise will be sold in online stores and specialty shops.

Wright Bros. Take Off Again

On December 17, 1903 the Wright brothers sustained the first heavier-than-air human flight. Now, their name is being used to raise money to support historical sites, see - Dayton business banking on Wright Bros. name. Licensed merchandise using the Wright brothers name were first offered for sale last year. American-made and watches under the brand sold out.

Another $1 Billion for Disney

Recently it was reported that Disney Now Has EIGHT Billion-Dollar Merchandise Brands. According to the article How ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ Could Produce Another $1 Billion for Disney, it looks like that should be at least nine billion-dollar brands. Frozen would be the tenth. Disney bought Marvel for about $4 billion in 2009. In 2012 Marvel's The Avengers brought in $1.5 billion at the worldwide box office. Looks like a pretty good $4 billion investment.

Disney Has 8 Billion Dollar Brands

Disney is enjoying tremendous success as revealed in Disney Now Has EIGHT Billion-Dollar Merchandise Brands. How many companies would be happy to have one billion dollar brand? Disney, the world's top licensor, recorded $41 billion in licensed merchandise in 2013. The eight billion dollar brands are: Pooh, Mickey Mouse, Monsters, Star Wars, Spider-Man, Cars, Disney Junior, and Princess. Did you notice Frozen was not in the list?

Texas Longhorns Are Champs 9 Years in a Row

Texans support their university like no other, see - UT tops highest collegiate royalties list for 9th straight year. The Longhorns football team has not had the success recently that their fans are accustomed to, but the fans continue to support their team. Others making the top ten list are: Alabama, Michigan, Notre Dame, Georgia, Florida, LSU, Florida State, Texas A&M, and The University of North Carolina. Can't help but notice that the SEC conference dominates the list.

What Do Elizabeth Taylor and Albert Einstein Have in Common?

Elizabeth Taylor and Albert Einstein do have something in common. They are both among the 11 Richest Dead Celebrities on the Planet. The list includes: Steve McQueen; Theodor Geisel (Dr. Seuss); Bettie Page; Albert Einstein; John Lennon; Marilyn Monroe; Bob Marley; Elizabeth Taylor; Charles Schultz (Peanuts); Elvis Presley, and; Michael Jackson. The Michael Jackson brands earned a whopping $120 million in the last 12 months. More than any living artist made in the same time period.When I visited Beijing last year I took this video of young men Moonwalking in Beijing. Obviously, Michael Jackson has enduring world-wide popularity.

Hook 'em Horns in Jell-O

If you like Jell-O and the Longhorns, the product described in Jell-O Gives Sports Marketing a Shot With School Brand Molds is for you. Jell-O began last year offering school-themed mold trays for the universities of Arkansas, Florida, Michigan, and Texas. They were such a bit hit that Jell-O is expanding the program to other universities. Sports marketing sponsorship reached $763.8 million in 2013 with Coca-Cola being the biggest sponsor.

Watch the Simpsons Till You Drop

The article The Simpsons App Will Change the TV Game Forever  discusses a fundamental change in the relationship between television content and the networks. Starting on August 21st, a non-stop marathon of 522 Simpsons episodes will be aired by Fox's FXX. In the fall a new website Simpsonsworld.com and a Simpsons app will enable streaming of every episode. Fox has chosen to launch a website exclusive to their brand instead of working out a deal with Netflix, Amazon Prime, Yahoo, or Sony. It will be interesting to watch how this works out for the Simpsons brand.

Will It Be a "Frozen" Christmas?

With Christmas only 5 months away, the article What’ll be hot for the holiday toy season? Disney’s Frozen anticipates big sales for Frozen products. This year sales of Frozen products are estimated to reach $1 billion dollars in the United States. Frozen's success far exceeds Disney's expectations. A full array of  Frozen licensed products includes DVDs, toys, games, clothes, juice, yogurt, oral care products, and fresh fruit. Suppliers report that demand exceeds supply and they are scrambling to produce more goods. It's a nice problem to have.

Happy Birthday Harry Potter!

Warner Bros. should be throwing a big birthday party for Harry Potter, see - Happy Birthday, Potter: 17 Years Later, Harry Potter is Bigger than Ever Before. Since the publication of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in 1997, Warner Bros., has brought in $7.7 billion from eight feature films based on J.K. Rowling's books. The Harry Potter brand is one of the Top 10 Best Selling Products in the World. Warner Bros. is not done yet, as revealed in Warner Brothers Creates a Harry Potter Squad. Does all this seem not quite real? If you want more Harry Potter, check out Rowling's Pottermore web community.