Maggie & Bianca Fashion Friends: interview with Werner Lenzner, Simba Dickie Group

Animation & Characters

Simba Dickie Group is the Master Toy Licensee of Maggie & Bianca Fashion Friends brand, the new live action property of Rainbow. Licensing Italia had an exclusive interview with Werner Lenzner, Licensing & Strategic Development Manager of SIMBA DICKIE GROUP GmbH.

L.I. What is the product line you are working on for the new Maggie & Bianca Fashion Friends brand?

We will have a broad product range inspired by Maggie & Bianca Fashion Friends which will include Fashion Dolls, Music items like Microphones, Headphones, Guitars etc, moreover we will  offer Arts and Crafts as well as Fashion Accessories

L.I. Have you already made other toy lines inspired at live action?

Yes, we are well experienced making toys for live action TV shows, we had products for Hannah Montana, Patito Feo or Violetta.

L.I. What had been the key elements for your decision to take the master toy license for this live action?

We really liked the concept of the show, the combination of fashion and music. It is a great combination of the most favorite topics for girls in the target group 6 to 12 years for our toys. Moreover it is a great story, a very professional production, very talented cast, all these things make Fashion Friends a top TV show for kids.

L.I. How was the cooperation for the Fashion Friends with Rainbow? is this the first projects with them?

We already had several projects in the past with Rainbow. It is really a very professional and inspiring cooperation with the different departments and we are really happy with this cooperation

L.I. Do you have a central internal division for the licensing acquisition or do you have single units per each branche?

We have a centralized strategy for the acquisition of licenses, but the single units are always involved in the decision process.
The development of the product line is done by the different units.