The Entente Cordiale between Britain and France has long been celebrated. I have always thought the relationship between Britain and Australia should be acknowledged in a similar way. There is a unique ‘mateship’ between the two nations. Of course, there is a lot of shared history which binds the countries together, but there are ties aplenty beyond history – think about sport, for example.
In my own experience, I have always had a soft spot for Australia and Aussies. This stretches back to my primary school days in inner-city London. 1970s south-east London wasn’t always seen as the most attractive place to be a teacher.
As a result, there was always a shortage of teachers. This gap was often filled by recruiting teachers from overseas, and we had a few Australian teachers at my school. They always left a favourable impression on me, not least because of their good humour and enthusiasm.
I also have fond memories of the Australian cricket team who toured England in 1975. I went to see them practise at The Oval in Kennington the day before the Test and managed to get a lot of autographs. I remember players like Doug Walters and Max Walker being very kind to 10-year-old me – they were great players who were also great ambassadors for their country.
Another highlight of that day was getting legendary fast bowlers Jeff Thomson and Dennis Lillee to sign my autograph book on the same page. I like to think that this was in part due to the fact that, as a South Londoner, I called all the Aussies ‘mate’, and that made them feel at home!
There are, of course, strong ties between Britain and Australia in licensing as well. The Bugg Report has always recognised these ties and has indeed proactively helped nurture this spirit of licensing mateship.
Jasnor is a great example of an Australia-based licensee that has forged a close working partnership with UK-based toy and gift companies, particularly in areas like plush.
They often distribute products developed by UK licensees such as Rainbow Designs. A recent example of this is their agreement with Rainbow Designs to distribute Pembe the Pink Cat plush lines in Australia.
They have worked successfully with other UK licensees, such as Blueprint Collections, as well. It has always been good to know that there are reliable companies like Jasnor in place that can help build a global programme from the UK. Jasnor always makes an effort to arrange meetings at trade shows to find out ‘what’s new’ and show that they are engaged with the UK licensing market.
Likewise, there are strong links between the UK and Australian publishing markets, with rights flowing between the two. I expect that there will be more alliances formed between UK and Australian licensees soon, as rights are travelling around the globe more quickly these days.
Brand owners like Aardman and Penguin Ventures have built strong business connections through licensing in Australia.
Of course, there is a particularly successful and vivid example of the mateship between Australia and Britain at the moment. Bluey is a huge licensing success story in the UK and is, of course, an Australian export. Bluey is probably the most successful Australian export in the UK licensing market to date, but by no means the first.
There have always been good links between British and Australian broadcasters, which have resulted in brands crossing over between the two countries. Maybe this is another sign that we are more similar than we care to admit.
I should also add that, during my time as Managing Director of Fox Kids Europe, one of my best deals was recruiting a young Australian licensing executive to our team.
John Vasta flew in from Australia and was a great success in the UK market – he forged long-lasting friendships and contacts. John showed that the skills, knowledge and business acumen needed to succeed in the licensing world were quite similar in Britain and Australia.
Here’s to many more years of licensing mateship!
This article was written by Ian Downes, Director at Start Licensing Limited, for The Bugg Report.
This article also appeared in Edition 55 of The Bugg Report Magazine
