“Pictures can say more than a thousand words” and the usage of icons and pictographs in the world of digital communication has become a daily habit. From a simple laughing face in a text message, to a series of expressive icons to describe an event like a wedding day or the birth of a baby – using emojis to express ourselves has steadily crept into our daily communication.
This is a fact that didn’t go unnoticed by German entrepreneur and founder of The Emoji Company. In early 2013, Marco Hüsges began to trademark the term ‘emoji’ around the world. His aim? To create a global lifestyle brand and make expressive icons available for cross category merchandising and promotional activities. In a two year long process, The Emoji Company has built a vast content library of high resolution icons and is currently offering more than 2000 icons to its customers around the world.
“I realised the potential that lies in the communication via those small icons we use on our phones,” says Hüsges, whose background is in the development and publishing of video games and the digital download space. “Using pictographs doesn’t have any boundaries or language barriers and is the perfect way to communicate and express ourselves,” he adds. “We thought it would be great to transport such feelings and emotions into the world of physical and tangible products under one umbrella brand.”
First Marco secured the rights to the term emoji in Europe, and then continued to file for trademark in the U.S, Canada, Japan, South Korea, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, India, Brasil, Mexico, Chile, Argentina, Colombia, Russia, Israel, Turkey, NZ, Pakistan, Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan, Malaysia, Vietnam, Philippines, Bangladesh, Iran, Ukraine, Serbia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Morocco, South Africa, Egypt, Switzerland, Norway, and here in Australia.
At the same time, Marco and his team created brand new high resolution icons with more in depth features and design elements to make them suitable for the usage on physical and tangible products.
Today, the Emoji Company owns the rights to the mark ‘emoji’ in over 25 categories around the world and together with its global licensing partners, is launching a wide a range of consumer products from apparel to accessories, from stationary to toys, from luggage, jewellery to food and beverages in 2016.
An animated series is also in the works as well as other entertainment formats that will bring the icons created by the Emoji Company to life in cartoon form.
Throughout Australia, the official emoji® brand is represented by Haven Licensing, is available across outerwear, sleepwear, underwear, footwear, bags & backpacks, automotive accessories, while in New Zealand, categories include cushions and bedlinen, stationery and footwear. Plans are also underway for product lines across confectionery, FMCG and food categories, toys and plush, party goods, and more. The brand first launch last year in the apparel category, and is expected to expand fast across additional categories both in Australia and New Zealand.
Find out more at www.emoji.com
