By Allison Watkinson
TLL Reporter
The animation studio ZAG has established its first office in Argentina to spearhead merchandising and licensing activities in the region.
The Buenos Aires office will focus primarily on Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay for the company’s portfolio of ZAG Heroez brands. This portfolio includes the worldwide hit “Miraculous – Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir and Ghostforce. ”
“We are confident that our strategy to directly handle consumer activities in key regions is the optimal approach to building our brands,” said Julian Zag, EVP of Global Operations and Head of Consumer Products for ZAG. “2022 is a milestone year for us with the much anticipated launch of our US$100 million Miraculous animated feature release later in the year alongside a global QSR promotion, the release of a new mobile game and our first console game, amongst other initiatives.
“Plus, we are also receiving increasing and positive activity across our social media for Ghostforce since its debut in December 2021 on Discovery Kids,” Zag added. “This is the ideal time to work together with licensees across the region to build additional ways for fans to interact with this fun comedy/action series that follows three junior high school students who form a secret team to defend their city from the ghastly ghouls haunting it.”
The new Buenos Aires’ office is headed by newly hired executive Melisa Fuhr, Director of Licensing and Retail for South America. She is also in charge of the direct operation in Chile and Peru.
Fuhr is tasked with further developing the company’s brands. She will work directly with licensing and promotional partners to increase visibility and market share. She will also focus on bolstering relationships with retailers to enhance the brand’s consumer product visibility.
Before joining ZAG, Fuhr spent 15 years with Arcor SAIC, the largest treat manufacturer in Latin America. She went from her role as Events and Promotions Manager to become the company’s Director of Licensing.
At this position, Fuhr oversaw licensing, partnership and promotional activities for all product categories including candy, ice cream, chocolates, and cookies. She also developed and negotiated promotions and campaigns with partners such as Disney, Universal, Nickelodeon and Fox.
“We see numerous opportunities to continue to build on the success of Miraculous across Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay and Uruguay and build strong and lasting partnerships with the best companies and retailers in the region for both Miraculous and Ghostforce,” said Fuhr. “The new toy line for Miraculous from ZAG Labs is already performing well at retail and we are eager for the Zag Lab and Playmates toy line for Ghostforce to hit retail in 2023.”
Fuhr reports to Angela Cortez, ZAG’s VP of Licensing and Consumer Products for Latin America. Cortez was appointed to her current position in March 2021 and was ZAG’s first VP for the region.
“We want to thank Caffaro Hnos and his team at IMC for their oversight of Miraculous over the past few years. Together with ZAG, Caffaro Hnos has paved the way for the success of this phenomenal brand in Argentina,” adds Angela Cortez, ZAG’s VP of Licensing and Consumer Products for Latin America.
The hugely popular animated series “Miraculous” is ranked by IMDB amongst the Top 10 Best Animated Shows in the last 20 years. Season four of the CG-animated series started to roll out in more than 120 countries across the globe during spring and summer of 2021.
With a massive fan base of young adults, “Miraculous“ has become a global phenomenon with over 27.7 billion views on YouTube for both authorized and user-generated content.
Over 200 million products have been sold during the past four years and retail sales have surpassed 1 billion USD worldwide to date. The popularity of the “Miraculous” franchise is a major factor in ZAG’s continuing international growth.”