We are back again with our favourite blog feature – telling you lovely lot more about our fabulous team.
This week , we’re introducing another fairly new member to the business, Lynne Chappel. We count ourselves pretty lucky to have Lynne on board. Her knowledge and experience of the licensing industry astound us every day and she’s had some interesting roles in her career that we just couldn’t wait to learn more about! Let’s go….
Tell us a bit about your career to date-
I started my licensing career at Playboy Enterprises, in Chicago, many years ago. Christie Hefner was an important mentor in my life and really helped me launch my licensing journey with a bang. In addition to Playboy, I have managed licensing programs for Campbell Soup Company and DuPont. I have been in the Licensing industry for 30 years and certainly feel at home here!
You have recently moved to the UK from America, tell us about that-
Most of my career has been spent in the United States with many exciting opportunities travelling (just another perk of the licensing world). In Sept 2016, I met my current husband while walking a segment of the Camino de Santiago and in May 2018 we were married. I moved to England in December 2018, so haven’t even been here a year, but my hope was to find a part-time role in licensing and then The Point.1888 came along! I’m absolutely thrilled that the agency’s Unlimited Flexibility policy and dedication to support everyone in finding a life work balance that suits them enabled me to step into a role I know and love. What’s more, the flexibility of time means I can build my life here in the UK with my husband!
Why is licensing the industry for you?
I love brands and the ability to extend them into new categories via licensing, without taking their core teams resources away from their own business. It’s a terrific way to both expand and maintain the relevance of a brand while generating revenue to reinvest. There is an entrepreneurial element to licensing that particularly appeals to me. I enjoy that every day is different, and I have the opportunity to work across so many brands, industries, product categories and retail channels. Of course, the best bit is seeing a product on-shelf that you know you contributed to, but the journey to get it there is fun too!
So how are you finding your move to The Point.1888?
The Point.1888 has a great work culture and ethos. It’s a very open, collaborative environment where everyone truly works as a team. We all have fun and work hard to deliver outstanding results efficiently. Our strong retail relationships have been such a joy to see and because of this we can deliver meaningful programs for our clients. It works far better than anything I’ve been involved in before. This industry is fast paced and the whole team are great at decision making meaning nothing is delayed. The company culture has a lot of the entrepreneurial spirit that I tend to thrive in. It’s a nice change, at this point in my career, from working in a Corporate environment. I feel fortunate to have found a role at The Point where I can use my experience to support our team.
What have you noticed has changed in the Licensing world in the last 30 years?
In many ways, Licensing hasn’t changed much in 30 years except that there are a lot more brands now using licensing as part of their brand strategy. What’s more, Licensing is a much more global activity than it ever was. The ability to meet with retail buyers in the UK so that they are a partner in your program development seems much more accessible in the UK VS the U.S. or maybe it’s just that The Point.1888 do it better?!
Any big challenges we are facing as an industry?
I know that many people believe that the rise in online shopping is leading to the closure of bricks and mortar retailers. I tend to think that the large bricks and mortar retailers over expanded in the last 20 years and are now ‘right sizing’ to focus on their high performing stores. The purchase conversion rate is higher in physical stores – meaning people who go into a physical shop are more likely to purchase one item than those who visit websites. Here at The Point.1888 our strategy of working directly with buyers to help define unique shopping experiences in store is the way forward and why we are seeing unprecedented growth as a business. Even Amazon seems to be making the case for bricks and mortar retail with their acquisition of Whole Foods and their opening of several Amazon stores in the U.S. There’s no question that we need to watch this closely as new and more sophisticated technologies arrive. But, right now, I think the trend will continue to be for retailers to have both an online and offline offering for its customers and we are here to continue bringing unique brand concepts to draw consumers to their favourite retailers.