Bulldog Licensing, licensing agent for the Carte Blanche Greetings Me to You brand and its signature characters Tatty Teddy and Tiny Tatty Teddy, has announced the appointment of two sub-agents to address the brand’s growth in some key territories.

They are MJA Licensing – for France, Belgium and Luxembourg – and WP Brands, which will manage Australia and New Zealand.

Founded in 2005, MJA Licensing is a global agency that represents a growing number of European and international clients and helps them to license their brands. Under the leadership of Françoise Bouvet, an experienced professional whose background includes management posts in the consumer goods, telecommunications and leisure sectors, the company works with a wide range of brands and categories, boasting experience in both licensee and licensor roles, mastery of many different distribution channels, a strong sensitivity to merchandising techniques and international experience in sales and management.

WP Brands is a leading independent brand marketing and licensing agency based in Melbourne, Australia. The WP business creates brand marketing and licensed product partnerships for all types of entertainment and lifestyle properties – from major movie releases to leading video game franchises, platforms and apps. MD John Vasta is a strategic consumer products and marketing executive with over 25 years’ experience in growing business for the world’s leading consumer brands.

Both of these respected companies will be working with a property that is enjoying a growing international presence more than three decades since it burst on the scene to become a hit in the greetings card market, quickly expanding into licensing.

In fact since 2001 Me to You brand owner Carte Blanche has partnered with best-in-class licensees to bring to market many best-selling Me to You products, led by its signature character Tatty Teddy, the cute grey bear with a blue nose.

More than thirty years since the character first arrived, the appeal of Tatty Teddy now extends well beyond its original incarnation as a greeting card illustration to make it a staple part of the UK brand landscape, achieving around $1.7 million in retail sales value every week. Among the many licensing categories that have embraced Tatty Teddy are daywear and nightwear, accessories, gifting, pins and patches and crafting kits.

Françoise Bouvet says: “For many years Me to You has been the go-to brand for love, friendship, and sharing the moments in life that really matter. Its values – including celebration, kindness and affection – are universal. We see it as a brand with enormous potential across the territories we manage, and we’re thrilled that Bulldog and Carte Blanche have appointed us to boost its fast-growing presence in those areas.”

John Vasta says: “When customers have something to say, whether to a friend or loved one, a Me to You product helps them express the emotion they want to convey. The sentimental nature of the brand continues to resonate with and connect fans worldwide. It’s already making major inroads into the Australia and New Zealand markets and we’re looking forward to taking this wonderful brand to the next level.”

Bulldog Brand Manager Sophie Yates says: “Tatty Teddy is already one of the most popular character brands on the market, with a strong and enduring family appeal that is extending into many new markets and growing in established ones. Managing this growth has meant expanding the brand’s representation – and we’re thrilled to have the skill and expertise of MJA Licensing and WP Brands to support brand growth in two key territories.”

About Bulldog Licensing
Bulldog Licensing was founded in 2007. Today we are one of the leading agencies in Europe, working with many of the world’s leading brand owners to develop merchandise programmes ready for the international and domestic licensing markets.

Bulldog has an excellent reputation and contacts throughout the world of retailing and licensing. Our diverse portfolio includes classics like Care Bears, Sesame Street, Me to You, Mr Bean, and Popeye, publishing successes like Beano, That’s Not My… Rolling Stone and Attitude, animated hits like Totally Spies and Odo, games and toy brands like Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Match Attax, BEYBLADE X and Tamagotchi, global family music brand KIDZ BOP and the darts-based gameshow Bullseye.

We don’t just work with established brands. We also help owners of nascent IPs to create brands that are fit for purpose in the highly competitive world of brand licensing. But whatever we do, our aim is always to be an agency that people can trust with their brands and their business.