Party City Acquires MG Novelty, Party Galaxy Stores

Party City agreed to buy MG Novelty and its seven Party Galaxy stores for $5.5 million, expanding the chain into Oklahoma City, OK. MG, founded in 1937 as a decoration and carnival supply company, changed its name to Party Galaxy in 2001 and eventually expanded to 11 locations. The company also had a five-year supply agreement with Party City parent Amscan Inc. that gave it favorable pricing and trade terms, but expired in 2012. MG Novelty has annual revenue of about $9 million.

Contact:

Party City, James Harrison, CEO, 914-345-2020, jharrison@partycity.com

Rubie’s Costume Co. Expanding BuySeasons Fulfillment Business

Rubie’s Costume Co. is expanding its BuySeasons e-commerce fulfillment business, which previously focused on mass merchants, to specialty retailers for costumes and party goods, Rubie’s Howard Beige told us.

Rubie’s acquired BuySeasons earlier this year, including a 470,000-sq-ft. warehouse in New Berlin, WI, that serves as the base for fulfillment operations, says Beige.

In addition to costumes, BuySeasons also has party goods licenses for Pokemon, Super Mario Bros., Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood and others.

Meanwhile, Rubie’s has signed a licensing pact for Netflix’s “Stranger Things” for 2018. About 12-18 items, including Eleven dresses and Demogorgon masks, will be sold through online and specialty retailers, says Beige. Spirit Halloween had a direct-to-retail (DTR) deal for the series this past fall for costumes and accessories.

Contact:

Rubie’s Costumer Co., Howard Beige, EVP, 516-326-1500, howard@rubies.com

Campbell Soup Buying Snyder’s-Lance

Campbell Soup Co.’s proposed $4.87 billion purchase of Synder’s-Lance would create a portfolio of licensed brands. The deal would include Snyder’s of Hanover, Cape Cod Potato Chips, Stella D’Oro and Lance brands, all of which have been represented by Brand Central Group since 2016. Big Tent Entertainment has handled outbound licensing for Campbell’s since 2015.  Campbell also been a licensee, having developed TGI Fridays soups and sauces, Spider-Man co-branded soups and Pepperidge Farms Finding Dora Goldfish crackers. Campbell expects to close on the acquisition by late Q2 2018.

Contact:

Campbell Soup Co., Anthony DiSilvestro, Chief Financial Officer 856-342-4800

Executives

Jamie Uitdenhowen, ex-Toys R Us, named Chief Merchandising Officer at Party City… Peter Cuneo, Chairman of Iconix Brand Group, shifts to Executive Chairman… Tim Fisher, ex- Village Roadshow Theme Parks, appointed COO at Cedar Fair Entertainment, replacing Richard Zimmerman, who was named CEO in October… Jason Boling resigns as CFO at Cherokee Global Brands, replaced by Steven Brink, ex-Quicksilver, effective Jan. 2…. Scott Ramirez, ex-Toshiba, named VP Product Marketing and Development at TMax Digital…

Contacts:

Cedar Fair Entertainment, Tim Fisher, Chief Operating Officer, 419-627-2233, tfisher@cedarfair.com

Cherokee Global Brands, Steven Brink, Chief Financial Officer, 818-908-9868.

Party City, Jamie Uitdenhowen, Chief Merchandising Officer, 973-453-8600, juitdenhowen@partycity.com