Funko is an American company that manufactures licensed pop culture collectibles. Funko is most known for producing licensed vinyl figures and bobbleheads. In addition, Funko produces licensed plush, action figures, and licensed electronic items such as USB drives, lamps, and headphones.
Founded in 1998 by Mike Becker, the company was originally conceived as a small project to create various low-tech, nostalgia-themed toys. Funko's first manufactured bobblehead was of the restaurant advertising icon Big Boy.
Sold in 2005, Funko LLC is now headed by Brian Mariotti as president. Since 2005, the company has increased the scope of its various toy lines, and has signed licensing deals with companies such as Marvel, DC Comics, WWE, Lucasfilm, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, DreamWorks, Hasbro, CBS, Fox, Warner Bros, Disney, HBO, Peanuts Worldwide, BBC, NFL, Ubisoft, NBCUniversal, Cartoon Network, Netflix, Mattel, 2K Games, Bethesda Games and Five Nights at Freddy's. Funko products now have worldwide distribution. According to Mariotti, "We were in the $40 million range for revenue [in 2013] -- and $28 million of that was from Pop figures alone." In 2015, Funko added Mopeez, Dorbz, Vinyl Idolz, Vinyl Vixens, and Super Deluxe vinyl to their existing lines.
Video Funko
History
Funko was founded as a bobblehead company in 1998 by Mike Becker in his Snohomish, Washington home. In 2005, Becker sold Funko to its current CEO, Brian Mariotti, who moved its offices to Lynnwood, Washington and significantly expanded the company's licensed product lines. By 2012, the company sold more than $20 million worth of merchandise.
In 2016, Funko announced its intention to relocate its headquarters to downtown Everett, Washington.
ACON Investments, LLC announced in late 2015 that it had acquired licensed toy maker Funko, LLC from Fundamental Capital, LLC, but will keep current staff and head of company.
Maps Funko
Product lines
Funko has created several different toy lines since its inception. The first, Wacky Wobblers, is a line of bobbleheads depicting various characters, mainly from popular culture, such as Betty Boop, Cap'n Crunch, and The Cat in the Hat.
Funko's Pop! Vinyl line are figures modeled in a style similar to the Japanese super deformed style, typically depicting licensed characters from franchises such as Doctor Who, Marvel, DC Comics, Disney, Star Wars, Harry Potter, and other pop culture entities. Various other products have been released using the Pop! brand and its character stylization, such as plush toys, T-shirts, keychains and ceramic mugs, the latter of which are enlarged, hollow copies of a figure's head, with a handle attached.
Other current product lines include Mystery Minis, Hikari, Legacy Collection, Fabrikations, Mopeez and Rock Candy.
At Toy Fair 2015, Funko announced a new offshoot brand called Vinyl Sugar, with lines including Dorbz, Vinyl Idolz, Vinyl Vixens, and Super Deluxe Vinyls.
Former product lines include Spastik Plastik, Blox, FunkoVision, Funko Plushies, Funko Force, Reaction Figures, and Wacky Wobblers.
Collector box subscriptions
In 2015, Funko and Marvel partnered to launch Marvel Collector Corps, a subscription box service featuring exclusive collectibles, apparel, and accessories. Boxes shipped every two months. It subsequently launched a subscription box service for Star Wars items called Smuggler's Bounty, a DC subscription box called Legion of Collectors, and a Disney subscription box called Disney Treasures. Also, the subscription box known as Lootcrate occasionally contains an exclusive Funko Pop! vinyl figure which aligns with that month's box theme.
As of 2018, Funko no longer offers subscription boxes. The boxes, like Disney Treasures and Marvel Collector Corps., will still be available through retail outlets.
See also
- Bobblehead
- Designer toys
- Stuffed toy
References
External links
- Official website
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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