Hasbro’s Marianne James on how anniversaries can be creative catalysts for brands

Marianne, it’s great to catch up! First up, your role has expanded since we last chatted! Where do you look after licensing-wise now?
Excited to catch up with you again, Billy! Yes, my new title is Senior Vice President, Global Licensing at Hasbro, so I now oversee our licensed merchandise business across all regions. In addition, I now oversee our Global Publishing division, so I support the team in bringing beloved brands like Transformers, Peppa Pig and Dungeons & Dragons to life for fans of all ages through books, comics, audio storytelling and more.

This year is a big one for Hasbro, with D&D’s 50th anniversary, Peppa’s 20th and Transformers turning 40. Can you talk us through some stand-out launches from these so far?
That’s right! 2024 is a momentous year. D&D is celebrating five decades of fantasy role-playing with new games, entertainment and products. A stand-out launch we’ve had so far this year is our new LEGO IDEAS Red Dragon’s Tale set, a fan-designed brick representation of the iconic tabletop game. The 3,745-piece set is incredibly detailed, and we also collaborated with LEGO on a special D&D adventure book, available for free on D&D Beyond.

For the Transformers franchise, we’re honouring the brand’s origins by rallying around the theme of “40 Years. One Legacy.” One launch we’re particularly excited about is an expansion of our line of state-of-the-art Transformers robots with Robosen Robotics. Joining the Flagship Optimus Prime, Flagship Grimlock and others is the Flagship Megatron.

With 118 microchips and powered by 36 servo motors, the Flagship Megatron stands at an impressive 21” tall and converts from robot to tank mode via voice command or app. Designed with authentic G1 artistry, Megatron comes with an Energon Sword & Mace and missiles to fire, and even includes new character lines voiced by the original Megatron – Frank Welker.

Finally, we jumped into Peppa Pig’s anniversary year with an exciting release: LEGO DUPLO Peppa Pig sets. Designed for little ones aged two years and older, the sets offer great play experiences based on iconic scenes and characters from the beloved pre-school show that inspire role-play and creativity.

To add to the fun, we teamed up with branded entertainment destination leader Merlin Entertainments to create unique play experiences with LEGO DUPLO Peppa Pig play areas coming to select Merlin Entertainments attractions and theme parks.

Why do you feel D&D, Peppa Pig and Transformers have been able to survive and thrive for so long?
Dungeons & Dragons has enchanted fans for 50 years thanks to its innovative gameplay, immersive world, compelling characters and powerful storytelling. We’ve also seen a boom for the franchise in pop culture as consumers have increasingly embraced the fantasy genre and roleplaying possibilities of D&D.

With regard to Peppa, the brand has been by the side of pre-schoolers as they experience many of life’s firsts – from learning how to read to bravely jumping into their first day of school and more. Peppa instils a powerful confidence in children that helps them to treat every first step as a new adventure, from the everyday to the epic. This theme is so powerful for pre-schoolers.

As for Transformers, I think the brand’s enduring connection has been made possible by its rich storytelling and characters: the heroic Autobots who seek to protect all life, and the evil Decepticons who seek to conquer the universe.

You mentioned LEGO launches for D&D and Peppa. What makes LEGO an exciting partner for these brands?
LEGO’s mission is to inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow through the power of play. At Hasbro, we too believe in the power of play, and for fans of all ages. With LEGO, we’ve been able to truly showcase the ‘all ages’ piece by offering our LEGO DUPLO Peppa Pig sets for ages two plus and our LEGO Ideas Dungeons & Dragons set for ages 18 and above. This range perfectly represents how we’re delivering play experiences to multi-generational fans and how we want everyone to be able to enjoy and celebrate our brands!

Another exciting line you’re showcasing at Vegas is the My Little Pony cosmetics collection from Beauty Creations. Why did this feel like a neat fit for the brand?
We’re super excited to work with Beauty Creations on this fun and colourful My Little Pony collection. This unique collaboration combines the long-lasting, cruelty-free products for which Beauty Creations is known, with the nostalgic, retro colour palette and artwork signature of My Little Pony. It really captures the essence of the beloved brand.

The poneyverse is for everyone, including tweens, teens and moms who grew up with the Mane 6, so offering a beauty collection themed to My Little Pony collection is such a natural fit. This line is perfect for the older audience to help show off their fandom!

Before we wrap up, I wanted to loop back to anniversaries. Do you feel they give you greater freedom to try new things with your brands?
Anniversaries certainly allow us to expand our offerings by tapping into all-new formats, while also focusing on the nostalgia of our IP to help us celebrate the origins of our prized brands and characters. Through an anniversary, we aim to celebrate the brand’s entire existence so that we’re bringing fans of all ages into the celebrations. Anniversaries are for everyone!

For instance, this year’s 40th anniversary of Transformers allowed us to tap into the franchise’s rich archives to create a special anniversary vinyl album featuring music from the 1984 original animated TV show, The Transformers.

With Peppa Pig, fans can now dance along to Peppa’s first-ever cover song ‘Roar’, following the debut of the three-part Peppa Pig Wedding Party Special featuring superstar voices Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom.

As for D&D, we’ve recently celebrated the grand opening of Dungeons & Dragons: The Twenty-Sided Tavern, a live stage show in NYC which takes adventurers on an epic adventure to celebrate D&D’s 50th. We also translated the iconic role-play franchise into stunning fashions and footwear with Converse. Other fun anniversary offerings include fantastical fashions from BlackMilk, along with gaming accessories and collectibles from WizKids, Sirius Dice, Beadle & Grimm’s and others.

Overall, brand anniversaries serve as gigantic celebrations where we can honour our beloved IP across wide-ranging formats all-year long. Each brand moment – including products, experiences and entertainment – layers onto our powerhouse brand portfolios, which lead to greater brand awareness across the board.

Always a pleasure. Thanks Marianne!