In the recreation sector, the focus has traditionally been strongly on the primary source of income; Ticketing for day attractions and rental for holiday parks. At the company Van Hoorne Studios, owner of Familie Resort Molenwaard and Avonturenboerderij Molenwaard, retail is also playing an increasingly important role. Through the 360 degree approach with IP and storytelling as a basis, the various business units strengthen each other.
We will talk to two employees who are heavily involved in the development of IP and retail within Van Hoorne.
- Sabrina van Wijland is Commercial Director at Van Hoorne Studios and has been working for the company since November 2023. Van Wijland previously worked at Dromenjager: “When Van Hoorne took over the rights of Woezel & Pip, most of the Dromenjager staff also came along. We know the adventures and characters of Woezel & Pip extremely well.”
- René Noorderveen has been working for the company for much longer and is active as Director of Brand Management & Brand Development at Van Hoorne Studios; “I mainly focus on the creative content side of the company.”
For Van Hoorne Studios, 'Fien & Teun' and recently also 'Woezel & Pip' are the company's most important own brands. Both brands now have a large merchandise range. This merchandising is visible in the souvenir shops at both Van Hoorne parks. There are two shops at the Avonturenboerderij Molenwaard theme park; And Familie Resort Molenwaard has a shop that is very popular. In addition to the physical stores at the parks, Van Hoorne also has its own webshop where the products are sold.
Brands with a message
For Van Hoorne, the products in retail are much more than revenue generators. Van Wijland: “The characters are the carriers of a story. And both Woezel & Pip and Fien & Teun have a message for the children. At Woezel & Pip these are mainly stories about discovering the world. Children discover many things in their lives for the first time; and that is quite exciting and difficult. The dogs help a little. At Fien & Teun, the message is much more in the lessons about agriculture and nature. So we want to give a lesson, but never become pedantic, discover through play. A large part of the retail mix is therefore focused on learning through books and games. But we don't shy away from products that children simply like, such as the plush characters, and a themed football also sells very well. But in fact everything contributes to the brand experience.”
360 ̊ approach
Noorderveen adds: “Almost all visitors want to take with them a lasting memory of the fun time they had at the theme park or resort. When putting together the range, the first priority is always; kids like it! The big secret of our success in retail largely lies with the well-known brands (ip). This IP plays a role in several moments of the children's lives. The physical meeting with their beloved characters takes place at our parks and that is very valuable in the 360 ̊ approach. In addition, there are also videos on TV and YouTube, shows in the theater and you can find our 'friends in more and more toy stores. The role of the physical product is that you also bring the story to people's homes. Children often literally wake up with it and go to bed with it.”
Growing through partnerships
The retail branch does not only grow through its own efforts. It is precisely through collaboration that the impact of the brands increases. For example, last month a partnership was signed with Clementoni, a leading game manufacturer with a passion for educational toys. The first production is the 'Fien & Teun Interactive Quiz' and 'Fien & Teun on the Farm', which offer children an exciting and educational journey of discovery through the world of Fien & Teun. Collaboration with play manufacturers provides new products. Collaboration with parties such as the SVR camping farmers or a licensing party in China provides extra contact moments with the characters.
At Van Hoorne we also see IP from third parties, such as Fireman Sam, Peppa Pig and Shrek. These popular children's heroes are used for theater shows, among other things. Noorderveen explains “Van Hoorne has its origins in the theater world and its mission is to surprise and delight children with an encounter with their idols. To achieve that mission, Van Hoorne has partnered with third-party IP. Van Hoorne is now growing extremely fast, so we can increasingly focus on our own brands and fulfill that mission even better because we can apply our 360 degree approach to them.”
why these external characters are still useful: “It is true that we cannot apply our 360 ̊ approach with this. The use of these really big brands provides an extra boost to the visit. The entire company benefits from this. Now that we also have major brands of our own, we are becoming less dependent on outside IP. On the other hand, we are a company par excellence that knows how to benefit from brand awareness.”
Conversely, Van Hoorne is also increasingly looking at other parties that want to work with their IP. Van Hoorne will be present at the Spielwarenmesse in Germany and at Brand Licensing Europe with its own stand where the brands are presented.
Some lessons for developing a successful IP:
- Put the story center stage
- The story must match the image of your company
- Focus on loyalty – create a bond with your customer
- Continue working on your brand (IP) so that it remains relevant in the longer term
- Manage the contact moments between your IP and the customer
More information: www.vanhoorne.com