Sonic stationery snapped up by retail

It’s Sonic’s 20th anniversary this year and to celebrate Sega is pushing a line of merchandise to retail.

The publisher has partnered with design firm Blueprint which has produced Sonic-branded stationery, bags and other back-to-school items.

These have already been ordered by a host of retailers including WH Smith, Debenhams, Next, Ryman, Tesco and Morrisons and will launch across the UK and Ireland this summer.

We have a lot of great partners on board already for different merchandise,” Sega’s head of brand licensing for Europe Sissel Henno told MCV.

We’ve merchandise that targets kids and parents individually, and then licences that appeal to the family as a joint experience, for instance the many promotions we have run with Burger King and Pizza Hut, as well as our collaboration with Alton Towers.

I believe there is still a vast untapped potential for licensing based on games, and we will see an increase in overall sales as more retailers start listing the stock and see the results in their sell-through numbers.”

Just last month Sega announced it is ramping up its merchandise range by seeking partnerships to create new product lines ahead of Sonic’s 20th anniversary on June 23rd.

Sega is running several in-store merchandise promotions with retailers, including a Sonic island with Toys ‘R’ Us.