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Funko

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Funko
Company typePrivate
IndustryToys
FoundedOctober 23, 1998; 26 years ago (1998-10-23)[1]
FounderMike Becker
HeadquartersEverett, Washington, U.S.
ProductsBobbleheads, vinyl figures
Websitewww.funko.com

Funko is an American company that manufactures licensed pop culture toys. Funko is most known for producing over 1000 different licensed vinyl figures. In addition Funko produces licensed plush, bobbleheads, action figures, and licensed electronic items such as USB drives, lamps and headphones.

Founded in 1998 by Mike Becker, the company was originally conceived by Becker as a small project to bring back various low-tech, nostalgia-themed toys in the high-tech world of today. Funko's first manufactured bobblehead was of the restaurant advertising icon Big Boy.[2]

Sold in 2005, Funko LLC is now headed by Brian Mariotti as president.[2] Since 2005, the company has increased the scope of unique toy lines, and has signed licensing deals with Marvel, DC Comics, WWE, Lucasfilm, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, DreamWorks, Hasbro, CBS, Fox, Warner Bros, Disney, HBO, Peanuts, BBC, NFL, Ubisoft, NBCUniversal, Cartoon Network, 2K Games, Bethesda Games, and many more. 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."[2] In 2015, Funko added Mopeez, Dorbz, Vinyl Idolz, Vinyl Vixens, and Super Deluxe vinyl to their existing lines.

History

Funko was founded as a bobblehead company in 1998 by Mike Becker in his Snohomish, Washington home.[3] 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.[4]

In 2016, Funko announced its intention to relocate its headquarters to downtown Everett, Washington.[5]

ACON Investments, LLC announced it has acquired licensed toy maker Funko, LLC from Fundamental Capital, LLC, but will keep current staff and head of company.[6]

Funko booth at the San Diego Comic Con (SDCC)

Toy lines

Funko has created several different toy lines since its inception. The first, Wacky Wobblers, is a line of bobbleheads featuring characters such as Betty Boop, Cap'n Crunch and The Cat in the Hat. Funko's POP! Vinyl line are figures modeled in an extreme super deformed style (similar to Japanese chibi style), from franchises including Marvel, DC Comics, Disney, Star Wars, Harry Potter and other pop culture entities. Other current product lines include Mystery Minis, Hikari, Legacy Collection, Fabrikations, Mopeez, and Home & Accessories which features a line of Star Wars and Guardians of the Galaxy Pop! ceramic mugs, which are enlarged glass copies of the figure's head, with a handle attached..[7]

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.[8]

Former product lines include Spastik Plastik, Blox, FunkoVision, Funko Plushies, Funko Force, and Reaction Figures.

POP! Tees

Funko CEO Brian Mariotti announced through Hot Topic that Funko will be releasing their first licensed POP! Vinyl styled collectible T-shirts, which first appeared at San Diego Comic Con 2015.[9] It was announced that Hot Topic will initially be the exclusive retailer for the Pop! Tees line, though other retailers have recently begun to sell them (such as Fishbone Apparel in the North Hanover Mall in PA).[10] Just like the vinyl pops they are based on, Pop! Tees cover popular franchises from Disney, Marvel, DC Comics and more.

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 ship every two months.[11] It has subsequently launched a subscription box service for Star Wars items, called Smuggler's Bounty, and DC items, called Legion of Collectors. Also, the subscription box known as Lootcrate occasionally contains an exclusive Funko Pop! vinyl figure which aligns with that month's box theme.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Funko.com WHOIS, DNS, & Domain Info - DomainTools". WHOIS. Retrieved 2016-10-18.
  2. ^ a b c Ali, Reyan (November 12, 2014). "'Pop' Culture: The Incredible Rise of Funko Pop!". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 12, 2015.
  3. ^ Tu, Janet I. (December 10, 2016). "Funko is growing by leaps and bounds, thanks to Spider-Man, Maleficent and friends". The Seattle Times. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
  4. ^ Daybert, Amy (October 25, 2012). "Lynnwood's Funko turns bobbleheads into big bucks". The Everett Herald. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
  5. ^ Catchpole, Dan; Winters, Chris (September 9, 2016). "Toymaker Funko moving to downtown Everett". The Everett Herald. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
  6. ^ Bunge, Nicole (November 9, 2015). "FUNKO SOLD". ICv2. Retrieved May 13, 2016.
  7. ^ Coopee, Todd. "Star Wars Pop! Ceramic Mugs by Funko". ToyTales.ca.
  8. ^ DesJardins, Jordan. "Toy Fair 2015: Get Addicted to Vinyl Sugar". ScienceFiction.com.
  9. ^ "Funko's POP! Vinyl T-Shirts debut at San Diego Comic Con 2015". Retrieved 30 June 2015.
  10. ^ "POP! Vinyl T-Shirt Line's to be distributed through Hot Topics retail chain". Retrieved 13 May 2015.
  11. ^ "Funko Launches Marvel Collector Corps". Marvel.
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