New Home and Away merchandise to hit UK shelves?
It looks like a new wave of Home and Away merchandise could be set to hit UK stores, as Seven Network has teamed up with a licensing agent to represent the Home and Away brand in UK and Ireland.
As the first of a number of initiatives in the lead up to Home and Away‘s 30th anniversary in 2018, Seven Network has inked a deal that sees Licensing Link appointed as the new licensing agent for the show in the UK.
The company will focus on developing merchandise and themed giftwear, including crockery, stationery, clothing and beach essentials.
Licensing Link is a consultancy company that is responsible for the promotion of corporations, trademarks as well as entertainment, characters and intellectual properties. As part of the deal, they will also be looking for other promotional partners who want to link with the “laid-back and aspirational Australian lifestyle” meaning UK viewers could be seeing the Home and Away brand popping up a lot more frequently.
According to Licensing Source, Kate Green, Channel 7’s licensing manager, said, “Home and Away has a loyal TV audience in Great Britain and Ireland – fans have grown up escaping to the iconic beach Summer Bay and new generations since are attracted to the Aussie beach lifestyle. We are excited to partner with Licensing Link to bring to life the Home and Away brand beyond the screen for the first time with a fantastic new style guide. It’s Summer Everyday in Summer Bay and that summer feeling is exactly what we will be bringing to the UK market.”
Chris Taday and Ian Wickham, of Licensing Link, stated “Home and Away is an iconic TV programme in the UK and we are delighted that Network Seven has appointed us to handle the licensing programme. We look forward to working with them over the next few years.”
It’s not the first time that Home and Away merchandise has hit shelves. Back in the late ’80s and early ’90s, Home and Away annuals were a regular sight in the UK, and a number of books, DVDs and soundtracks have been released across the three decades of the show’s history. In the 2000’s a range of Summer Bay Surf Club and Summer Bay Super Bods clothing and accessories were produced, which still remain on sale at North Palm Beach Surf Club. More information on some of the past merchandise is available in our Merchandise section.
The series has sales in more than 100 countries, with Hulu making the series available, for free, across America.
Details of when the merchandise is likely to be released are yet unknown, but we’ll bring you more information as soon as possible.