Paul Frank Hitting the Road
Julius is traveling.
The monkey-faced icon for the Paul Frank label will now have his mug plastered on the sides of bags, backpacks, wallets, lunch boxes, purses, jewelry and key caps.
Saban Brands, which bought the Paul Frank company two years ago, is partnering with Loungefly to develop a travel collection that will have the bright colors associated with Paul Frank on many, many accessories. Loungefly works with licensors and retailers to develop fashion accessories that go with their brands and is sold to the juniors market.
Right now, Loungefly and the Paul Frank people are at the Street show at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas promoting the accessories line that debuts for Spring 2013.
The idea of wallets is what started Paul Frank Industries in 1997. Artist Paul Frank, no longer with the company, created Julius the monkey and then sewed his image on to the sides of wallets for his first creation. From there the company, based in Costa Mesa, Calif., grew rapidly.
It grew so much that Saban Brands, associated with entertainment mogul Haim Saban, whose Saban Entertainment made kids TV programs such as "Power Rangers" and "Big Bad Beetleborgs," bought the company as one of its first brand purchases.
Saban Brands is affiliated with Saban Capital Group, which led a group of investors in 2006 to buy Spanish-language network Univision.
Maybe Julius is studying Spanish at this very moment to get a crack at stardom in the Latino market.
