Fat Brain Toys Partners with Winona Capital
Fat Brain Toys and Winona Capital announced that the private equity firm has made a strategic investment in Fat Brain Toys. This new partnership will enable Fat Brain Toys to deliver its products and customer service to a much larger audience, according to the companies.
“After building up a solid foundation over the past 12 years, we are extremely excited for the opportunity to expand our unique brand of toys with the help of Winona Capital,” said Mark Carson, president and co-founder of Fat Brain Toys. “We’ve been quietly creating the best toy store the average consumer has never heard of, but now we’re ready to make some noise.”
Fat Brain’s headquarters and distribution center will continue to operate from the Omaha, Neb. area. Co-founders Mark and Karen Carson and CFO Dean Giesselmann will also continue in their current leadership roles, as will the rest of the company’s employees.
“We are thrilled to partner with Mark, Karen, and the entire Fat Brain Toys team,” said Jason Starr, a principal at Winona Capital. “Theirs is a great entrepreneurial success story, and we are honored to be part of the business going forward. Fat Brain Toys has a tremendous opportunity, not just for amazing continued growth, but to deliver ‘a smarter way to play’ for children everywhere.”
Fat Brain Toys says it operates one of the largest online toy stores, two physical storefronts, and wholesales its proprietary products to over 2,000 retailers domestically and around the world. Sonenshine Partners served as investment banking advisor to Fat Brain Toys.
Licensing Expo’s Opening Night Party Details
Advanstar announced that Licensing Expo’s All-Industry Opening Night Party will be co-hosted by Sony Music featuring Fifth Harmony. For more information or to purchase tickets for the June 9 event in Las Vegas click here. Licensing Expo is scheduled for June 9–11, 2015 in Mandalay Bay Convention Center.
Trending on TTPM: Goody Bag Items
TTPM is showcasing what’s trending in each specific product category. Today it’s Goody Bag Items. This trending list is determined by consumers. It’s the number of page views for that item in the previous 30 days and is updated every 24 hours.