CA-resident J.J. Matis has "earned a coveted license"
from MLBP for her "baseball-shaped" vinyl backpack with a
Dodger logo, according to Cyndia Zwahlen of the L.A. TIMES,
who reported that Matis had an initial purchase order of 200
backpacks, which was "recently boosted" to about 300, from
the team. Dodgers Dir of Merchandise Mike Nygren said that
"not many of the dozens" of licensing ideas presented to him
each year get licensed, as "most of the 2,000 Dodger items"
on sale at the ballpark were developed by his department,
which "generates roughly 80% of all new product concepts."
Nygren, on Matis: "She really bucked the odds in a big way
and you have to give her credit for that." MLBP Licensing
Supervisor for Novelty Products Denise Lawlor called the
backpack "unique" and added, "If it is successful [for the
Dodgers], in the near future we can expand to other clubs."
MLBP, whose "major concerns" were Matis' "financing and
manufacturing capabilities," required Matis "to reveal her
investor (her dad, for $250,000), pressed her to nail down a
minimum order from the Dodgers, and sought assurances that
all her costs were covered." Matis: "I'm not Nike. They
want to know it's not going to be a problem to pay my 11%
royalty fee" (L.A. TIMES, 7/12).
DO YOU WAHOO? In Cleveland, Joseph Wagner reported that
OH State Senator Robert Spada "wants" the Indians Chief
Wahoo logo on the state's license plates, as the logo "could
boost sales" of plates "honoring" the team. Wagner says
that sales of plates featuring the script "Indians" emblem
have been "less than spectacular, with only 452" sold
between February and May. Meanwhile, 701 plates featuring a
Browns logo, 36 with a Cavs logo, 3,902 with a bald eagle
and 24,894 with the state bird of a cardinal were sold
between January and May (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 7/12).
