Welcome to the Muppet Central Forum!
Back to the Rock Season 2
Sesame Street Season 54
The Muppets Mayhem premieres
Bear arrives on Disney+
Sam and Friends Book
- Joined
- Apr 11, 2002
- Messages
- 8,269
- Reaction score
- 3,402
Here's a really nice article on Palisades and how their success is tied to the Muppets.
Palisades Toys Shifts Gears, Enjoys Road To Success
By Mark R. Smith
One might call a visit to Palisades Toys in Troy Hill Industrial Park a must for anyone who's a kid at heart.
The cast of toy action figures "in residence" there is impressive. While old Muppet friends like Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear have pulled Palisades into the mainstream, the decade-old company arose on the coattails of ghoulish stalwarts from the films Alien and Predator, and video games like "Mortal Combat" and "Resident Evil."
Today, the hundreds of toys standing meticulously on shelves or hanging in packages throughout the 4,000-square-foot office are testament to the company's rising stature in the action figure industry. But the big break came in 2001.
That's when a contract was inked with The Jim Henson Company to produce four-to-seven-inch action figures of the Muppets that are being released in three series this year, launching Palisades toward the upper echelon of small toy makers. Not bad for a company established in the owner's row home in Baltimore's trendy Canton neighborhood.
But before anyone comes away with the impression that Michael Horn has never had to grow up, the company president acknowledged experiencing his share of ups and downs with his company, which he estimates will post approximately $4.5 million in revenues this year.
Humble Beginings
Horn has proof of heeding the sage business mantra of slow, steady growth, as he had to move to bigger homes as his business grew. But the Elkton native really started in the business as a child, when he began collecting, buying and selling comic books with his father and oldest brother.
His career after graduating from Towson State in 1991 was as a buyer with Diamond Comic Distributors (then of Woodlawn, now of Timonium). But, the urge to go it alone couldn't have been far from the surface, hence the founding of Palisades in 1994 as a marketing and consulting concern specializing in finding shelf space for collectibles.
Never a detail guy, Horn loves the art of the deal. Meeting future wife Kate led to a more organized office approach (i.e., setting up files and making sure checks were cashed), fueled more company growth and included a move to a small space in Oella Mill in 1998.
That move also marked the start of a transitional period. Horn decided to forgo marketing figures and start manufacturing them, while trying to create his own branding opportunities. So, three years before his Muppet glory came "a huge learning curve."
That "curve" included a few hard knocks. "We were working with upstart manufacturers on a fee basis and got stung a couple of times," he explained with a roll of his eyes, including getting stuck by a California company that created figures from B movies with an unpaid $50,000 bill. "We ended up suing them, which cost $10,000 more in legal fees. I have a judgment against them. Hopefully one day I'll have the money, too."
During that time, however, Horn also befriended a couple of Japanese manufacturers who made figures. "We distributed their goods in the U.S. for two years under our name," which further strengthened his resolve to change the company's focus.
The First Big Deal
Interestingly, the first products Palisades had manufactured under its name weren't action figures, but two-foot-high cardboard cutouts of those titans of bad taste, Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny of South Park, for the Musicland chain. That wasn't easy, either.
That's because Horn had $11 in the bank and no credit, since his bills had consisted of his rent and paying for his phone line. "Still, I arranged a $100,000 loan to get the products printed by a California company that could die-cut and do drop shipments to 1,600 stores," he said.
Palisades followed that project with several moderately successful collectables, featuring characters from the aforementioned flicks and video games, which were sold via national retailers like Target and Kay-Bee Toys. Eventually came the Muppet deal, when Palisades signed with Henson to create action figures in celebration of the Muppet Show's 25th anniversary.
"That broke it open," he said, noting that the project required a year in production to move from concept to market. Horn added that "almost all" collectable toys are manufactured in China, since having it done domestically would be "too labor-intensive," although the 12 time zone difference with China presents challenges of its own.
Michael Polis, senior vice president for marketing worldwide for Hollywood-based Henson, pointed out the benefit of such a big company working with a small manufacturer. He called Palisades "wildly enthusiastic about the Muppet project. I feel like we get a great amount of attention from a player like them, since we're their biggest client."
Horn & Co.'s knowledge of distribution also came in handy, as Polis added that, "Palisades did extremely detailed work on the models." Fozzie's hat has a magnet in it so it won't fall off, for example.
"A mid-sized company, or the largest of the small in the action figure business," is how Gareb Shamus, chairman and CEO of Wizard Entertainment, a New York City-based magazine publisher in the toy and collectible business, now characterizes Palisades. "Plus, the line is hot. That's the kind of thing people are running to conventions all over the country to buy and sell on eBay, so they don't miss one."
Shamus pointed out that Palisades has "picked up some new properties, such as Ren and Stimpy, so Mike wants to continue to license property while he establishes his own. Then he'll be able to do limited editions or larger editions, since he won't have to ask permission for rights. He'll own them."
Diamond Comic Distributors Manager of Purchasing Chuck Terceira agreed that Palisades is now "one of the leaders in the collectible toy market. They had a solid presence before the Muppet deal, but that's what established them as a leader in this industry."
Tinseltown, Here
He Comes
But what's most admirable about Palisades, Terceira observed, is how the company morphed from a marketing concern to selling imported Japanese toys, then video game collectables, and now more mainstream projects. "That Mike has seen when to shift gears is a testament to his knowledge of the market."
Shamus added that, if Palisades is successful with its own characters, the company could leverage its own products into other media, like movies, TV shows, apparel or video games. "Spiderman started in comic books. G.I. Joe started out as a toy, and Lara Croft from Tomb Raider came out of a video game," he pointed out.
That sounds like a great idea, but the intestinal fortitude required for the execution of such acts can result in the perpetrator buying a case of Maalox first. But, interestingly, Horn said he's never had a big game plan, nor does he consider himself a big risk taker. "Only after 9/11 did I ever get scared," he noted, since orders were getting cancelled and production slowed to a crawl.
So today, Horn is gearing up for the next act, which is to offer Palisades-developed properties in Hollywood, like Urbanimals. To conjure an image, he said to just try to imagine "the Homies meeting the Muppets." The next step, as Shamus said, would be to create concepts for a TV show or animation, as Mattel and Hasbro have done with other properties.
If past results are any indication, place your bets on Palisades. "My mother calls me ÔThe Golden Child,'" Horn said, with a laugh. "But, while I've had my ups and downs like anyone else, this has been a fun business."
http://www.bizmonthly.com/9_2003/3.html
Palisades Toys Shifts Gears, Enjoys Road To Success
By Mark R. Smith
One might call a visit to Palisades Toys in Troy Hill Industrial Park a must for anyone who's a kid at heart.
The cast of toy action figures "in residence" there is impressive. While old Muppet friends like Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy and Fozzie Bear have pulled Palisades into the mainstream, the decade-old company arose on the coattails of ghoulish stalwarts from the films Alien and Predator, and video games like "Mortal Combat" and "Resident Evil."
Today, the hundreds of toys standing meticulously on shelves or hanging in packages throughout the 4,000-square-foot office are testament to the company's rising stature in the action figure industry. But the big break came in 2001.
That's when a contract was inked with The Jim Henson Company to produce four-to-seven-inch action figures of the Muppets that are being released in three series this year, launching Palisades toward the upper echelon of small toy makers. Not bad for a company established in the owner's row home in Baltimore's trendy Canton neighborhood.
But before anyone comes away with the impression that Michael Horn has never had to grow up, the company president acknowledged experiencing his share of ups and downs with his company, which he estimates will post approximately $4.5 million in revenues this year.
Humble Beginings
Horn has proof of heeding the sage business mantra of slow, steady growth, as he had to move to bigger homes as his business grew. But the Elkton native really started in the business as a child, when he began collecting, buying and selling comic books with his father and oldest brother.
His career after graduating from Towson State in 1991 was as a buyer with Diamond Comic Distributors (then of Woodlawn, now of Timonium). But, the urge to go it alone couldn't have been far from the surface, hence the founding of Palisades in 1994 as a marketing and consulting concern specializing in finding shelf space for collectibles.
Never a detail guy, Horn loves the art of the deal. Meeting future wife Kate led to a more organized office approach (i.e., setting up files and making sure checks were cashed), fueled more company growth and included a move to a small space in Oella Mill in 1998.
That move also marked the start of a transitional period. Horn decided to forgo marketing figures and start manufacturing them, while trying to create his own branding opportunities. So, three years before his Muppet glory came "a huge learning curve."
That "curve" included a few hard knocks. "We were working with upstart manufacturers on a fee basis and got stung a couple of times," he explained with a roll of his eyes, including getting stuck by a California company that created figures from B movies with an unpaid $50,000 bill. "We ended up suing them, which cost $10,000 more in legal fees. I have a judgment against them. Hopefully one day I'll have the money, too."
During that time, however, Horn also befriended a couple of Japanese manufacturers who made figures. "We distributed their goods in the U.S. for two years under our name," which further strengthened his resolve to change the company's focus.
The First Big Deal
Interestingly, the first products Palisades had manufactured under its name weren't action figures, but two-foot-high cardboard cutouts of those titans of bad taste, Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny of South Park, for the Musicland chain. That wasn't easy, either.
That's because Horn had $11 in the bank and no credit, since his bills had consisted of his rent and paying for his phone line. "Still, I arranged a $100,000 loan to get the products printed by a California company that could die-cut and do drop shipments to 1,600 stores," he said.
Palisades followed that project with several moderately successful collectables, featuring characters from the aforementioned flicks and video games, which were sold via national retailers like Target and Kay-Bee Toys. Eventually came the Muppet deal, when Palisades signed with Henson to create action figures in celebration of the Muppet Show's 25th anniversary.
"That broke it open," he said, noting that the project required a year in production to move from concept to market. Horn added that "almost all" collectable toys are manufactured in China, since having it done domestically would be "too labor-intensive," although the 12 time zone difference with China presents challenges of its own.
Michael Polis, senior vice president for marketing worldwide for Hollywood-based Henson, pointed out the benefit of such a big company working with a small manufacturer. He called Palisades "wildly enthusiastic about the Muppet project. I feel like we get a great amount of attention from a player like them, since we're their biggest client."
Horn & Co.'s knowledge of distribution also came in handy, as Polis added that, "Palisades did extremely detailed work on the models." Fozzie's hat has a magnet in it so it won't fall off, for example.
"A mid-sized company, or the largest of the small in the action figure business," is how Gareb Shamus, chairman and CEO of Wizard Entertainment, a New York City-based magazine publisher in the toy and collectible business, now characterizes Palisades. "Plus, the line is hot. That's the kind of thing people are running to conventions all over the country to buy and sell on eBay, so they don't miss one."
Shamus pointed out that Palisades has "picked up some new properties, such as Ren and Stimpy, so Mike wants to continue to license property while he establishes his own. Then he'll be able to do limited editions or larger editions, since he won't have to ask permission for rights. He'll own them."
Diamond Comic Distributors Manager of Purchasing Chuck Terceira agreed that Palisades is now "one of the leaders in the collectible toy market. They had a solid presence before the Muppet deal, but that's what established them as a leader in this industry."
Tinseltown, Here
He Comes
But what's most admirable about Palisades, Terceira observed, is how the company morphed from a marketing concern to selling imported Japanese toys, then video game collectables, and now more mainstream projects. "That Mike has seen when to shift gears is a testament to his knowledge of the market."
Shamus added that, if Palisades is successful with its own characters, the company could leverage its own products into other media, like movies, TV shows, apparel or video games. "Spiderman started in comic books. G.I. Joe started out as a toy, and Lara Croft from Tomb Raider came out of a video game," he pointed out.
That sounds like a great idea, but the intestinal fortitude required for the execution of such acts can result in the perpetrator buying a case of Maalox first. But, interestingly, Horn said he's never had a big game plan, nor does he consider himself a big risk taker. "Only after 9/11 did I ever get scared," he noted, since orders were getting cancelled and production slowed to a crawl.
So today, Horn is gearing up for the next act, which is to offer Palisades-developed properties in Hollywood, like Urbanimals. To conjure an image, he said to just try to imagine "the Homies meeting the Muppets." The next step, as Shamus said, would be to create concepts for a TV show or animation, as Mattel and Hasbro have done with other properties.
If past results are any indication, place your bets on Palisades. "My mother calls me ÔThe Golden Child,'" Horn said, with a laugh. "But, while I've had my ups and downs like anyone else, this has been a fun business."
http://www.bizmonthly.com/9_2003/3.html
