In the thriving setting of Nuremberg Toy Fair 2025, Licensing Magazine had the opportunity to meet Ken Faier, President and Founder of Epic Story Media, for an exclusive interview about the company’s plans for 2025 and their recent expansion into the Toy industry with Epic Story Toy. Read on to learn more about their journey!
What inspired Epic Story Media’s growth and expansion into the toy industry with Epic Story Toy?
When I founded Epic Story Media nearly eight years ago, my goal was to build a 360-degree approach, engaging kids across multiple platforms. At the time, the industry was going through significant changes, and my primary focus was on fostering great creativity by partnering with amazing content and franchise creators. 8 years in, we now have a mobile game studio (Night Market Games), a Roblox Development studio (Freeground), an animation studio, a content distribution arm, you tube management and now a toy division.
Initially, we focused on developing original IPs, franchises, and TV series, building an audience, and then expanding into gaming and toys through licensing, partnering with experts in those fields. As the industry has evolved, so must we. Instead of following the traditional route of out-licensing and seeing how much time it takes to build enough critical mass for some of the larger toy companies, we decided to assume the risk ourselves. We know our IPs better than anyone else, so we took full ownership of product development, refining what makes an IP the right fit for us. An example is our own IP, Bubble’s Hotel – developed through a partnership with Entire and Tencent – this is a perfect example, embodying many of the key ingredients we seek in our properties: Bubble’s Hotel was born thanks to the collaboration with our creator, Narae Ha, and with a partnership with Entire and Tencent.
We developed the property with great care ensuring we had all of the ingredients of what we feel a franchise needs. Humor, heart and great characters and a structure that includes great play patterns. Another key part of my career is Slugterra: I was the Executive Producer at Nerd Corps in the early 2000s, working closely with creator Ace Fipke, and launched the brand with Disney XD, worldwide, and a toy line with Jakks Pacific. Even when founding Epic Story Media in 2017, I remained closely involved with Slugterra, securing its rights upon leaving Wildbrain, the company which acquired Nerd Corps as well as Slugterra, and reacquiring the mobile gaming division. With over 80 million downloads, the mobile game has kept the brand alive, along with our recently launched Roblox experience and new toy line and as a current licensee of Slugterra I believe the franchise still has a loyal audience eager for more.
Beyond animation, we have integrated toy development into our IP construction, ensuring our properties not only tell compelling stories but also offer immersive play experiences and a fully connected entertainment experience. Since launching our toy division, the response has been overwhelmingly positive. Our philosophy is to build an ecosystem where each brand has its own strategic roadmap, and we’re committed to working closely with our partners to maximize success, investing significant effort into ensuring our brands are positioned effectively and developing evergreen properties with long-term potential.
In the Toy sector, is your work with both original IPs and licensed properties a strategic choice?
Absolutely. The industry often demands products that already have an established audience. Take Bubble’s Hotel, for instance: it would be extremely challenging to start from scratch without leveraging existing materials. Regarding Bubble’s Hotel, we are now collaborating with toy distributors globally and actively placing content with broadcasters worldwide. We have also launched a Roblox game to support brand engagement and we are managing its YouTube channels. Currently, we are in the brand-building phase: our product strategy includes a strong mix of play patterns – such as dollhouse play, roleplay elements, and collectible features – all of which contribute to the overall appeal of the brand.
We also knew that licensing in was going to be an important part of our growth strategy. We are very proud of our recently announced deal with Studio 100 and Cheeky Little Media where we have taken on master toy rights for Vegesaurs. The property stands for everything we look for which is a creator driven, compelling franchise that has a natural play pattern. We think we have taken a very innovative approach to the toy development. Dinosaurs have been done with varying degrees of success, but have we ever seen a fruit and vegetables inspired Dino IP? We look forward to the industry and kids around the world seeing what we have in store for them.
Can you elaborate on the structured model of your business, separating licensors and licensees?
Our approach is highly structured. We recently created an official toy division, led by Kim Morris, who oversees the business. Even if the toy division develops products for our own IPs, such as Bubble’s Hotel, it operates as a separate entity: essentially, our toy division acts as a licensee of Bubble’s Hotel. This structure ensures that each IP functions as its own business and has its own partners. Our decision to either manufacture toys in-house or license them out depends on the specific brand and its market potential. For some IPs, it makes more sense to partner with established toy companies that specialize in certain categories or have certain strengths of scale.
We want to nurture properties that we feel have big potential, but which may not be ready for larger companies that have larger overheads. With Vegesaurs, we began as North American licensing agents: the content hadn’t been placed on TV yet, but we recognized its potential and were drawn to its mission of promoting healthy eating through its vegetable and fruit like characters. We worked with Cheeky Little and Studio 100 to expand its reach and helped to secure U.S. content placement. When pitching to Studio 100, our parent-approved products aligned perfectly with the brand’s vision, helping us secure the toy rights and a licensing deal. Collaborating with top toy designers in L.A. and New York, and guided by Kim Morris’s market expertise, we developed a compelling Vegesaurs toy line.
What do you see as your company’s role in the toy industry?
We strive to ensure that industry professionals fully understand our vision; some key events such as L.A. previews in April and September have been incredibly effective, allowing us to build worldwide relationships with key distributors, and of course we wanted to share our new toy adventure in Nuremberg. Our approach isn’t just about signing deals – it’s about forming long-term partnerships as the cornerstone of shared success in the ever-evolving toy industry. Trust is a vital part of our business, and Epic Story Media works with talented designers, licensors, and distributors to ensure that the best possible products reach consumers: while challenges exist, our dedication to quality, strategic thinking, and long-term partnerships positions us for continued success.
