We delve into the licensing life of the Lisle International partner.
Frankie Lisle-Grimshaw
Partner at Lisle International
My route into the licensing industry went something like this…
My first job in licensing was working for a confectionery company in Spain on some of their licences, such as WWE. After that I worked at Santoro in their international sales team, this included working with some of their brands such as Gorjuss which was just launching as a greeting card line at the time. This was followed by making the big decision to work with my family in the toy agency business which was fairly quickly followed by the set-up of Lisle.
How many years in the industry?
Approximately seven years in licensing.
When I was growing up, I had no idea licensing was an industry so I wanted to be…
Just like my dad and to have the opportunity to run my own business.
The deal I am most proud of is…
I don’t think I could narrow it down to one deal. The feeling I still get each time a deal is confirmed for any brand is incredible; I still get a buzz. I am most proud of what we have achieved as a company, helping licensees to set up new retail accounts with our licences, establishing various DTRs with retailers such as Clintons and partnering with such an array of licensees and helping to bring new manufacturers into licensing with their first deals in some categories.
My most interesting experience in licensing has been…
Learning something new every day. Licensing allows you to work in such an innovative and ever changing industry, it certainly keeps each day interesting.
The best piece of advice I’ve ever received is…
The most difficult job you will face is the management of your staff/team.
If I wasn’t in licensing, I would be…
Probably in the toy industry.
Who do you admire most in the industry (and why)?
I think an article/story that touched me the most recently was the lifetime achievement award from the British Toy & Hobby association that Jon Diver, Richard King, Joe Kissane and Kiran Shah of the Character Group received. For sure, they are four men that I admire a lot and their journey to how they to where they are today. I admire anyone in an independent business who have taken risks to get to where they are.
In a film of your life, which licensed character would play you?
Hard one to answer… I did always love Charmed and wanted to be one of the Halliwell sisters. However, this has no resemblance to my life… I don’t think I’m a witch…
If I could change anything about the industry, it would be…
To give more opportunity to smaller brands. As an independent agent we get to work with some fantastic creative companies with some great brands, but very often many of these don’t see the light of day because the market is dominated by the bigger players.
