Food for Thought
Karen Raugust -- 5/1/00
Licensed books use snack brands to teach everything
from manual dexterity to math
 | Candy products have proved a
popular subject in this new genre. |
Children's books inspired by cereals, snacks and candies have become almost a genre of their own. As of this fall, more than 25 licensed titles tied to food brands will be available. Brand-awareness and trust on the part of kids and parents, combined with the effectiveness of snack foods as a teaching tool, opportunities for cross-promotions and potential longevity make these books an attractive addition to publishers' lists.
And they sell. The Cheerios Play Book, published in July 1998 by Simon & Schuster, and its September 1999 follow-up, The Cheerios Animal Play Book, have 1.2 million and 550,000 copies in print, respectively. Charlesbridge Publishing's several M&M's titles have cumulatively sold a million copies, while at least five other snack-licensed books or series have in-print figures between 100,000 and 265,000, most within a year of publication.
TheM&M's Brand Counting Book, which Charlesbridge launched in fall 1994, was the first of the current crop of snack-licensed titles. In late 1997, Nibble-Me Books introduced Christmas Buttons, featuring Necco candies, the first in a series of nine educational die-cut books. Others in the line are packaged with G litz's Gummy and Jelly Belly candies and, most recently, M&M's minis.
The trend took off last year, with a second Barnum's Animals title (the first came out in 1998), The Sun-Maid Raisins Play Book and the second Cheerios title (all S&S); The Pepperidge Farm Goldfish Fun Book (HarperFestival); and The Hershey's Fraction Book and The Cheerios Counting Book (both Scholastic). This spring has seen Reese's Pieces Count by Fives from Scholastic, while fall will bring a Kellogg's Froot Loops title from Harper, The Oreos Cookie Counting Book and a Cheerios Christmas title from S&S and Skittles Riddles Math from Charlesbridge. Additional M&M's and Goldfish titles also have been added to upcoming lists from various publishers.
Cereals, snacks and candies are a logical interactive aid for teaching educa-
tional concepts ranging from manual dexterity for preschoolers to math for older children. "I was just looking for something that would be an interactive tool for teaching young readers," said Debbie D'Andrea, an educator and creator of the nine Nibble-Me Books titles.
Teachers sometimes use snacks such as M&M's in their classrooms to help explain concepts like counting, patterns and graphing. Jerry Pallotta of Corporate Board Books, a packager and the author of Scholastic's Hershey's and Reese's titles, noted that a standard Hershey bar is divided into 12 segments. "It's ideal for fractions."
"Teachers love it because they can use the candy bar to teach kids about math, while [the kids] are thinking about how they can't wait to get a third of the candy bar," agreed
Dawn Colon, manager of sales and merchandise for Hershey Foods. "It's very conducive to learning."
For food-brand licensors, licensing royalties are just a tiny portion of the total revenue stream for the entire firm. Yet, within the scope of the licensing effort, a successful children's book can generate significant income. "It's a nice piece of our business," said Leigh Ann Schwarzkopf, manager of corporate licensing at Cheerios licensor General Mills. The books also help support Cheerios' brand image. Schwarzkopf cited studies showing that Cheerios often play a key role in the first "finger food moment," a defining point in childhood development.
Sales and Marketing Synergies
Most publishers of food-branded children's books have discussed cross-promoting with licensors or other licensees, but the amount of activity varies. Some of the books' price points are too high for cross-promotions to be viable, some licensors are less proactive when it comes to tie-ins and some programs can be difficult to coordinate, especially for publishers with small staffs or little experience working with products distributed through grocery stores.
Simon & Schuster tipped in a 50-cents off coupon for Cheerios and Sun-Maid Raisins in its Play Books--HarperCollins has similar plans for Froot Loops this fall--and General Mills has promoted the books twice on Cheerios cereal boxes. During April and May this year, nearly 20 million Cheerios packages feature an advertisement for the book. Similar programs are planned for S&S's fall food-based titles, according to Kristi DeLano, marketing manager for S&S.
S&S also has participated in tie-ins with other Cheerios licensees, including a purchase-with-purchase program at Barnes & Noble stores involving snack containers manufactured by General Mills licensee LaRue and a gift-with-purchase offer on Booksamillion.com involving Cheerios height charts.
In terms of distribution, snack-branded books would seem to be a natural for supermarkets, but this channel can be a challenge. Some publishers, including S&S, which has its own ID sales group, already have significant distribution in supermarkets and drug stores. Smagler said that the Cheerios and Sun-Maid titles have about the same level of distribution in supermarkets and drug stores that S&S's other licensed series (such as Bear in the Big Blue House or Rugrats) have.
Unlike other licensed titles, however, these books make sense in areas of the store other than the book department. S&S created shelf-extender racks and mass-market-friendly displays that allow the books to be merchandised in the cereal or raisin aisles. Acceptance by retailers is not universal, however. "It depends on the politics at each individual retailer," Smagler said. "[The departments] all fight for their space."
"We'd like to do more [in grocery chains]," said Suzanne Daghlian, editorial director for HarperFestival. "We hope to work with Kellogg's on pursuing more of that." Harper has some distribution in supermarkets but none in food aisles yet.
One smaller publisher recently experimented with clip strips in supermarket aisles and sold enough for retailers to want to reorder. But the logistics and costs made those sales unprofitable and the publisher decided against actively pursuing this channel.
Although these types of books fit naturally in supermarkets, they are embraced by nearly every retail segment. Mass-market channels are typically strong, as
 | | New food titles on forthcoming lists |
is the case with most licensed titles. K mart's Susan Dennis reported that food-themed books, including Cheerios, Sun-Maid, M&M's and Pepperidge Farm, are sold in 6,200 K mart stores.
Bookstore chains also carry them in varying quantities, often creating themed displays within the children's department. Cheerios books are consistently among the top sellers at Barnes & Noble, Borders and Waldenbooks, followed by Sun-Maid, Goldfish and M&M's titles (in no particular order). B&N spokes- person Debra Williams attributed the Cheerios titles' success to their die-cut, Cheerios-sized slots, which add an interactive element. She also noted that sales levels suggest that parents are opting for titles tied to less sugary snacks.
Waldenbooks spokesperson Linda Caine reported that Barnum's Animals books did not do well in that chain. (They have an $8.99 price point and a hard-to-shelve shape.) Nibble-Me Books, whose titles are co-packaged with candy, has had a small presence bookstore chains to date. D'Andrea plans to market candy-less versions starting in January 2001, which she hopes will encourage chains such as Barnes & Noble and Borders to carry them.
Currently, independents also do well with these books, although mass merchants and chains are typically more significant channels. Friends of Early Education, a nonprofit organization that distributes books through educator conferences, sets up school book fairs and operates its own full-line bookstore as well, carries titles tied to Cheerios (both S&S's and Scholastic's), M&M's, Goldfish, Gummy and Sun-Maid, and all perform strongly, with Cheerios leading the way.
"[Cheerios titles] have gone extremely well at book fairs for early childhood," said Friends of Early Education bookstore manager Sherye Halliburton. She typically brings two to three copies of a given title to a book fair, depending on audience and price points, but Cheerios titles have sold as many as 13 copies per fair.
"We do really well in the teacher-supply market," said Mary Ann Sabia, Charlesbridge's v-p and associate publisher, citing it as a top-three channel for sales of M&M's titles, along with mass merchants and chain bookstores.
Sales Belie Negative Image
Recent news reports, including a February article in the Chicago Tribune, have accused publishers and licensors of trying to build brand awareness among the very young and encouraging snack-eating under the guise of education. "There's been a lot of negative articles
about these books," said Robin Corey, S&S's v-p and publisher, novelty books and media tie-ins. "There are some brands that we would steer clear of. But these have a wholesome appeal to them. I feel if a kid is reading, you've accomplished your mission."
Daghlian of Harper- Festival pointed out that these brands are already ubiquitous in children's lives. "There isn't a nursery school in America that d sn't have Goldfish in it," she said. "And Froot Loops are very popular with the youngest of the young. We're happy with the success of these and we'd love to do more."
Retailers mentioned that a bookstore's role is to provide a choice for parents. "The books provide a fun way for a child to learn some basic concepts essential to their development," said Kendra Smith, spokesperson for Borders. Waldenbooks' Caine added, "The fact that Cheerios and Sun-Maid Raisins sell best is the customer's way of expressing their opinion."
Halliburton recalled hearing a few negative comments from her customers, such as "I just don't believe that food and books should mix." She d s not agree. "So what if the kids put one [Cheerio] in the book and one in their mouth?" Most of her customers, especially teachers, she said, love the concept of these books, and sales figures reflect that.
It is that sales potential that promises to bring even more food-brand licensors and publishers together. Tootsie Roll, which also owns the trademarks Sugar Daddy, Dots and Junior Mints, is among the licensors actively looking at this category, according to Cynthia Hall Domine, president of Synchronicity, Tootsie Roll's licensing agency. S&S, Nibble-Me Books, HarperCollins and Charlesbridge all plan future food-related titles, while Jerry Pallotta is working on a Hershey's Kisses book.
Retailers do not believe the category is saturated yet. "We have seen a tremendous growth in the genre recently," said Smith. "We would carry the new titles as well and see which ones are the stronger sellers." Retailers' and customers' continued acceptance of food-branded children's books suggests this trend will live on for at least a while longer.
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