From Lotty to new characters, all gathered in one place

One of the most popular characters at the Character Licensing Fair 2023, which opened at COEX in Gangnam-gu, Seoul on Thursday, is Lotte World's representative character, Lotty, who turned 34 this year. Among 576 character IP booths at the event, Lotty’s booth was especially crowded with visitors in their 20s and 30s. Han Kyung-won, the head of Lotte World's Design Media Team, who attended the event, attributed the popularity to Lotty’s growth.

Born in 1989, Lotty reached a turning point in his life in 2021 when Lotte World introduced "The Good Vibes Lotty," a character in his 30s specifically targeting Millennials and Generation Z, who grew up watching Lotty. As an adult, Lotty effortlessly resonated with "eoleun-i" (a neologism that combines adults and children in Korean) by sharing his daily life on Instagram, showcasing his pursuit of hobbies after work at Lotte World. Lotte World's expansion from catering solely to children to embracing adults and extending beyond the park's boundaries paved the way for Lotty's widespread use of various products, including beer. Lotte World reports that the IP of the Lotty character alone generated approximately 16 billion won in sales last year.

Hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism and organized by the Korea Creative Content Agency, the event saw participation from 111 domestic and international character IP companies. Notable among them were leading domestic character IP companies such as Iconix, the production company behind popular characters like Pororoand Tayo. These companies were present at the corporate exhibition hall and the 'Rookie Project' pavilion, which featured 50 aspiring character designers showcasing their new creations. Additionally, this year marked the introduction of the 'Webtoon Special Pavilion,' where cases of commercialization and film adaptation using webtoon IPs were exhibited for the first time.

The 1:1 Business Matching Program, which connects IP companies with domestic and international buyers, provides a valuable opportunity for emerging creators. Baek Kwan-hyun, a 37-year-old who established the character IP company Bn last year, had the privilege of securing meetings with both Chinese and Korean buyers solely on the morning of the opening day. The buyers were particularly captivated by Bn's character "Bavel Farm," which draws inspiration from nine different animals.

A booth selling merchandise that utilizes new characters introduced in last year's Rookie Project also garnered attention. "We anticipate that the event will aid young character designers who face challenges in distributing and promoting their products," stated Cho Hyun-rae, the head of the Korea Creative Content Agency. The event will continue until Sunday.


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