2024 Surprise Ladies Awards winners revealedToy World Journal

Ladies in Toys, Licensing & Leisure has introduced the winners for the 2024 Surprise Ladies Awards in Los Angeles.

Ladies in Toys, Licensing & Leisure (WiT) has introduced its 2024 Surprise Ladies Winners, who had been celebrated on the nineteenth annual Surprise Ladies Awards at The Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles.

The main international organisation centered on advancing and advocating for ladies within the toy, client merchandise, licensing and leisure industries, and in addition honoured Kitty Black Perkins, former chief Barbie designer at Mattel, with the Trailblazer Honoree Award.

The Surprise Ladies Awards honours feminine executives, thought leaders, entrepreneurs and changemakers for his or her extraordinary accomplishments and affect.

The 2024 Surprise Ladies Award winners are:

• Advocate for Change: Lissa Alberto-Calma, The Lego Group
• Model Excellence: Hasbro’s Furby improvement group – Angie Northrup, David Laskowski, Holly Myhre, Joe LaPlante, Justin Pringle, Kevan MacIver, Kristin McKay, Melissa Jones, Robin Matusik, Shaun Cormier, Vivian Lee Kim
• Model Franchise: Aimee London, Mattel
• Business Gross sales: Jazwares’ industrial gross sales group, led by Elizabeth Kong and Kelly Bloom – Adam Hackney, Brent Reid, Connor Hinckley, Katy Peck
• Designer/Inventor – Company: Claudia D. Sandoval, Melissa & Doug
• Designer/Inventor – Small Enterprise: Gayle Keller, Theodora S.T.E.A.M. Ladies
• Digital Innovator: Sarah Braun, Amazon
• Digital Storyteller: Amanda Cioletti, Informa Markets
• Inbound Licensing: Alison Carroll, Mattel
• Licensing Agent: Michelle McLaughlin, Model Activation Consulting
• Advertising: Lucy Bullock, Moose Toys
• Mentor of the 12 months: Belinda Gruebner, Moose Toys
• PR Excellence: Crystal Flynn, Hasbro and Molly Quiring, Common Merchandise & Experiences
• Rising Chief < 500 Staff: Michelle Weber, Toy’n Round and Jenny Lorton, Toysmith
• Rising Chief > 500 Staff: Becca Griffin, Hasbro and Sasha Bash, Amazon
• Small Enterprise Proprietor of the 12 months: Anita Grant, Whats up Hair
• Sustainability Excellence: Emilie Stinson Nosovic, The Lego Group
• Unsung Hero < 500 Staff: Kimberly Carcone, The Toy Affiliation and Allie Wachter, Simply Play
• Unsung Hero > 500 Staff: Susan Abraham, Spin Grasp and Josephine Rotolo, Paramount International

“Internet hosting the Surprise Ladies Awards in Los Angeles for the primary time was exhilarating,” stated Nancy Molenda and Ehi Oviasu-Kahn, Surprise Ladies Awards co-chairs. “The vitality within the room was electrical as lots of of company got here collectively to recognise the trailblazers who’re shaping the way forward for enterprise. The innovation, tenacity and inspiration of our Surprise Ladies had been on full show, making this inaugural LA gala a strong testomony to their exceptional achievements and ongoing affect.”

WiT additionally introduced six $5,000 scholarships to excellent college students who’ve demonstrated management and tutorial excellence of their chosen fields of enterprise, design, engineering and entrepreneurial research. Introduced by Kathi Vidal, beneath secretary of Commerce for Mental Property and director of the US Patent and Trademark Workplace, these six scholarship recipients had been chosen from a pool of over 500 candidates, incomes their awards by way of distinctive benefit.

WiT thanks its 2024 sponsors for his or her ongoing help and beneficiant funding in driving constructive change for ladies – together with Amazon, Bandai Namco, Disney, Hasbro, Jazwares, The Lego Group, Mattel, Paramount and Spin Grasp, and the various sponsors who help the organisation year-round. Proceeds from this occasion present funding for very important programming and initiatives, and the WiT Basis Scholarship Program.