If practical Geekly items are more your thing, then we have the company for you! At Toy Fair this year I had the pleasure of meeting Brandy Tanner of A Crowded Coop, who gave a tour of what her company had on display for the big show and the hot new products headed to retailers in 2014.
Now don’t get me wrong, A Crowded Coop has some great figurines and plush toys based on some of your favorite video game series, but what impressed me the most was their venture into clothing, accessories, and even pet products! My philosophy is that your pet is probably just as much of a geek as you are!
In terms of licensing, Brandy told me they take things as they come and work more “organically”. A Crowded Coop wants to give fans what they want, but at the same time not overwhelm themselves with too much. Brandy expressed “we are not the type of company that will bring a license on board and not do it right. We are all about in-game, highly detailed, quality, for the right price products. This is my company, and that’s what I want to be known for. I’m a fan, a gamer-geek, and I would be horrified if a customer thought ill of the products we were making.”
Here are some great Portal 2 products, including the pet series. Dog leashes with innovative “poop bag” holder.
Geek Chic is a hot trend right now and A Crowded Coop has some great clothing items based on Team Fortress 2, DOTA, and more!
Speaking of Team Fortress 2 and DOTA check out the array of cool minifigs and plush toys. There are some surprises on the way that Brandy could not share with me regarding the blind-boxed Little Mercs series based on TF2, but each figure will have something special that comes with it. There are a lot of details with these figures including blue prints that will be released with the Sentry figure. Again the attention to detail is very important to A Crowded Coop. Look for these minis to be available around June.
Halo is one of the latest licenses to be acquired by A Crowded Coop and they had some really neat bags and accessories on display, showcasing their upcoming assortments. I really like the Ammo Crate lunchbox, which even comes with a re-usable sandwich bag. It is so cool that A Crowded Coop takes the time, and has access to artwork that you see in the backgrounds of the games, and they can bring those props into the design of their products. Also available will be keychains, lanyards, and keycaps.
So much attention has been on the new Star Trek movies, but A Crowded Coop concentrates on the classic series. I think that Star Trek has the largest array of products available from clothing, to plush toys, to pet products, to bags and accessories. I love the poop bag Communicator dispenser (pictured below). Everything A Crowded Coop does product wise, is so stylized and detailed that you can really tell that they care about what they are producing and selling to the fans. It’s refreshing to see this in a time of mass-manufacturing.
I had a great time on my booth tour, and I am really excited to get my hands on some of those pet products for my dog! Oh, for you cat lovers out there don’t fret! They have some products coming out soon for you and your geeky feline. Check out A Crowded Coop‘s website for more information and even more Geekly products! You can also follow them on Facebook and Twitter. Thanks again to Brandy for taking time out of her busy Toy Fair schedule to show DFAT the cool products that her company has to offer!
~CynicNerd
[box_light]About A Crowded Coop
… and we are so sorry if you are baffled. But let’s set the record straight. We are not to be confused with a chicken farm, a classic car silhouette or a military coup d’état. We are an experienced team of consumer product professionals. We have lots of ideas. Our brains are overflowing, or crowded, if you will. Get it?
Since 1998, our principals have been responsible for over 28 million custom products hitting retail shelves all over the world. In June 2010, we started our own boutique consumer products company, and we continue to hire like-minded product junkies, geeks, and pet lovers. We know how to design it, manufacture it and sell it. Then repeat it.
Why do many of the world’s top pop-culture brands come knocking on our door? Because they can see that our little ol’ company, HQ’ed in lovely Monroe, WA, makes some of the coolest products out there – and we make their brand come alive through our thoughtful and innovative product design. It’s not just about generating royalties for our partners, it’s about generating brand loyalty, innovation, and supporting their licensing initiatives.[/box_light]
