The Smiley Company Introduces ‘Mini Smiley’

Nicolas Loufrani, chief executive officer, The Smiley Company, has announced a significant update regarding its latest venture, “Mini Smiley,” an animated music video series brand extension of SmileyWorld. This expansion opens opportunities for Smiley and its partners for infants, preschoolers, kids and families, providing extensive exposure within specific demographics while creating new generations of fans.

“‘Mini Smiley’ introduces new characters with bodies, distinguishing them from the icons featured in the main SmileyWorld brand,” says Loufrani. “These characters maintain visual alignment with our sophisticated graphic identity and are thematically connected to core elements of our brand’s DNA, such as music, celebrities and emotions. With ‘Mini Smiley,’ we’re able to explore new themes and engage with our audience in a fresh and exciting way.”

Key SmileyWorld icons like the sun, moon and stars are incorporated, but the faces have slightly different proportions and rosy cheeks to create a distinct look. To drive sales of new product categories, promote collectibility and engage new audiences, the brand offering has been segmented. With over 50 years of success among adults, teens and tweens, Smiley, with its unique edge in fashion and design, is well-positioned to build on its foundation of engaging with consumers in older age groups. “Mini Smiley” will extend this reach to engage with younger demographics through mediums they interact with most: cartoons, toys and publishing.

To support this brand extension program, Smiley’s creative design studio has developed a comprehensive toolkit and seasonal style guides for boys and girls, which will be available soon. Discussions with potential lead partners are ongoing to launch the consumer products program, focusing on key categories such as toys, publishing and promotions.

Leveraging Smiley’s expertise in consumer products, the brand will oversee this part of the project, ensuring a dynamic and impactful brand experience. The products and experiences created will help Smiley enter new retail spaces and engage with new demographics, all while featuring the unique and sophisticated design style The Smiley Company is known for. Strategic brands and retailers are targeted to engage their audiences through coordinated marketing strategies, creating a halo effect and driving sales.

“‘Mini Smiley’ complements our existing SmileyWorld brand, which has seen success among older kids and adults for over 50 years,” says Loufrani. “By introducing new characters and engaging content, we’re able to extend our reach and appeal to younger demographics, while still maintaining the unique and sophisticated design style that The Smiley Company is known for.”

From this foundation, “Mini Smiley” was born. The animated sing-along series, based on the iconic Original Smiley, offers a fusion of education and entertainment, introducing a refreshing approach to children’s content. Through a collection of songs, the Smiley logo is brought to life with high-quality 3D animation and beautiful songs sung by kids, for kids.

Co-created with children’s animation powerhouse, PGS Entertainment, each episode of “Mini Smiley” is designed to be more than an animated adventure – it’s an opportunity for families to come together through shared musical experiences that enhance the parent-child bond and turn each viewing into a bonding occasion.

The series, available on its own channel on YouTube – @minismileyworld, premiered a few weeks ago with six episodes currently available online and 52 two-minute clips expected by year’s end. New episodes, featuring a mix of original music and recognizable cover songs, will launch weekly, along with compilations covering key themes.

The series will be supported by a marketing campaign across social media channels, including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Giphy. The weekly strategy will engage B2C networks with new posts daily or every other day, featuring promotional content related to newly premiered episodes as well as generic and inspirational content.

Each week will see the traditional release of a new episode on YouTube, as well as the episode in full vertical format on TikTok and Instagram. This will be followed by new YouTube shorts, episode excerpts, behind-the-scenes content, specially designed posts and GIFs from the episodes. A dedicated Pinterest account and a website are also in the works, allowing fans to stay updated on “Mini Smiley” news and content.

“Music is a core part of the Smiley DNA, and it was important for us to create songs that explore key developmental themes and promote happiness and positivity,” says Loufrani. “Partnering with Sony Music ensures a high-quality musical experience for our audience, and we’re excited to bring these engaging melodies to life through ‘Mini Smiley.’”

Q2 will also see new launches with top-tier YouTube partners, including USP Studios, The Soul Publishing, Looloo Kids and Leo the Truck, further expanding the series’ reach.

“Mini Smiley” represents a new chapter for The Smiley Company, bringing happiness to generations of kids and adults alike in a new way. This venture opens up a host of opportunities for partners to reach new audiences and consumers, while supporting the upper tiers of the brand. For more information about “Mini Smiley” and how to get involved, visit The Smiley Company at booth E188..