Assistant Licensing Manager

pokemoncareers; Bellevue (WA); Hybrid; USD 95,000 - 172,000; Full time

Job summary

The Pokémon Company International is seeking an Assistant Licensing Manager to develop licensed products and drive a strong retail presence across the US & Canada. You will work with Brand Services and Retail Marketing to grow the Softlines business, including Accessories and Footwear.

Responsibilities include managing licensees, identifying new opportunities, and coordinating product development, legal, and financial planning. This is a hybrid role with exposure to high-profile licensing events.

Qualifications

• Education: BS/BA degree or equivalent working experience.
• 3–5 years minimum related experience in softlines licensing, manufacturing or related field a plus.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills with ability to interact with diverse teams.

Responsibilities

• Licensee management: act as key contact for designated licensees and support brand onboarding and reporting.
• Identify and engage prospective licensees to support strategic initiatives.
• Develop creative direction for Accessories and Footwear with Brand Services collaboration.
• Review product approvals and provide timely feedback for submissions.
• Manage project planning, scheduling, and inter-department communication to meet deadlines.
• Support contract processing and tracking through the licensing pipeline.
• Assist with budgeting, financial planning, and implementation of licensing plans.

Skills

Communication skills

Leadership

Strategic thinking

Entrepreneurial spirit

Education

BS/BA degree

Tools

MS Office

PowerPoint

Databases

Job description

Get to know The Pokémon Company International

The Pokémon Company International manages the Pokémon property outside of Asia and is responsible for brand management, licensing and marketing, the Pokémon Trading Card Game, the animated TV series, home entertainment, and the official Pokémon website. Pokémon was launched in Japan in 1996 and today is one of the most popular children's entertainment properties in the world.

Learn more online at corporate.pokemon.com and pokemon.com .

Get to know the role

Job Title: Assistant Licensing Manager

Job Summary: The Licensing & Promotions Team is responsible for creating and executing a range of activities, including (but not limited to) Product Licensing, Promotions and Retail/Trade Marketing for Licensed Products to increase the visibility of the Pokémon brand across the globe. Within this team, this role will be responsible for developing Pokémon licensed products to ensure a strong presence at retail across US & Canada - working alongside the Brand Services and Retail Marketing Team. In conjunction with growing and managing the Pokémon licensing program, the role is responsible for supporting the Softlines business, specifically Accessories and Footwear, and is responsible for assisting the Senior Manager, Licensing with day-to-day business for designated domestic partnerships.

FLSA Classification (US Only): Exempt

People Manager: No

What you'll do

• Licensee Management: Operate as key contact for designated Accessory licensees (such as Bioworld, Ground Up, and Loungefly) as related to day-to-day business. Assist licensees with business needs including brand onboarding and continued education, database training and implementation, forms processing, data gathering and reporting, marketing, etc.
• New Business: Identify and engage with prospective licensees who support strategic initiatives identified by Senior Manager, Licensing - Softlines.
• Creative Direction: Building on industry expertise and ongoing trend evaluation, partner with Senior Manager, Softlines to develop a POV on the creative direction for Accessories and Footwear. Collaborate with TCPi's Brand Services team to identify the creative solutions necessary to bring innovative, trend-right products to market.
• Product Development: Partner with Softlines Coordinator to review the product approvals system daily for product and marketing submissions needing review. Return comments/approvals as appropriate.
• Project Management: Manage project planning, scheduling, and inter-department communication, to ensure projects are completed and deadlines are met to brand standards and expectations.
• Legal: Partner with Softlines Coordinator to manage contract processing and tracking through entire pipeline. Supervise generation, processing, and delivery of required legal forms including manufacturer's agreements and customs letters.
• Financial Planning: Assist with annual budgeting, financial planning and development, and implementation of strategic licensing plans to hit revenue targets, grow the licensing business and generate incremental revenue. Ongoing evaluation of royalty reporting to assess partner performance, confirm compliance with contractual terms and identify new opportunities.
• Event Planning & Tradeshows: Participate and assist with the planning and attendance of annual Licensing Summits, Licensing Show, Toy Fair and other trade shows and events to ensure all events are turn-key.

What you'll bring

• Education: BS or BA Degree and/or equivalent working experience.
• Experience: 3-5 years minimum related experience, with previous experience in softlines licensing, manufacturing or related field a plus.
• Communication Skills: Excellent oral and written communication skills; ability to interact well with workgroups and various personalities; leadership, strategic, and creative thinking skills; and have an entrepreneurial spirit, with positive, can-do attitude; and the ability to manage multiple tasks and tight deadlines with little supervision.
• Project Management Skills: Must be detail-oriented with strong organizational and presentation skills. Must possess a proven ability to multi-task various projects in a fast-paced environment with maximum efficiency. Must be comfortable taking direction, then completing tasks independently and under own initiative by assigned deadline.
• Computer skills : Strong MS Office including excel spreadsheets, and experience with PowerPoint presentations. Must be comfortable with databases, creating and implementing tracking systems and reports, and training licensees as needed.
• Base Salary Range: For this role, new hires generally start between $95,000.00 - $127,000.00 per year. The full range is $95,000.00 - $172,000.00 per year. This range is applicable for the labor market where the role is intended to be hired. The final base salary is directly related to the candidate's qualifications and professional experience uniquely.

#LI-Hybrid #LI-AD1

How you'll be succ