Musings from Dennis #275. A few days ago, I received a WhatsApp message from the marketing head of CDL, owners of City Square Mall (CSM). With great warmth, she reminded me that this year marks the 10th anniversary of the very first PAW Patrol mall event—featuring the unforgettable “Pup Pup Boogie” stage performance—that they courageously embarked on with us. It was also the very first PAW Patrol mall event in Singapore then.
We’ve gone on to collaborate on many other shows over the
years, including Nick Jr.–branded events. Yet despite having referenced
this milestone in past posts, I still look back on it with a sense of wonder.
Ten years ago this May, I began pitching the PAW Patrol
launch event to mall partners across Singapore. The response was continuous rejection.
Many were risk‑averse about hosting an untested preschool brand, despite its
strong global and regional performance elsewhere.
CSM, however, chose to believe. Naturally, they exercised
due diligence. Although PAW Patrol launched on Southeast Asian screens
on Nickelodeon and Nick Jr. in early 2015, the exponential growth in linear TV
ratings only became evident five quarters later. When we presented those
findings, CSM felt confident moving forward with us.
What none of us fully anticipated, though, was the
groundswell that followed.
Free audience seating filled up very early. The on-site
merchandise area saw a rush of shoppers. Shelves were cleared and had to be
restocked repeatedly—sometimes within the hour. And soon after, other malls
began calling, eager to book the pups for their own events.
As I fondly recall that September of 2016, I’m grateful to
the many partners who helped make it all happen: Toys“R”Us, Spin Master, toy
distributor Emway, licensees such as Vendermac and others, show producer
Pen2Stage—and of course, my wonderful teammates Claire, Cindy, Syahrizan, and
their respective teams.
Please enjoy this wrap clip created by the Nickelodeon team
ten years ago. It feels just as fresh today.