The costume division of Jakks Pacific has signed the costume rights to Afro Unicorn for North America and EMEA.
From 2023, Disguise will design, market, manufacture and distribute costumes and costume accessories for Afro Unicorn – a conscious brand with a mission to uplift and celebrate women and children of colour.
Afro Unicorn was created by April Showers to represent the uniqueness of children and women of colour in a diverse and inclusive fashion. After being told she was a unicorn by so many, April started to explore the unicorn symbol only to realise it is only available in white and lacks representation. April then created a unicorn in multiple shades to represent a range of women of colour, and Afro Unicorn was born.
The brand is present in 25 categories, from apparel and accessories to toys, puzzles, books, bedding, backpacks and more.
With the May 2022 Walmart launch, Afro Unicorn became a pioneer – the first female, black-owned business to own a licensed character brand in major retail. The brand can be found in all major retail chains, both in-store and online.
Tara Hefter, president and gm of Disguise, commented: “Disguise is proud to be launching Afro Unicorn products to support the extraordinary brand that its visionary founder and ceo April Showers has built to highlight the importance of representation and black beauty,
“Diversity and inclusivity are important attributes to Disguise and the costumes we create globally and we are excited to launch beautiful costumes in support of such an amazing brand.”
April added: “It is absolutely thrilling to partner with Disguise on such incredibly inspiring costumes and costume accessories. By expanding my empowerment-led brand into this creative realm, children can live and play in a fantastical world of Afronia, brimming with characters, where they can be their authentic selves through play and their imaginations.”
