Who is Funko?

Let's get something out of the way....I LOVE FUNKO! I collect Funko Pop! and other Funko products. I currently have 203 Funko Pops! and I don't see an end in sight. So, who is Funko and what do they make? Well, I am glad you asked! Funko is an American company that manufactures licensed pop culture toys. Funko is most known for producing over 1000 different licensed vinyl figures. In addition, Funko produces licensed plush, bobbleheads, action figures, and licensed electronic items such as USB drives, lamps, and headphones.

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Founded in 1998 by Frank Malone and Mike Becker as a bobblehead company in his Snohomish, Washington home the company was originally a small project to bring back various low-tech, nostalgia-themed toys in the high-tech world of today. Funko's first manufactured bobblehead was of the restaurant advertising icon Big Boy. The story goes like this...Mike wanted to buy a coin bank of the restaurant icon Big Boy but didn’t want to pay what collectors were charging. So he licensed the rights to make it, along with bobbleheads of Big Boy and other nostalgic characters, thus launching Funko. Since that day Funko has created several different toy lines since its inception. The first, Wacky Wobblers, is a line of bobbleheads featuring characters such as Betty Boop, Cap'n Crunch, and The Cat in the Hat. After a lot of hard work and a little luck the small company grew a name for itself. It wasn't long before Funko started showing up at toy and comic conventions. While his venture was successful, Becker was less concerned with using Funko to establish a wider audience than with reviving his favorite brands. By late 2004, he was growing uninterested in the company and considering closing up shop.

Then in 2005, Brian Mariotti a former nightclub owner and a serious collector (he made his house's first down payment by selling his Pez dispenser collection) persuaded a reluctant Becker to sell him the business with the assurance that key employees would be kept on. "I don't think he thought much was going to come of [the sale] because I had no experience," says Mariotti. "But we were always looking for that next product other than a bobblehead to brand us as a company." Mariotti immediately looked to expand the company’s licensing portfolio and to move beyond bobbleheads. Fast forward to 2010, Where the idea for Funko’s best-known, best-selling Pop! line came to life! When Warner Bros. Consumer Products was interested in a nonbobblehead line featuring some of its DC Comics characters. Mariotti and a Funko artist designed a figure with big, round eyes peering from an oversized square-ish head atop a small body — fun, whimsical and cute. Thus, The Funko Pop! was Born!

At the 2010 San Diego Comic-Con, Mariotti decided to debut the prototypes. He brought four figures made of DC Comics characters — Green Lantern, Batgirl and not one but two Batman collectibles — to the convention. They didn't click initially. "The early results from my fan base were fairly negative," he admits. "They didn't like the look, the feel...the fact it didn't bobble." Still, Mariotti did receive enough positive feedback from customers of all ages — most unusually, women and Comic-Con veterans who'd never purchased Funko items before — that was motivated to keep it going. Using the company's three big licenses (DC, Marvel and Lucasfilm's Star Wars property), what would become the Pop line was put into production. Soon, Funko was able to secure 25 more licenses, and eventually pushed the product into outlets other than comic-book and collectible shops — thinking outside of the box by placing the toys in big-box stores and mainstream online retailers. Combining a wide variety of licenses with its stylized Pop! figure design proved to be the basis of Funko’s growth. It’s given that look to collectible versions of everyone from “Star Wars” and “Golden Girls” characters to National Football League players and even Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.

At any given time, the company has about 175 different contracts encompassing some 10,000 characters. With the licenses, the company is able to seize on the proliferation of content online, on movie and TV screens, and elsewhere.

Since 2010, Funko has moved its offices to Lynnwood, Washington and significantly expanded the company's licensed product lines. Which incorporates the large-eyed, square-faced Pop! design on vinyl figures that are about 3.5 inches tall; to the round-faced Dorbz figurines; small circular MyMojis; plush toys; action figures; and more. Prices typically range from $2.99 to $25, with most items around the $10 mark. Funko is in “the sweet spot". Their products have a distinct look. They’re affordable, small enough that you can have 20 of them without being evicted. And they’re highly sought after. By 2012, the company sold more than $20 million worth of merchandise

The company’s employee count has jumped from about 175 a year ago to some 300 now, and it’s still hiring for jobs ranging from accountant to designer. Early next year, Funko plans to move from its current 30,000-square-foot headquarters in an Everett business park to the downtown Everett space, three times the size.

The company will open its first retail store, currently planned for 10,000 square feet, with an additional 2,000 square feet for a museum. On the outside, among the other oversized Funko-ized figures will be company mascot Freddy Funko. The furture looks bright for this once small bobblehead company. Oh, and remember Mike? Well, He's still around too. These days Becker still works for Funko as vice president of apparel in its San Diego office.