Bioworld Merchandising Inc., the industry leader in delivering officially-licensed products for the top entertainment brands to all levels of retail distribution has launched One61 Studio, its new IoT division that focuses on deepening the fan experience through smart, connected and wearable pop culture-themed products and gadgets.
Bridging the gap between pop culture fandom and technology was a natural next step for the company known for providing consumers with officially-licensed merchandise from the comics, video games, and movies they love for over two decades.
“With the pervasive blending of tech into every facet of daily life, Bioworld needed to be the first to disrupt its own industry of licensed apparel and accessories,” said Shawn Stauffer, Chief Technology Officer of Bioworld Merchandising. “Initially to do this we searched for technology partners, but their price points and timelines did not meet our needs, so we created our own solution, One61 Studio,” he concluded.
Bioworld began its foray into the tech sector in early 2017, with the introduction of foundmi collectible Bluetooth trackers.
Featuring characters from DC Comics, Star Wars and Marvel, foundmi trackers are a fun way for fans to keep tabs on commonly misplaced items. Under One61, Bioworld will expand the foundmi brand to include trackable wallets and luggage trackers.
One61 products also set to debut at CES include Batman and The Flash-themed smartwatches, a voice-enabled smart glove that provides the wearer with hands-free control of music and phone calls and Kaptur, a smart hat featuring an app controlled screen where wearers can display their favourite photos, memes and gifs.
Bioworld’s ability to deliver a richer fan experience through One61 Studio is made possible in-part by partnerships with established and emerging startups and makers. For instance, Kaptur smart hats are a collaboration with Say Technology.
While Say developed the innovative app and screen technology, One61 provided over 15 years of headwear production expertise.
Foundmi luggage trackers were born from a strategic partnership and are powered by LugTrack‘s patented intelligent tracking technology.
