Panini America
The Panini Group was established more than 50 years ago in Modena, Italy, and with its subsidiaries throughout Europe and Latin America, is the world leader in the published collectibles sector. Panini is also the leading multi-national publisher of comics, children’s magazines and manga in Europe and Latin America.[1]
The Panini Group reached record sales approaching $1 billion in 2009, has distribution in 100 countries and employs a staff of more than 800. In January 2009, the NBA announced Panini would become the exclusive trading card partner of the NBA beginning with the 2009-10 season. The Panini Group purchased assets of the industry’s second-oldest trading-card company, Donruss, in March 2009 and formed the new subsidiary, Panini America.
Since that time, Panini has taken significant steps to fortify its position on the basketball landscape, including an exclusive agreement with five-time NBA champion Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers as its official company spokesman and global trading card ambassador. In March 2010, the National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) and National Hockey League (NHL) granted the Panini Group a multi-year trading card license, marking the third major sports license that The Panini Group had secured since establishing a presence in the U.S. in 2009.
In September 2011, Panini America inked a trading card agreement with the Major League Baseball Players Association and is the only trading card manufacturer in the world with a presence in all four major U.S. sports. In the months since, Panini America added agreements with the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum and USA Baseball.
The Panini Group is the world leader in officially licensed collectibles and is fast becoming the most significant publisher of collectibles in the U.S. with official licenses for NBA, NFL, FIFA, Disney, DreamWorks, Warner Bros., and other key properties from many other licensors. Panini also has exclusive partnerships with Pop Warner Little Scholars, Inc., the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and Pro Football Hall of Fame.
References
- ↑ "Corporate Panini Group". Retrieved 2 June 2013.