EVERETT, Wash., March 13, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Funko, Inc. (Nasdaq:FNKO), a leading pop culture consumer products company, announced today that Molly Hartney has been appointed Chief Marketing Officer and Senior Vice President of E-commerce. In this role, Hartney is responsible for optimizing the Company’s marketing and digital presence, building brand strength and driving sales through all channels as the Company continues to grow and scale.
“Molly will play a pivotal role in leading the development of Funko’s brand strategy across all consumer touch points and we are thrilled to welcome her to the team,” said Brian Mariotti, CEO of Funko. “With a strong track record of driving significant growth for consumer brands, we believe her experience and fresh perspective will be essential in leading our integrated omnichannel marketing strategy. She brings a deep customer focus to Funko and has the right expertise to take our brand to the next level and support our continued growth.”
“Funko sits at the epicenter of pop culture and this is an exciting time in the Company’s history to come on board,” said Hartney. “This brand already has such a dedicated, passionate and active fan base and I am eager to build on that strong foundation. I have a passion for increasing brand awareness and I look forward to working with the Funko leadership team to shape the next chapter and achieve the Company's growth objectives.”
Hartney brings more than 12 years of marketing and leadership experience to Funko. Most recently, Hartney served as the Vice President of Marketing & Merchandising for a Lowe’s affiliated company – “The Mine” – where she spearheaded the brand’s digital transformation, brand management, marketing communications, market research and, most importantly, the customer journey. Prior to this she held various e-commerce and marketing roles at Lowe’s Home Improvement, where she was responsible for developing and leading strategy by optimizing the company’s marketing and digital presence to drive sales growth and customer loyalty. Hartney received a B.A. in Communications and Marketing from Clemson University.
About Funko
Headquartered in Everett, Washington, Funko is a leading pop culture consumer products company. Funko designs, sources and distributes licensed pop culture products across multiple categories, including vinyl figures, action toys, plush, apparel, housewares and accessories for consumers who seek tangible ways to connect with their favorite pop culture brands and characters. Learn more at https://funko.com/, and follow us on Twitter (@OriginalFunko) and Instagram (@OriginalFunko).
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including statements regarding expectations regarding our Chief Marketing Officer and the continued growth of our business. These forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the following: our ability to maintain and realize the full value of our license agreements; the ongoing level of popularity of our products with consumers; changes in the retail industry and markets for our consumer products; our ability to maintain our relationships with retail customers and distributors; our ability to compete effectively; fluctuations in our gross margin; our dependence on content development and creation by third parties; our ability to develop and introduce products in a timely and cost-effective manner; our ability to obtain, maintain and protect our intellectual property rights or those of our licensors; potential violations of the intellectual property rights of others; our ability to attract and retain qualified employees and maintain our corporate culture; risks associated with our international operations; changes in U.S. tax law; foreign currency exchange rate exposure; the possibility or existence of global and regional economic downturns; our dependence on vendors and outsourcers; risks relating to government regulation; risks relating to litigation, including products liability claims and securities class action litigation; any failure to successfully integrate or realize the anticipated benefits of acquisitions or investments; reputational risk resulting from our e-commerce business and social media presence; risks relating to our indebtedness and our ability to secure additional financing; the potential for our electronic data to be compromised; the influence of our significant stockholder, ACON, and the possibility that ACON’s interests may conflict with the interests of our other stockholders; risks relating to our organizational structure; volatility in the price of our Class A common stock; and the potential that we will fail to establish and maintain effective internal control over financial reporting. These and other important factors discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” in our Form 10-Q for the third quarter of 2017 and our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements made in this press release. Any such forward-looking statements represent management’s estimates as of the date of this press release. While we may elect to update such forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any obligation to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to change. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.
Media Contact:
Julia Young, ICR
FunkoPR@icrinc.com
203-682-8200
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b2dac0c1-35e0-4a42-ae94-64de5bb5869a