Earlier this month, our Managing Director, Simon Foulkes, travelled to China for one of the biggest dates in the licensing industry calendar – The China Licensing Expo. The show is billed as “The Worlds Largest Licensing Trade Show”, with over 100,000 professional visitors, more than 2,600 IPs and more than 550 exhibitors across a 65,000 m² exhibition area. For Simon it was the perfect chance to catch up with global partners, discuss costume character manufacture, explore new brand experiences, and showcase our latest cooling technology.
Before diving into the buzz of the Expo, Simon visited LEGOLAND Shanghai Resort, which officially opened its doors on July 5th 2025 – the first LEGOLAND resort in mainland China. The park features more than 75 rides and attractions, a LEGO-themed hotel, and a retail dining district.
On site, Simon met with members of the resort entertainment team – including May (Entertainment Director) and Sammi (Entertainment Manager) – and caught up with familiar LEGO characters like Mike and Amy. He also met Monkie Kid, a local favourite and one of China’s most popular LEGO figures.
The visit was a great chance to see the incredible costumes in action – and to check out how performers were coping in Shanghai’s warm climate (it’s a tough gig under there!). Hot tip: our cooling jacket might just be the new theme park hero.
When the doors opened at the China Licensing Expo on the October 15th , Simon – joined by his translator Ashley - joined tens of thousands of other industry professionals exploring the future of licensing, partnerships and IP-driven innovation.
With over 100,000 professional visitors, the show provided a great opportunity to discuss Rainbow’s costume characters to potential clients and showcase our new air-conditioning cooling jacket. The cooling jacking pumps temperature-controlled water around the body, helping to maintain a steady, comfortable temperature – effectively rewriting the old adage, “it must be hot in there.”
The system offers three adjustable speeds – summer, spring and winter settings, if you will – allowing operators to tailor cooling levels to their environment. The summer mode delivers faster cooling for high temperatures, while winter mode provides slower, longer-lasting battery life.
Rainbow Productions weren’t flying solo – our friends from the UK were out in force too, including Total Licensing, Planet Rights, Larkshead Media and Santoro.
Simons time in Chinabrought new and exciting conversations about costume characters, opened doors, connected him with old friends and allowed him to proudly discuss new innovations offered by Rainbow Productions.
Next Stop IAAPA Orlando on the 18th , 19th & 20th November where we will be exhibiting on stand number 1375 with support from The Department of Business and Trade.
Unit 3 & 4,
Greenlea Park
Prince Georges Road
London
SW19 2JD
UK
