Mattel has appointed Rosalind “Roz” Nowicki as head of global consumer products and franchise marketing. She started in the role on November 16, and is charged with leveraging new growth opportunities for the toymaker’s brands.

Nowicki now reports to president and COO Richard Dickson. She joined the Mattel team from Peanuts Worldwide, where she served as an EVP with responsibility for licensing, promotions, partnerships, location-based entertainment, marketing, brand development, PR, legal, finance and operations.

Nowicki has previously worked at 20th Century Fox (EVP of global licensing sales and retail), 4Kids Entertainment (EVP), Universal Studios (VP of softlines licensing) and The Walt Disney Company (manager of film and television licensing), touching on brands such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Yu-Gi-Oh! and Ice Age.

Mattel hasn’t slowed down its consumer products activity this year, signing a new partnership with Sanrio earlier this month for a fashion range inspired by Barbie and Hello Kitty. The program includes apparel, accessories and footwear, and is set to roll out across EMEA early next year, with additional items launching throughout 2021.

The toyco’s dolls segment has been its biggest winner this year so far, driving significant growth in Q3 2020, with gross category sales up 22% to US$690.5 million. The increase followed several difficult months plagued by disruptions to Mattel’s global manufacturing and distribution capacity that were related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The company anticipates continued growth for Barbie next year, particularly in EMEA.