ZAG Expands Executive Ranks with Disney, MGAE Vets

Christophe Vallade and Ben Johnson | Source: ZAG

ZAG continues its expansion with the appointment of Christophe Vallade as vice president global e-commerce, and Ben Johnson as senior vice president legal and litigation. Both will report to Julian Zag, executive vice president, global operations.

“Both Christophe and Ben are highly experienced in their respective fields and we welcome them to our team,” says ZAG Founder Jeremy Zag. “Demand for our heroes Ladybug and Cat Noir has grown exponentially over the past four years, with over 200 million products sold at retail. We have new content launching throughout this year including our second TV event, Miraculous World: Shanghai – The Legend of Lady Dragon, season four of Miraculous – Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir launching this summer, and our theatrical movie, Miraculous Ladybug and Cat Noir The Awakening premiering this holiday season. Christophe and Ben’s contributions will ensure that we can further our growth across all business sectors and at the same time protect our IP.”

Related: ZAG Inks ‘Miraculous’ New Consumer Products Deals with Crayola, Kid Designs, More

Vallade joins the company from The Walt Disney Co., France, where he led digital sales for brands including Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, and more. He will be in charge of leading online growth and brand positioning, closely working with the retail and licensing teams.

Johnson joins the company from MGA Entertainment where he served as head of litigation. At ZAG, Johnson will be responsible for all legal affairs, including litigation matters, management and protection of an extensive worldwide trademark portfolio, implementation of anti-counterfeiting measures, privacy concerns, risk management, negotiation of contracts for development, production, and licensing of ZAG content, and other general legal issues.

About the author

James Zahn

James Zahn

James Zahn, AKA The Rock Father, is Editor-in-Chief of The Toy Book, a Senior Editor at The Toy Insider and The Pop Insider, and Editor of The Toy Report, The Toy Book‘s weekly industry newsletter. As a pop culture and toy industry expert, Zahn has appeared as a panelist and guest at events including Comic-Con International: San Diego (SDCC) Wizard World Chicago, and the ASTRA Marketplace & Academy. Zahn has more than 30 years of experience in the entertainment, retail, and publishing industries, and is frequently called upon to offer expert commentary for publications such as Forbes, Marketwatch, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, USA Today, Reuters, the Washington Post, and more. James has appeared on History Channel’s Modern Marvels, was interviewed by Larry King and Anderson Cooper, and has been seen on Yahoo! Finance, CNN, CNBC, FOX Business, NBC, ABC, CBS, WGN, The CW, and more. Zahn joined the Adventure Media & Events family in 2016, initially serving as a member of the Parent Advisory Board after penning articles for the Netflix Stream Team, Fandango Family, PBS KIDS, Sprout Parents (now Universal Kids), PopSugar, and Chicago Parent. He eventually joined the company full time as a Senior Editor and moved up the ranks to Deputy Editor and Editor-in-Chief.

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