Well… this is interesting! A story ran in the London Sunday Times yesterday claiming Entertainment Rights was considering selling off Big Idea. The story says new CEO Nick Phillips wants to reduce debt by "selling some of the less profitable areas of the group," implying, of course, that Big Idea is one of those "less profitable" areas. I couldn't find the original story, but here is a summary.
How much will they be willing to sell it for? How many interested buyers will they find out there? Stay tuned… this could get very interesting…
Let’s just hope that someone doesn’t come in to the bidding war and drive up the price for everyone 🙂
VERY interesting, indeed! I know one thing… God is a stud, and He’s got some pretty big ideas… wouldn’t it be funny if somehow, some way, a certain company might just—
okay, I don’t wanna be too presumptuous 🙂
Buy it back, Phil!
Time for tomatoes! Well, this COULD get interesting. As a creator, though, these things make me feel for Phil a little bit. After all, to him (and the rest of us who love Veggies) this is not just some commodity to randomly post for sale. Ah, the corporate world.
God is good, though. I’m keeping the faith! Something wonderful is afoot, no doubt.
You may want Google to do your heavy lifting: http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=big+idea
Mr. Vischer,
Here is one posting that I saw:
http://www.business-sale.com/entertailnment-rights-to-sell-off-asset-bsr-aquisitions-12592823A.html
(the link should all be on one line.)
Is Phil in a place where it could end up back on his plate? VeggieTales on JellyTelly?
Mr. Vischer,
I am a mother of 4 boys and we love all things Veggie.
Within the last year our family has stopped buying anything made in China. We do not want to give that totalitarian regime, which persecutes the Church and it’s own people, any more of our money. We also do not trust the products coming out of China. You can look at the millions of toys that have been recalled do to lead paint in them as the reason for our distrust.
I am asking as a parent who wants to buy merchandise to support Christian businesses for you not to manufacture or assemble your products in China.
We would love to buy Jelly Telly products when they become available but we will not purchase anything that has been made in China.
Thank you.
God is greater than any war. I pray and hope that Big Idea does not fall into the wrong hands. People who don’t know what truth is all about. But somehow I really don’t think it will. God has truly blessed that company and I know He will continue to do so. And JellyTelly is another true blessing from the Lord. Thanks Phil for following what God has placed in your heart from VeggieTales to JellyTelly. Happiness is seeing God’s Big Idea’s being fulfilled.
I second the motion, Aracelli!
If there is any choice, how about selling products not made in a Communist regime? Pretty please?
This can only be a good thing.
You lost VeggieTales and learned your lesson(1). Now it might be time for Bob and Larry to come back home, to where they can do the most good.
Does the JellyTelly enterprise (I don’t know if it’s a company or a non for profit) have enough money or credit to buy Big Idea back?
(1) Normally that would be a terribly presumptuous thing for me to say. I only take this liberty because you said it yourself in your book.
I’ll be praying for the future owner of my favorite talking veggies.
Well, it’s Jelly Telly Tuesday, and time to pray!
I guess we all know now what to pray for, hmmm?
The creative genius that went into developing Veggie Tales to begin with is still alive and well inside Phil, I’m sure. Its kinda like one country buying land in another country because of the view. They can’t move it no matter how hard they might try.
I look at it this way. Veggie Tales was limited to armless vegetables. Now Phil is free to be creative beyond that limitation (although that was a streak of brilliance. The fewer limbs manipulated the faster the work can go!).
I’m excited at what will come out next in the “better connected to God” world of Phil Vischer!
I think Phil should buy Postman Pat as well! Who wouldnt want a cute little english post officer on Jelly Telly?
Would you be able to buy back Big Idea legally and financially? This is for sure something to pray about. You’re right, Cookie Lady.
Happy day late birthday Phil. My son shares your birthday and your passion for veggies. He turned 18 yesterday. What a great present that would be for you and all of us to have Bob and Larry back where they should be home!!!!!
JULIE
Wow. This is very interesting indeed… I’m curious to see how it will all play out.
Wouldn’t hurt to pray about this!
*bites nails* Makes me nervous about the future of VeggieTales. I will certaintly be following this story closely…
I’m still stuck on the less profitable bit. In business that isn’t a strong way to begin negotiations, but God has a way of taking what appears scary and uncertain and turning it into something far better than could be imagined. God bless all who are directly involved.
Why don’t we start a grass roots effort to buy Big Idea back?????
Heck i would do it straight out if i had millions.
Dude, Phil. Let’s all kick in and buy back Bob and Larry!
Amen Bethany. Prayer is like the sail on a ship heading in the right direction. I wouldn’t, couldn’t make a move without prayer.
I work in ministry, so I am by no means wealthy. Bit I, for one, would be more than willing to buy a few shares! Maybe if there were enough of us…. Hmmmmm.
Lisa S., that’s what’s interesting, though. These kinds of things tend to be very advantageous. I’ve always seen an affinity between VeggieTales and the Muppets, and, ever since I heard of the lawsuit/buy-out, I thought of how Jim Henson, right before he died, made that deal with Disney. Then Henson Productions went through several incarnations and corporate sales until the family finally bought it back when whichever corporate parent decided it wasn’t “profitable enough.” Then, of course, they turned around a few years later and sold the Muppets to Disney. Ah, well. . . .
Anyway, there are so many stories of Christians getting their prayers answered for a song: company sells a “non-profitable” building, or piece of land, or whatever, for a pittance to the Christian group, etc.
I like to call it “pillaging the Egyptians.” Retellings of Exodus tend to gloss over the part where God tells Israel to pillage the Egyptians. “They’re afraid of you. Go out and ask all your Egyptian neighbors to loan you money and jewelry, and they’ll give you everything they have.”
Yeah, wouldn’t it be so like God to allow a Christian organization to buy Big Idea? That would be awesome. (I’m going to have to re-read Exodus now…I don’t remember that part. Thanks for the lesson. 🙂 )
It must be hard when the parent company of any Christian property is purely secular. It’s necessary to have a for-profit component in a successful business, but when the person(s) in authority are not “like-thinkers” to the core audience, it may cause a few problems. That’s my uneducacted theory, anyway.
I love VeggieTales, and hope God contiues to bless the property for years to come.
It would be great if VeggieTales could be owned by a Christian company that was reputable enough to continue marketing the products in a ethical way. I am glad, after reading Phil’s book, that God allowed the lawsuit to be overturned. But I think that Phil’s creative genius needs a new place to invest his energies. He doesn’t need to run that kind of company again. Praise God for freedom from ourselves to be in bondage to the stuff of running old ideas. Big Idea lives on in this new blog.
By the way, God used Phil’s book to encourage me to figure out why I am angry at God over taking my husband away from a church ministry of 11 years that sapped all his energy. Now he is free to do what God wants but our income is cut in half and I have to work. I have been resenting some of the changes: loss of friendships, loss of job, loss of respect but God is bigger than all that. I am getting over grieving those losses and am ready to see the new adventures ahead of us. My husband is painting part time and pastoring a church part time. I am working some part time jobs teaching and working retail. Retail has been humbling for me but good.
Thanks, Phil, for keeping on generating ideas and being who God wants you to be.
Hey Nan, I hear you! Phil’s book touched our lives in a personal way, too. My husband has been going through some health issues for the last couple years, and our lifestyle and comfort zones have had to change pretty drastically. While I don’t struggle with the anger at God issue, I struggle with faith that He is in control and that His Grace is sufficient. Sometimes I think I should get those words tatooed on my arm ~ as a constant reminder. I can say that going through struggles and pain and fear and then finding shelter in His arms at the end of the day, God has truly strengthend my faith. It has been a blessing finding people who share that same outlook on life!
I am grateful to Phil for sharing, quite humbly, how God has (and is) worked in his life and his business.
Hmm…extremely interesting. So guys. Pull out those $100 bills. We’re donating! (naw i’m jking) This is a big thing. God works in many ways. And like in “Jonah”, I [present to you: A Second Chance(for a good deed done) 🙂