Funko names Netflix vet as new CEO a week after pop culture collectibles maker reported $41M loss

Everett, Wash.-based Funko, manufacturers of popular culture antiques, called Josh Simon as the business’s brand-new chief executive officer. The relocation begins the heels of harsh second-quarter revenues in which the business reported a $41 million loss.

Simon changes acting chief executive officer Mike Lunsford, that took the helm last month when Funko’s board of supervisors proceeded from the short tenure of Cynthia Williams, that was employed from Wizards of the Shore in Might 2024.

Simon invested greater than 5 years at Netflix as vice head of state for customer items, supervising the streaming network’s goods organization, live experiences, and the Roald Dahl Tale Firm. He constructed and scaled the department and produced a wide series of items for Netflix’s largest titles, such as “Unfamiliar person Points,” “Bridgerton,” “Squid Video game” and a lot more.

Simon likewise introduced Netflix’s initial ecommerce system for customer items and took care of connections with stores consisting of Walmart, Target, and others.

Before Netflix, Simon held numerous elderly administration duties at Nike, most just recently as the vice head of state and head of international approach for item, layout, and retailing classifications. A Harvard College grad, Simon likewise invested greater than 6 years at The Walt Disney Firm.

” Josh is a remarkable leader and his substantial experience in enjoyment and customer items is precisely what Funko requires in its following chief executive officer,” claimed Charles Denson, chairman of the board of Funko, in a news release.

The modification in management comes as Funko, manufacturers of its trademark Pop! porcelain figurines, reporteddifficult financial news last week After a 22% decrease in sales throughout the 2nd quarter, Funko has currently shed $61 million in the initial 6 months of 2025, greater than 4 times its $14.7 million loss in all of 2024, theDaily Herald reported The business’s last earnings remained in the 2nd quarter of 2024 when it made $5.4 million.

” As anticipated, our 2025 2nd quarter efficiency was influenced by a vibrant and unpredictable toll atmosphere,” Lunsford claimed in a declaration. “Looking in advance, we anticipate headwinds to modest and our organization to enhance as an outcome of the activities we have actually required to reduce prices, expand item sourcing and change rates.”

Lunsford claimed throughout a teleconference on Friday that a labor force decrease of about 20% was amongst cost-cutting procedures. The business’s head office and front runner retailer lie in midtown Everett, north of Seattle. In 2022, it closed warehouses in Washington state to settle circulation operate in Arizona.

Prior to briefly changing Williams last month, Lunsford was likewise acting chief executive officer in between 2023 and 2024 when he took over for previous chief executive officer Brian Mariotti.

Simon’s brand-new function works Sept. 1, and he’ll sign up with Funko’s board of supervisors.