Moomin Characters

Sophia Jansson, niece of Moomin creator Tove Jansson, oversees Moomin Characters Ltd, a company that has a hand in thousands of products worldwide but sells only one thing: Moomin rights.

Moomin Characters Ltd grew up more or less organically alongside the Moomin books and comic strips that Tove Jansson (1914–2001) penned starting in 1945 with the publication ofThe Moomins and the Great Flood (Schildts). As the Moomins caught on, product manufacturers came looking to tie in and cash in.

"In the 1950s my aunt was advised to set up some sort of company," says Tove's niece Sophia Jansson, creative director and chairman of the board at Moomin Characters. "She realised she didn't want to be handling certain things because she wanted to dedicate herself to writing and painting."

In 2010, as the Moomins celebrate the 65th anniversary of their first book, "how we conduct business is the same," Jansson says. Just five people work for the company, but its commercial agent and the three Moomin Shops employ dozens more.

Moomin Characters: www.moomin.com