The Smiley family has around 2,800 variations used daily by billions of people around the world.
Happy people have a light soul, spread joy, comfort and calm. The effects of the smile were researched by The Smiley Company, the creator of the Smile emoji, which this year celebrates its 50th anniversary. Created in 1972 by Franklin Loufrani, the icon became a symbol of positivity and, in 1996, it conquered the digital world at the hands of the French journalist’s son, Nicolas Loufrani.
The family of approximately 2,800 descendants of Smiley is now used daily by billions of people who use the internet to communicate around the world, consolidating emoticons as a typical language in the digital environment.
But the source of income does not come from smartphones and their iOS or Android systems. Licensing is what triggers reasons to laugh in more than a hundred countries. Fashion, toy and food brands, from a total of 14 industries, today distribute the same invitation made 50 years ago, so that people smile.
The message Take the time to smile is in global collaborations, campaigns and activations that make The Smiley Company one of the largest licensing companies in the world, with annual sales of over US$573 million and sales of over 68 million items a year. Products and campaigns are created in partnership with the company’s creative studio in London to bring innovations without losing Smiley’s characteristic identity.
Inditex Group, Reebok and the Brazilian company Havaianas are among the company’s partners, which in March set up pop-ups in the Cidade Jardim and Shops Jardins malls, in São Paulo, in partnership with the artist André Saraiva. Stores are open until April 29.
I cherish
Despite the name already engraved in the history of the internet and large numbers, is there reason to smile in a world taken by hostilities? Nicolas Loufrani says yes. “Today, the world is less aggressive than in the past,” he replies.
Loufrani recalls the progress made by humanity, today more in defense of human rights and women. She also cites the ability to lift more than a billion people out of the poverty line in the last three decades, as well as the cure for ailments that a hundred years ago would have claimed the lives of thousands of people.
“There are challenges, man is not perfect, but we need to recognize the evolution and continue encouraging people to look at the positive side of situations”, adds Loufrani. That’s what Smiley Movement does. Since 2017, the platform has given visibility to positive attitudes on social networks. “Look at the amount of solidarity actions with refugees from Russia’s war against Ukraine”, emphasizes Loufrani.
On March 20th, the International Day of Happiness, The Smiley Company showed its solidarity with the Ukrainian people by projecting the image of the smiling face in tourist spots in the main capitals of the world.
Rio de Janeiro joined London, Sydney, Paris, Berlin, New York, Los Angeles and Rome in the action, which inspires kindness and empathy, showing that there are always reasons to smile alongside friends, family and co-workers.
