Funko Announces Appointment of Michael Lunsford as Interim Chief Executive Officer

Business Wire

a day ago

EVERETT, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Funko, Inc. (Nasdaq: FNKO), a leading pop culture lifestyle brand, today announced that Michael Lunsford has been appointed as the Company's Interim Chief Executive Officer, effective July 5, 2025. The appointment follows the departure of Cynthia Williams from her role as the Company's Chief Executive Officer, effective on the same date. Mr. Lunsford previously served as Funko's Interim Chief Executive Officer in 2023-2024 and continues to serve as a member of the Company's Board of Directors.
'The Board of Directors thanks Cynthia for her many accomplishments during her tenure at Funko,' said Chairman of the Board, Charles Denson. 'We believe a change in leadership is necessary to deliver full shareholder value and believe Mike's appointment positions us accordingly. Mike is experienced in leading several companies, including Funko, through successful corporate transitions. The Board has asked Mike to help us realize the full potential of the business, including helping to identify a new chief executive officer, accelerating our organic growth, and exploring all financial and strategic options for the business.'
'I believe we have yet to achieve the full potential of Funko,' said Lunsford. 'We have an iconic brand, passionate fans, great licensing and retail partners, and a dedicated team of highly capable employees. The recent changes to the global business environment have constrained our growth initiatives, and we intend to first address those challenges but always with an eye towards the long-term growth of the business. We will continue to focus on profitable growth and delighting our fans.'
About Funko
Funko is a leading global pop culture lifestyle brand, with a diverse collection of brands, including Funko, Loungefly, and Mondo, and an industry-leading portfolio of licenses. Funko delivers industry-defining products that span vinyl figures, micro-collectibles, fashion accessories, apparel, action toys, high-end art, music collectibles, among others, many of which are at the forefront of the growing Kidult economy. Through these products, which include the iconic original Pop! line, Bitty Pop!, and Pop! Yourself, Funko inspires fans across the globe to express their passions, build community, and have fun. Founded in 1998 and headquartered in Washington state, Funko has offices, retail locations, operations, and licensed partnerships in major consumer geographies across the globe. Learn more at Funko.com, Loungefly.com, MondoShop.com, and follow us on TikTok, X, and Instagram.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements contained in this press release that do not relate to matters of historical fact should be considered forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the Company's intention to realize the full potential of the business, including identifying a new chief executive officer, accelerating its organic growth, and exploring all financial and strategic options for the business. These forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations. These forward-looking statements are based on management's current expectations. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other important factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, but not limited to, the following: our ability to execute our business strategy; our ability to manage our inventories and growth; risks relating to our indebtedness, including our ability to comply with financial and negative covenants under our Credit Agreement, as amended, and our ability to continue as a going concern; our ability to maintain and realize the full value of our license agreements; impacts from economic downturns; changes in the retail industry and markets for our consumer products; our ability to maintain our relationships with retail customers and distributors; our ability to compete effectively; fluctuations in our gross margin; our dependence on content development and creation by third parties; the ongoing level of popularity of our products with consumers; our ability to develop and introduce products in a timely and cost-effective manner; our ability to obtain, maintain and protect our intellectual property rights or those of our licensors; potential violations of the intellectual property rights of others; risks associated with counterfeit versions of our products; our ability to attract and retain qualified employees and maintain our corporate culture; our use of third-party manufacturing; risks associated with climate change; increased attention to sustainability and environmental, social and governance initiatives; geographic concentration of our operations; risks associated with our international operations, including risks related to tariffs and trade restrictions; changes in effective tax rates or tax law; our dependence on vendors and outsourcers; risks relating to government regulation; risks relating to litigation, including products liability claims and securities class action litigation; any failure to successfully integrate or realize the anticipated benefits of acquisitions or investments; future development and acceptance of blockchain networks; risks associated with receiving payments in digital assets; risk resulting from our e-commerce business and social media presence; our ability to successfully operate our information systems and implement new technology; our ability to secure additional financing on favorable terms or at all; the potential for our or our third-party providers' electronic data or the electronic data of our customers to be compromised; the influence of our significant stockholder, TCG, and the possibility that TCG's interests may conflict with the interests of our other stockholders; risks relating to our organizational structure; including the Tax Receivable Agreement ("TRA") which confers certain benefits upon the parties to the TRA ("TRA Parties") that will not benefit Class A common stockholders to the same extent as it will benefit the TRA Parties; volatility in the price of our Class A common stock; and risks associated with our internal control over financial reporting. These and other important factors discussed under the caption 'Risk Factors' in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2025, and our other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission could cause actual results to differ materially from those indicated by the forward-looking statements made in this press release. Any such forward-looking statements represent management's estimates as of the date of this press release. While we may elect to update such forward-looking statements at some point in the future, we disclaim any obligation to do so, even if subsequent events cause our views to change. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing our views as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.