Several formerly defunct retailers have announced relaunches, or expanded on recent relaunches, this year. Through a variety of strategies, their well-known IPs are coming back, both online and as shop-in-shops and/or standalone retail locations: Bed Bath & Beyond returned to bricks-and-mortar retail through partnerships with The Container Store and Kirkland’s, both announced in October. The […]
Archive | Business models
Hoping for Happily Ever After
Earlier this year, two licensors reworked their deals with important licensees, granting them perpetual licenses within their categories. This is a relatively uncommon deal structure where a significant upfront payment, typically in lieu of an ongoing royalty, gives the licensee ownership of their category indefinitely, with the IP owner retaining rights to the underlying brand. […]
A Potential Path to Prosperity
The luxury space has experienced a steady drumbeat of M&A activity this year. The sector has been troubled since the second half of 2023, when many players started to report declining sales and stock prices. While things have turned around a bit for some players in the first half of this year, growth overall has […]
Toy Trend Takeaways from Q2
By Karen Raugust on August 12, 2024 in Business models, Character/Entertainment, Licensing, Toys/Games
Second quarter financial results, released in July and August, of five of the major publicly traded toy and collectibles companies—Mattel, Hasbro, Spin Master, Jakks Pacific, and Funko—all showed declines (of varying degrees) in topline revenues and net sales during the period, compared to the same timeframe in 2023. The lone exception was Funko, which saw […]
Solidifying the Future Through Licensing
Transitioning to an all-licensing model has become a go-to option for fashion (and other) labels facing financial hardship. Most often this move comes after the challenged brand is purchased by one of the leading management groups, whose business model is to buy up struggling IPs and turn them around through a licensing-only approach. But it […]
Former Executives Flying Solo
Almost a half dozen new licensing agencies have formed in the last few months, many headed by big names in the licensing business who have recently left corporate positions with major property owners. Each claims a distinct positioning within the market: Last week, Robert Marick, most recently head of consumer products at MGM Studios, a […]
Strange Bedfellows No More
Toy companies are increasingly working with their direct competitors to refresh, extend, or strengthen their own brands. This would have been almost inconceivable in the past and shows how much the toy industry has changed over the past decade or more as players in this sector face numerous challenges: competition from video games, social media, […]
M&A À La Mode
This year has seen significant numbers of mergers and acquisitions in the global fashion industry, with much of the action centered in the luxury and/or direct-to-consumer spaces. Some of the reasons given for the high level of activity include consolidation in the digital-first DTC space; the need to strengthen omnichannel distribution capabilities; a wish to […]
Studying the NIL Collective Space
Just over two years ago, in July 2021, the NIL era began in the collegiate licensing sector, enabling students to generate revenue from licensing deals and other commercial activities tied to their names, images, and likenesses. Immediately after that, the first NIL collectives were formed. These are organizations that are independent from but affiliated with […]
Monkey Business
The licensing landscape surrounding NFT images is highly fragmented. That is because, in the most popular NFT projects, owners of each unique image typically retain the right to commercialize that image and its derivative works (e.g., slightly manipulated versions for use in merchandise). Many of the licensors do not know how to go about licensing […]