A growing number of authors with adult fan bases (or the authors’ estates) are overseeing merchandise initiatives. The efforts are focused largely on their own names and likenesses, rather than on their book titles, plots, or characters. Each initiative takes a slightly different form. Some, for example, are novelty-based. George R. R. Martin, author of […]
Archive | Celebrity
It’s Raining Cats, and Now Dogs
The cats of YouTube, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, and other social media platforms have long played in the licensing arena, with examples ranging from Grumpy Cat, Keyboard Cat, Nora the Piano Cat, and L’il Bub to Henri, Maru, and Venus the Chimera Cat. More recently, a number of pups have been added to the list, […]
Swimming With The Stream
By Karen Raugust on June 15, 2015 in Celebrity, Character/Entertainment, Content, Digital, Licensing
One of the most notable new wrinkles at last week’s Licensing Expo in Las Vegas was the presence of the major streaming platforms, with YouTube, AwesomenessTV, and Amazon Studios all first-time exhibitors. They were talking to attendees about the potential for financing and distributing content, as well as providing a showcase for the licensors of […]
Star Search
The celebrity-licensing world—already crowded with actors, musicians, athletes, reality stars, designers, stylists, and more—continues to expand, with licensees and retailers casting a wider net to find personalities from untapped realms. Some of the new or emerging sectors that have inspired licensing deals, mostly within the last year or so, include: Florists. Thierry Boutemy, a floral […]
A Little Bit Country
The proliferation of singers launching and expanding consumer products efforts continues, and country music acts are no exception. But country crooners sometimes take a different path than is typical for performers in other genres. While a large percentage of musicians focus on apparel and accessories, for instance, recent country deals in this category have been […]
It’s Just Business
A number of entrepreneurs and businesspeople are following the likes of Donald Trump into the world of celebrity licensing, positioning themselves not just as experts in management or finance but also as lifestyle brands. Caroline Issa, formerly a consultant and now CEO of the Tank Group, a U.K.-based media company, has a reputation as an […]
Safety in Numbers
Retail buyers in the fashion category are offering their consumers something brand new—while at the same time alleviating their risk a bit—by creating limited-edition collections tied to groups of emerging designers or celebrities. The fact that the names are lesser known gives early-adopting consumers an opportunity to be the first to support a potential future […]
Models and Intimates: Good Fit But Bad Business
In November, the news came that Australian model Elle Macpherson was splitting with her 25-year lingerie licensee Bendon, as she announced plans to move to the U.S. and continue Elle Macpherson Intimates and her other lingerie brands with a new, as-yet-unnamed manufacturer. Shortly thereafter, Heidi Klum added New Zealand-based Bendon to her roster of licensees, […]
Lending Star Power To Playthings
Celebrity licensing, which has become so prevalent in apparel, accessories, home décor, beauty, and other categories, has not touched the toy industry much to date, aside from the occasional endorsement deal or signature doll line. But the landscape is starting to change. More celebrities are not only lending their names to toy lines, but becoming […]
Apparel for All
The plus-size segment of the apparel category became a strong area of interest for celebrity and fashion licensors in 2014, with designers Isabel Toledo and Lela Rose doing direct-to-retail deals with Lane Bryant, model Ashley Graham designing an exclusive collection for Canadian chain Addition Elle, and blogger Gabi Gregg creating a couple of capsule collections […]