Lunar New Year is a big opportunity for limited-edition merchandise and collaborative marketing campaigns. Global marketers, in particular, often launch initiatives aimed at consumers in China and the rest of Asia, as well as worldwide, with many property types and product categories involved. One active segment this year — as in most years — consists […]
Archive | Food/Beverage
Honey Brands Buzz With Licensing Potential
Honey consumption in 2024 saw year-over-year per-capita growth of 25% (from 1.6 to 2 pounds per person), according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service report released in July 2025. Total honey consumption in the U.S. reached an all-time high of 668.6 million pounds that year. Some of the drivers of this upward […]
A Sugar Rush for Gamers
Chocolate and gaming go well together, as indicated by the number of limited-edition chocolates featuring characters with roots in interactive gaming that have popped up in the last couple of years. The pairings make sense in that chocolate is a popular choice as a snack during gaming sessions, and the products’ collectibility mirrors an element […]
Jazzing Up Home-Brewed Java
By Karen Raugust on January 12, 2026 in Celebrity, Character/Entertainment, Corporate brands, Food/Beverage, Licensing
Marketers of coffee creamers — including traditional, cold foam, and vegan offerings — have dramatically expanded their licensing and collaboration activities over the past five years or so. The trend began with food and beverage brands bringing their flavor profiles into the category. Collaborations with TV and other entertainment properties followed, resulting in products that […]
Going Bananas—and Plantains
The global plantain chip market is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 5.51% from 2025 to 2032, after an increase of 5.27% in 2025, according to Research and Markets. The increase is driven by two main factors. First, the chips are a good fit with rising consumer demand for better-for-you snacks. […]
Westward Expansion
Western themes remain a key trend in fashion collaborations involving all sorts of properties, from entertainment IPs to celebrities to artists and beyond. As an example, food- and beverage-related brands, especially alcoholic beverages and restaurant chains, have been active in this space in 2025, with the collections being a way to highlight the corporate brands’ […]
A Pile of Pet Treats
The vast majority of licensing and collaboration agreements in the pet products industry, of which there have been many over the past decade involving all manner of IPs, have been focused on non-foods products such as leashes, apparel, beds, and the like. Pet food deals have been much less common, in large part because of […]
The Dirt on Dirty Soda Collaborations
The current popularity of dirty sodas has given rise to a handful of collaborations in the last year or so, many involving fast food chains. Dirty sodas are soft drinks with the addition of flavored syrups or fruit juice; a splash of half-and-half, cream, or creamer; and sometimes garnishes such as fruit or candy. They […]
On-The-Go Snack Storage
A popular feature of food-branded fashion drops over the past 18 months has been the integration of one or more fun-and-functional “snack pockets,” sized to fit whatever sweet or savory treat is at the center of the collaboration: In July of this year, Cheez-It paired with stylist Brittany Hampton and WNBA player Rickea Jackson for […]
Tasty Toothpastes
By Karen Raugust on October 23, 2025 in Corporate brands, Food/Beverage, Health/beauty, International, Licensing
Unusual toothpaste flavors, beyond traditional minty varieties, have proliferated since the mid-2010s, with smaller specialty players driving the trend. Hello Products offers blue raspberry, bubble gum, fresh citrus, lavender vanilla, and more, for example, while Tom’s of Maine sells cucumber aloe, coconut and mango, cinnamon clove, and fennel, to name a few. Whiskey, bacon, wasabi, […]