Most of the attention when it comes to licensed properties with digital origins—e.g., downloading, streaming, social media—has historically been on influencers, entertainment properties, and games. Add to that list a growing number of brands associated with distribution platforms and lifestyle destinations, which have been proliferating in the licensing and experiential arenas since early 2017. Among […]
Archive | Licensing
Stirring the Pot
Trademark licensing has been a notable factor in the marijuana industry since at least 2015—especially involving musicians, chefs, cannabis brands, and related lifestyle labels—and has been growing as more states and countries legalize the production, sale, and use of the substance. (Colorado and Washington were the first states in the U.S. to legalize marijuana for […]
Private Property
Retailers’ focus on in-house developed private labels has been on the upswing of late, creating more competition for manufacturers and property owners seeking shelf space for their licensed products. These recent examples illustrate the trend: Target introduced three new private labels this summer. They include Heyday for electronics, which debuted in June; Wild Fable for […]
Mother-Daughter Design
The “mini-me” trend in high-end fashion—in which the design of children’s apparel, even for toddlers, emulates the look of adult pieces—goes back more than two decades. But it has been gaining traction over the past five years, driven in part by social media shots of celebrities’ and influencers’ children and their fashion-forward style choices, as […]
Revving Up For Rugby
As fan anticipation builds globally for the next Rugby World Cup, to be held in Japan in fall 2019, several licensing, sponsorship, and representation deals involving the sport, in its various forms, have come to light in the past few months. Among them: World Rugby and IMG named Canterbury, which outfits a number of national […]
Revitalizing Retro Toys
The trend of reviving dormant or underexploited brands whose heyday is long past—a phenomenon across many consumer products categories these days—has been hitting the toy industry this summer, with the owners of three retro brands from the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, respectively, announcing comebacks. Mego is relaunching its pioneering 1970s action figure line under the […]
Scent of a (Famous) Woman
Much has been written about the decline of celebrity fragrances over the past few years. But there are exceptions to the rule, and a number of high-profile personalities have recently expanded their licensed scent programs: Ariana Grande is releasing “Cloud,” the newest in her line of fragrances with Luxe Brands. She introduced her first perfume […]
Continuing Education
Alliances between owners of licensed properties and providers of educational curriculum can take many forms. They involve a diverse roster of property types and can target the whole spectrum of age groups, as these recent deals attest: Sesame Workshop licensed McGraw-Hill Education to use its Sesame Street characters in a free version of MHE’s Wonders […]
Vision Quest
In these days of collaborations, limited editions, and other in-and-out programs, it is sometimes easy to forget that long-term, traditional licensing deals are still going strong, especially in certain sectors. A case-in-point: eyewear. Collaborations and limited programs exist in this category as well, of course. But properties such as fashion, lifestyle, and luxury brands, among […]
Dealing With Celebrity Controversy
Last week, Ivanka Trump announced that she would shut down her signature lifestyle brand, stating as the reason her full-time focus, for the foreseeable future, on her political and advocacy work in Washington D.C. Many analysts noted another likely factor, however, namely that sales of her branded goods had plummeted over the past two years […]