The home goods category has been among the most active over the past couple of years when it comes to new licensing deals and collaborations involving licensed IPs. One property type of note in this sector of late has been food-related lifestyle influencers and their brands. Three recent deals serve as examples, all involving celebrities from this space pairing with retailers for good-sized ranges of tabletop and related products:
- Suzy Karadsheh announced a collaboration with Anthropologie last week. Her social media-focused culinary brand, The Mediterranean Dish, encompasses best-selling cookbooks and a line of Mediterranean ingredients including spices and olive oils, as well as online content. The new Anthropologie collection, featuring 36 SKUs, focuses on spring entertaining. Pieces include serving platters, dinnerware, salt and pepper pinch pots, mezze plates, linens, glassware, and accessories, all in bright colors and prints, made of materials including wood, ceramics, metal, and glass. Prices range from $16 to $98.
- Tori Wesszer announced a second limited-edition kitchen and home décor collection in February with Walmart Canada, following a holiday range that debuted last October. Wesszer is known for her blog, Fraîche Living; a meal plan, Fraîche Table; and two cookbooks with Jillian Harris, Fraîche Food, Full Hearts and Fraîche Food, Fuller Hearts. The spring array at Walmart includes 41 pieces for the kitchen as well as a variety of indoor and outdoor living spaces. The products, described as simply designed and affordable-but-luxurious, extend across items such as bakeware, kitchen towels and tablecloths, watering cans and planter sets, and gardening tools, all in neutral and earthy tones.
- Barbara “Babs” Costello, owner of the TikTok and Instagram brand Brunch with Babs, paired with Wayfair division Birch Lane last October for a curated collection of more than 50 items. Known as “the internet’s favorite grandma,” Costello has 7 million followers on Instagram and TikTok and has published two books, one focused on celebrations and the other on everyday dinners. Under this agreement, she assumed the role of Birch Lane’s first brand ambassador, as well as selecting her favorite of the company’s pieces for the collection. Her choices have credibility with her fans, especially since she has used some of the items herself for more than 30 years. New pieces are being added to the Babs x Birch Lane collection each season, and so far all are existing Birch Lane items rather than being collaboratively developed.
These initiatives continue a trend that has been ongoing for some time; other food-related influencers pairing with retailers in recent years have ranged from Molly Baz with Crate & Barrel to Ayesha Curry with Pottery Barn.
Lifestyle influencers specializing in food and entertaining are a particularly good fit for home goods retailers, of course, and for home goods collections in general. They bring expertise to the category, not to mention large and loyal fan bases who trust their recommendations. That said, it should be noted that celebrities who are not known primarily as food or entertaining specialists, from Megan Markle and Dolly Parton to Paris Hilton, have been launching products in the kitchen and home sector as well.
A reminder that Raugust Communications’ April e-newsletter comes out tomorrow, April 15, 2025. The Licensing Topic of the Month revisits the ever-changing tariff landscape, while the Datapoint research spotlight focuses on the types of deals being done in the eyewear sector. If you are not yet receiving this free publication, you can subscribe here.
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