As more states legalize marijuana and THC for recreational use, following the federal legalization of hemp (and effectively CBD) in 2018, licensed properties continue to enter the cannabis space at a healthy pace. Collaborative products range from accessories and lifestyle goods to consumables such as beverages, snacks, and joints, with some containing the psychotropic (high-producing) […]
Picture-Perfect Beauty
Art museums, and the fine artists whose work appears in those institutions, have increasingly been forging licensing and collaboration deals in the beauty category—especially in fragrances—resulting in creative interpretations of key works of art, not just on packaging but in the formulation of the scents and color palettes themselves. Products range from exceedingly limited and […]
Standing in Someone Else’s Shoes
As retailers continue to increase brand-extension activity based on their proprietary IP—through licensing or other models—footwear has, not surprisingly, become a key category of interest for retail chains in the fashion and lifestyle spaces. Sometimes the licensed or collaborative shoes are sold primarily in the licensors’ own stores, but they often find distribution opportunities in […]
School Spirits
When New Mexico State University and its licensing agent, The Collegiate Licensing Company, signed a deal with Dry Point Distillers in 2020 to create Pistol Pete 1888 Six-Shooter rye whiskey (named after its mascot, Pistol Pete), it noted that it was the first college or university to introduce a whiskey collaboration. The school has been […]
Quality Time
While consumers are divided on many issues, one thing on which almost all can agree is that they expect their licensed products to have a level of quality commensurate with the price. Lately, several marketers have been dealing with fan blowback—magnified on social media—because their products or plans, at least according to some of their […]
Characters Clean House
By Karen Raugust on April 13, 2023 in Character/Entertainment, Consumer electronics, House and home, International, Licensing
“Robot vacuums,” the small, self-propelled appliances of which the Roomba is the best-known example in the U.S., are popular in Japan, which is a leader in the manufacture and design of robots for industrial and consumer use and where small house sizes make the devices practical. And, as is the case with other small appliance […]
Corporate Flower Collaborations Blossom
Fresh flowers comprise a relatively small category for licensing and collaboration, but one that has become a go-to opportunity for some properties, especially in the fashion and home design areas. Corporate brands represent one IP type that might not come to mind when thinking about floral arrangements, but recent deals show that several brand owners […]
Controversial Content Through A.I.
Artificial intelligence has long been used for a variety of purposes, from automating contract reviews to personalized shopping to voice assistants, and it holds promise for much more. Lately, with the advent of consumer-friendly A.I. chatbots, image-generators, and other tools, such as ChatGPT and MidJourney, A.I. is increasingly—and more controversially—being utilized to develop and produce […]
Good Buys
The home goods industry struggled in 2022 after the robust sales of the lockdown era, and most observers expect that trend to continue into 2023. But licensing has been a bright spot lately, and new licensing deals continue to be forged at a regular pace. One notable current trend—not surprising given consumers’ concerns about inflation […]
Made by Hand
A number of deals of late have involved limited editions of handcrafted products. The increasing tendency to include handmade products as a component of a licensing program is not a trend that has arisen suddenly. Rather, the strategy has gained strength steadily and rather stealthily over several years. Recent examples cut across a variety of […]