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 expert known for his collaborations with fashion designers, partnered with retailer Opening Ceremony for an exclusive collection of apparel (produced by the chain), fragrances (from Le Labo), footwear (from Vans and Manolo Blahnik), and headwear (from New Era).
- Editors. Carine Roitfeld, a long-time wordsmith currently affiliated with her own CR Fashion Book as well as Harper’s Bazaar, paired with Uniqlo for a collection of 40 apparel pieces co-branded with the latter’s LifeWear label.
- Cosplay artists. Holly Conrad, a professional competitive costumer who has been highlighted on the Syfy series Heroes of Cosplay, joined with online retailer ThinkGeek to provide content that assists customers in putting together a creative Halloween costume. While this is not a licensing agreement per se, it is easy to see how that would be a logical next step.
- Entrepreneurs. Jamal Edwards, who founded SB.TV, a group of online lifestyle channels targeted to U.K. youths, partnered with Topman for a limited-edition range of hats. The business world in general has been a growth area for celebrity deals of late (see our April 23, 2015 post), with a focus on young executives who have become style icons in their own right.
- Sports analysts. Kirk Herbstreit, a college football commentator, had a limited collection of smoked meats with licensee Eckrich (for which he also serves as an endorser) under the Kirk Herbstreit Ultimate Tailgate brand.
- Burlesque artists. Dita Von Teese continues to expand her licensing program, which debuted with a line of lingerie, signing Dita Inc. for eyewear. The dancer had previously inspired the brand’s name and had modeled in some of its advertising.
It is becoming difficult to pigeonhole celebrities into one area of expertise in many cases, with so many furthering their fame through a variety of creative and business initiatives. For instance, British celebrity Alexa Chung has a strong social media following, is a TV personality, has been a model, and is an author and journalist. She has collaborated with AG Adriano Goldschmied, J. Crew/Madewell, Travis Mathew, and Liberty Art Fabrics, among others.
This sort of multi-hyphenate positioning—where fame comes from many avenues—is becoming more common in the worlds of celebrity and licensing, as is the search for uniquely positioned stars such as those listed above.
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