Digital-native lifestyle content platforms for millennial women are powerful influencers of consumer behavior, through trend coverage and especially product recommendations on their web and social channels. They are also cultivating their own presence in the world of licensing, collaboration, and brand extension, as illustrated by a raft of recent deals: Glossier, a beauty brand that […]
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Adaptive Products: An Unexplored Opportunity
Companies with ties to licensing are increasingly creating products for consumers with special needs, an underserved population. This customer segment encompasses everyone from children with autism to people of all ages with conditions such as Parkinson’s disease or multiple sclerosis, to seniors who have trouble getting dressed due to dementia or physical ailments. Some of […]
Playing to Win
With the holiday season coming up quickly, it seems like a good time to take a look at what toy industry players are doing to position themselves for success. In the midst of a changing retail landscape, evolving leisure time habits among kids, trade and tariff concerns, and other challenges, companies involved in the production […]
Protests and Politics
Pockets of the global licensing business are facing significant financial impacts due to political fights, trade spats, and social protests around the world. Unlike cases where companies take a stand on a political issue and prepare to face the expected backlash, these are situations that have nothing to do with any individual company’s actions. But […]
Snap, Crackle, and Pop! (Vinyl)
Over the past year and a half, collectibles brands have been entering the breakfast cereal market. The products are intended to taste good, but also to serve as a collectible in their own right. They are often sold through retail outlets that focus on collectibles and other non-food products, rather than in supermarkets. Three notable […]
Influencing the Craft Category
Social media influencers specializing in handmade crafting and inspiration have, not surprisingly, had a growing presence in the licensing business. They mostly maintain a tight focus on crafting supplies, although some have extended into a few adjacent categories as well. Examples include: Lauren Riihimaki, or LaurDIY. Key licensees, brokered by The Brand Liaison, include Plaid […]
Now We’re Cooking
The kitchen housewares and tabletop industry has in recent months been the focus of a number of retail-exclusive product lines that involve licensed properties. This type of partnership has been going on for years, but the frequency seems to be on the rise of late. The following have debuted since mid-2018: Chrissy Teigen and Target […]
Holiday Cheer
With Black Friday coming up next week, it seems like a good time to take a look at what’s up with some of the key Christmas-themed licenses whose annual prime time is just beginning. These evergreen properties expand their reach each year, increasingly extending well beyond traditional holiday-centric categories. A few recent examples: • Universal […]
A Good Hair Day
Celebrity hairstylists, through a variety of collaborations and brand-extension initiatives, have gotten out of the salon and onto retail shelves over the past couple of years: Rita Hazan, who already has a range of hair care products in place at HSN and Sephora, retained The Brand Liaison last month as her licensing agent for further […]
Unboxing New Kids’ Initiatives
The subscription box and meal kit sectors have undergone a number of challenges in 2018. But boxes for children represent one area that seems to be thriving. Many players in this sector are expanding their product arrays, maintaining strong and growing subscriber bases, and/or attracting continued influxes of investment funding. Meanwhile, new competitors—some formidable—are entering […]