That’s a First

A handful of exhibitors at the recent Licensing International Expo launched licensing programs or signed deals that seemed to be firsts within the licensing business, or at least at the show. Each represents a trend that has become prominent in society in the last couple of years but is just starting to emerge within the licensing business:

• Fantasy sports. Fantasy sports leagues have been rising in popularity for several years, intensifying fans’ interest in individual athletes and helping drive growth in athlete-identified licensed products. At this year’s Licensing Expo, The Wildflower Group announced that it would represent Matthew Berry, an ESPN fantasy sports analyst, and his Fantasy Life lifestyle brand. Plans for the program, which represents one of the first fantasy sports-related properties to enter licensing, include apparel and accessories, housewares, food and beverages, and promotions.
• Cannabis. The Sharpe Company used Licensing Expo to announce its representation of Pineapple Express, a consultant, investor, and branding agency working in the legal marijuana industry, for licensing. It will focus on extending the company’s recently acquired THC lifestyle brand, named for the active ingredient in pot, into apparel and accessories. A couple of other marijuana-related properties have been at the show in the past, notably High Times magazine, which covers all things cannabis and had a booth this year as well. But this is the first exhibiting brand in memory to come out of the marijuana industry itself. (Beyond the Expo, several chefs and musicians have entered this category in the last year or so, and some cannabis brands have launched limited brand-extension efforts.)
• Farm-to-table movement. The trend toward ultra-local produce has become ubiquitous in the chef-driven restaurant business, but a new deal announced by Fuller Brush and its agent Alex Meisel & Co. brings the trend home in a big way. A line of Fuller Greenhouses has been licensed to Winter Gardenz, a New Zealand maker of full-sized, high-end green- and glasshouses, with the new product line being part of the brand’s Fuller Garden, Fuller Table, Fuller Life lifestyle positioning.

Each of these examples represents just one of the first forays into licensing for the respective sectors, at least as seen at Licensing Expo. But it stands to reason—given the strength of these three trends in society at large—that more examples will follow.