Opportunities for manufacturers to enter the sports licensing business, at least when it comes to the four major pro leagues and many of the larger collegiate licensors, have declined over the years. Although their licensee lists remain lengthy, Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League, and leading […]
Archive | Fashion
Connected Clothing
At recent electronics and fashion trade shows such as the Consumer Electronics Show, Fashion Tech Berlin, and the Decoded Fashion Summit, smart clothing made its mark. Fabric featuring interwoven conductive wires or embedded nanotechnology allows jackets, intimates, or t–shirts to accommodate basic phone- or Internet-based communication and information access. It enables clothing to measure biometrics […]
Satisfying the Sneakerheads
Licensing in the athletic shoe segment is far more diverse than in the past, when sporting goods brands, athletes, fashion labels, and kids’ characters accounted for the bulk of activity. Over the past 10 to 15 years or so, the category has become more and more important for properties as diverse as musicians, celebrities, artists, […]
Swanky Stationery
Fashion and interior designers continue to strengthen their presence in the high-end stationery category, furthering a trend that has been evident over the last couple of years. Some of the licensing agreements focus on e-stationery, while others encompass both electronic and print versions of holiday cards, invitations, and thank you notes. Two designers adding their […]
Garish Garments for All
As we approach the core holiday selling period, and as seasonal items start to appear for sale at retail and online, it looks like the melding of ugly Christmas sweaters and licensed properties is set to continue for a third year. The segment has evolved since it hit in 2014, moving beyond the licensed sports […]
Smart, Chic, and Strategic
The fall season has seen a flurry of activity in the wearables sector, focusing on both fashion and fitness and encompassing not only watches and bands but also eyewear, belts, and apparel. Some of the deals have centered on upping the fashion quotient. Hermès partnered with Apple for a Hermès edition of the Apple Watch, […]
The Expanding World of Character Collaborations
Collaborations between globally recognized cartoon characters and emerging and established fashion designers have become ubiquitous, with new examples arising weekly. Most of the activity to date has been in the key territories of North America, U.K. and Europe, Australia and New Zealand, and Japan. But the practice is starting to gain a foothold in some […]
Big-and-Tall: Plus-Size for Men
One of the fastest-growing areas for licensing in the women’s apparel industry over the past two years has been the so-called “plus-size” market, which has attracted designers such as Isabel Toledo, a raft of celebrities from Jessica Simpson to Melissa McCarthy, and TV properties such as Empire. The men’s equivalent, the “big-and-tall” market, keeps a […]
Creative Thinking
Fashion designers are increasingly stepping outside of their traditional realms of apparel, accessories, footwear, beauty, fragrance, dinnerware, bed and bath, and home décor. Many have been testing categories such as pet products and electronic-device cases, for example. Some ventures are virtually one of a kind, as is the case with these unconventional limited editions: Karl […]
Stepping Out
With the 2016 Summer Olympic Games ongoing in Rio de Janeiro, it seems like a good time to take a look at the Brazilian footwear business, an active participant in licensing. Shoe companies frequently enter into short-term collaborations (and some longer-term deals) with Brazilian and global properties, both for products sold in Brazil and those […]