A number of trends in recent months have been moving the e-sports industry, including the licensing component, forward: Big sports licensees are doing deals. It was not that long ago that the first mainstream sports licensees joined e-sports specialists in doing deals with teams, leagues, and players. Since then, the floodgates seem to be opening. […]
Archive | Licensing
Fashion Brand Reboots
Retro fashion labels that have been off the market for a while have been turning to licensing and collaborative partnerships as they attempt to reintroduce their brands. Among the announcements that have come to light in the past few months: Baby Phat was recently repurchased by its founder, Kimora Lee Simmons—who now designs it with […]
From Russia with Licensing
Russia has become the source of a rising number of children’s properties with eyes on the international market. Factors behind the increase include a boost in government support for the domestic animation industry since the 2000s, the growing sophistication of the licensing business in Russia, and the development of YouTube and other streaming channels as […]
Space Age
Saturday is the 50th anniversary of Neil Armstrong’s first steps on the moon during the Apollo 11 mission. In the days and weeks leading up to the milestone, licensors, retailers, and licensees have been announcing space-themed content, promotions, and products, especially in the realms of entertainment, toys, and fashion. The initiatives, most of which incorporate […]
Building A Well-Fitting Wardrobe by the Month
A growing number of fashion designers and celebrity-backed fashion labels have been doing deals in the plus- and extended-size market in the past year and a half, many of them for the first time. One popular strategy is to partner with a subscription box marketer specializing in this segment: Betsy Johnson entered the plus-size market […]
In-World Meets High-Tech
In-world products, which take a fictional item from a film, TV show, or videogame and make it real, represent the ultimate way to differentiate entertainment/character-licensed goods from their competitors. In-world merchandise can assume a variety of forms, from Barco Uniforms’ Grey’s Anatomy scrubs, to Schwinn’s Stranger Things bikes, to Cubicall’s Bill & Ted phone booths, […]
Full of Beans
Three deals announced in the space of one week last month provide a handy illustration of the ways coffee-related brands have become active players in all types of licensing and collaboration: Brand extension. Costa Coffee, the U.K.-headquartered chain, became the latest example of coffee and coffee shop brands entering adjacent categories, especially ready-to-drink coffees. In […]
Good Grooming
A handful of licensors in the past three months have announced deals for a single functional grooming product or targeted collection. The somewhat unexpected pairings, involving properties ranging from designers to celebrities to gaming brands, have generated significant media coverage and social media discussion, some of it tongue-in-cheek and much of it positive: In June, […]
Real Characters
Celebrities have been making appearances, in cartoon form, across key storytelling and communications platforms. The initiatives are mostly for children, but there is sometimes appeal for adults as well, depending on the project. They involve a variety of media configurations: Animated TV shows and films. In June, Ellen DeGeneres’ Ellen Digital Ventures and Warner Bros. […]
Seeing the Bigger Picture
The number of artists and art agents exhibiting at Licensing Expo continues to shrink, with the smallest contingent in recent memory represented at the 2019 edition earlier this month. In part, this decline is due to the nature of the Expo. It faces competition from art-only events, such as Surtex and Blueprint, which attract more […]