The number of magazine brands exhibiting at Licensing Expo has long been on the rise, reflecting the growth of this sector over the past decade or more. That remained true at last month’s show, where dozens of titles, from Healthy Living to High Times, were on display. New deals timed to the Expo give a […]
Archive | Publishing
More Trends in Adult Coloring
Even as it starts to slow, the adult coloring book sector remains both a product category of interest to licensors and, increasingly, a source for licensed properties. As Publishers Weekly put it in an April 29, 2016 article, “Adult coloring book sales have slowed somewhat since the holiday frenzy of 2015, but the category is […]
More Than Memoirs
Bookstore and book department shelves have long been filled with celebrity-penned memoirs, humor titles, cookbooks, picture books, and lifestyle tomes. A more recent development, however, is for celebrities to launch entire publishing imprints tied to their names or lifestyle brands. The imprints serve as a trade name or umbrella for not only the celebrity’s own […]
The Many Hues of Adult Coloring
Although publishers report continued strong sales for adult coloring books (at least in the U.S.), and licensors are still entering the market or looking into doing so, this now-crowded sector is starting to mature. One indication is its diversification and expansion in several directions: Adjacent categories. Buffalo Games has a line of puzzles that come […]
Literary Layette
Children’s picture books without entertainment backing tend to be licensed on a limited basis, focusing on higher-end products sold through specialty stores. One active area is the infant-products category, where classic storybooks, with their nostalgic appeal and educational positioning, attract parents and grandparents, as well as consumers looking for baby gifts. To illustrate, three such […]
From Page to Product
Magazine brand licensing, historically, faced a significant barrier in that the categories that made the most sense for brand extension were the same ones in which the magazines’ advertisers operated. Since those advertisers provided much of the revenue keeping the publications in business, competing face-to-face with them was usually out of the question. How times […]
True Colors, Part 2
If you’ve done any holiday shopping this year, you certainly have noted the prominent and often vast displays of adult coloring books in stores of all types. Nearly every publisher seems to offer at least one adult coloring book, with more to come. Less than a month ago (November 19), we noted the rise of […]
Chinese Children Cherish Licensed Publishing
By Karen Raugust on December 10, 2015 in Character/Entertainment, International, Licensing, Publishing
Three of the seven best-selling children’s book series in China at the moment are based on licensed properties, and they may not necessarily be the ones you would expect. Two are tied to global brands. China Children’s Publishing offers books based on the mobile game Plants vs. Zombies, licensed by Electronic Arts’ PopCap Games division, […]
True Colors
The anticipated melding of adult coloring books and licensing is starting to happen in a big way. In last week’s Nielsen Bookscan bestseller list, three of the top five and 12 of the top 25 titles were adult coloring books. Game of Thrones and Outlander—both published by Bantam that week—ranked as number 3 and number […]
Plotting a Course for Licensing
Maps are growing as a design theme for licensed apparel, gifts, and home décor, particularly in the U.K. market: Rocket Licensing is expanding the A-Z brand, founded in 1936. New launches for 2016 include a capsule collection from men’s fashion brand Ben Sherman highlighting 1960s-era maps of Carnaby Street, Portobello Road, and other locations where […]