One of the products in the gift shop at this year’s sold-out Vermeer exhibition at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam is a licensed plush figure depicting Dick Bruna’s rabbit character Miffy as Vermeer’s The Milkmaid. This is the latest in a small but growing group of collaborations, mostly taking place in Europe or Asia, whose design inspiration […]
The Mainstreaming of Drag-Related Merchandise
Drag performers have been active in collaborations in the cosmetics space in a big way going back at least four or five years—we wrote about the trend in 2018—and to some extent well before that. More recently, they have also been gradually doing deals in an ever-widening swath of categories, including products for children. That […]
Lessons from the NFT Trenches
Even though the NFT market is down in general in terms of value, NFTs can still be an effective means of generating fan loyalty—if they are a good fit with the property and its consumer base, and if they provide those consumers with something they value at a fair price. Achieving the right balance is […]
Coats of Many Colors
Color is one way to differentiate a brand or product line from its competitors, both in its look and in the emotions the signature hues call forth. In the last two years, more and more brands are pairing with the Pantone Color Institute to create unique custom shades for use in product collections: Just this […]
Life of Luxury
The marriage of luxury brands and K-pop stars continues, as global luxury labels strive to solidify their strength in the important Asian market, as well as take advantage of the stars’ worldwide popularity. For the most part, the relationships are pure brand ambassadorships, with the singers posting on social media to their vast followings, appearing […]
Happy Galentine’s Day
Today is Galentine’s Day, a celebration invented by Amy Poehler’s fictional Leslie Knope in season two of the TV series Parks and Recreation, which some marketers and consumers have started observing in real life. It takes place each year on the day before Valentine’s Day and is all about celebrating female friendship. Some of the […]
Horror Show
Horror films—which represent a perennial-favorite genre—have been doing particularly well at the box office in recent years, with the theatrical success of M3GAN being one of the most recent examples. Streaming of horror movies took off during the pandemic, adding fans not just for new releases and well-known franchise movies but also years-ago classics and […]
Is Now the Time for Smart Eyewear?
There was a period in the mid-2010s when many fashion and consumer electronics industry watchers thought smart glasses, especially paired with designer or other licenses to give them a stylish slant, would represent a growth category. But while some deals were done—Diane Von Furstenberg with Google Glass in 2014, for example—neither the category nor licensing […]
Challenging Times for Esports
The e-sports business has been facing many and varied challenges in the past year: Key sponsors are leaving the business. This is the most important revenue stream for the industry, representing 60% of esports organizations’ total revenue, according to NewZoo. In addition to the failure of crypto company FTX, a big esports sponsor, companies such […]
Say Cheese
The number of collaborations taking a food or beverage brand’s distinctive taste into another, unexpected, food or beverage category continues to grow. Over the last year, one flavor—cheese, in all its many varieties and forms—has been at the center of several such partnerships. Examples range from cheese-infused alcoholic beverages to cheesy ice cream and donuts: […]