If you were thinking that the market for chef-licensed merchandise was saturated, a raft of new deals and new product introductions in the last three months may make you reconsider:
- Padma Lakshmi, cookbook author and host of “Top Chef,” launched a tabletop collection of porcelain and glassware at Bloomingdale’s with licensee Prima Designs.
- Ming Tsai, star of the public television cooking show “Simply Ming,” launched a line of kitchen tools, accessories, and cookbooks on HSN, with the gadgets created in collaboration with HSN subsidiary Ingenious Designs.
- British chef Jamie Oliver, who oversees an extensive product line in the U.K., launched a 14-item range of prepared foods with Canadian retailer Sobey’s, co-branded with the chain’s Compliments private label.
- Another Brit, Jane Asher, known for her high-end custom cake business and baking books, signed with retailer Poundland for a bakeware collection. The deal is the first celebrity tie-in for the retailer, which operates the U.K. equivalent of dollar stores.
- Andrew Zimmern, recognized from the Travel Channel show “Bizarre Foods With Andrew Zimmern,” is collaborating with Quarterly Co. for curated (not licensed) collections of favorite items to be delivered to the site’s members.
During the same period, two more chefs retained licensing agents to help them launch their own merchandise ventures. Fabio Viviani, known from several iterations of “Top Chef,” will work with The Joester Loria Group, while Dominique Ansel, of Cronut fame, is teaming with Brand Central. Continued signings such as these suggest that the availability of chef-licensed products will continue to expand for the foreseeable future.