The Licensing Letter

TLL's Annual Licensing Business Survey

Fewer Marketing Requirements & Shorter Contact Terms

The following is an excerpt from TLL's feature story on royalty rates. See the complete run-down here, including breakdowns by each channel and full data charts. Fewer Marketing Requirements Imposed The percentage of respondents saying that they pay into or require a contribution to a central marketing fund (CMF) continued to trend downward, falling from 45% in 2014 to 41% in … [Read more...] about Fewer Marketing Requirements & Shorter Contact Terms

Licensed Product Distribution Grows in Online Channel as Physical Shelf Space Tightens for Smaller Brands

Sales of licensed products in the ecommerce channel continued to grow dramatically in 2015, and while the channel’s rate of growth tapered slightly from 2014, sales of licensed products through online outlets continued to outpace the rate of overall online sales. Most other channels continued in a characteristically steady vein, gaining or losing just a fraction of one … [Read more...] about Licensed Product Distribution Grows in Online Channel as Physical Shelf Space Tightens for Smaller Brands

Off-price Leads the Value Segment

The share of sales lost by department stores was picked up by the lowest-priced retail tier, consisting of dollar/value/off-price stores, which saw its share of market grow 0.4 percentage points in 2015. The segment rose from 8.8% to 9.2% of all retail sales of licensed products. That translates to a 4.5% relative increase in share. While survey respondents last year talked … [Read more...] about Off-price Leads the Value Segment

2015 Retail Sales of Licensed Goods in U.S./Canada Top $103 Billion; Entertainment, Sports Drive 3.4% Growth

Retail sales of licensed goods in the U.S. and Canada grew a robust 3.4% in 2015, according to The Licensing Letter’s Annual Licensing Business Survey. At just under $103.3 billion, total sales surpassed the $100 billion mark for only the second time. 2015 is the fifth up year in a row for the U.S./Canada licensing business. This year’s 3.4% increase not only exceeded the 2.5% … [Read more...] about 2015 Retail Sales of Licensed Goods in U.S./Canada Top $103 Billion; Entertainment, Sports Drive 3.4% Growth

Entertainment Steals the Show for 2015 Retail Sales

As in 2014, entertainment/character claimed the highest growth rate of any property type (except for the fledgling digital celebrities subcategory) at 8%. It seems hard to believe that entertainment licensing had declined every year from 2008 through 2012. That trend turned around in 2013 with 3.6% growth, followed by 6% growth in 2014. Once again, growth in entertainment … [Read more...] about Entertainment Steals the Show for 2015 Retail Sales

Toys/Games, Food/Beverage & Apparel Lead Growth on Products Side

For the second straight year, toys/games was the fastest growing product category, posting an 8.1% increase. Growth in toy and game merchandise has mirrored (and fed off of) the success of the entertainment/character property type over the past three years. As in 2013 and 2014, connection to “A-list” entertainment properties like Frozen, Star Wars and Minions drove growth in … [Read more...] about Toys/Games, Food/Beverage & Apparel Lead Growth on Products Side

Tempered Optimism for 2016

Survey respondents reporting that their U.S./Canada licensing business grew in 2015 outnumbered those reporting declines nearly 3 to 1. When you add the “flats” to the “down” total, the ratio was 2 to 1 in favor of positive growth. However, while 2015 seems to have been a good year for most, Survey respondents weren’t as optimistic as usual about the future. Only 56% said they … [Read more...] about Tempered Optimism for 2016

The State of Estates

By Karina Masolova They may be dead, but they're not gone. Estate licensing, for deceased celebrities who would fall under the celebrities category in life, made up 2.3% of all licensing revenue in 2014. After gaining 1.3% in 2013, estate-based sales fell 1.0% in 2014 to $2.25 billion. Retail success in was largely limited to a couple of dominant properties, notably Marilyn … [Read more...] about The State of Estates

Art Licensing Goes from Flat to Down 1.6%, as Fine Arts Thrive & Commercial Arts Struggle

While the overall licensing industry grew 2.5% in 2014, the art sector continued to struggle. After two years of flattish growth, retail sales of products based on licensed art properties in the U.S. and Canada actually fell 1.6%, from $5.64 billion to $5.55 billion, according to The Licensing Letter’s Annual Licensing Business Survey. Artist royalties also continued their … [Read more...] about Art Licensing Goes from Flat to Down 1.6%, as Fine Arts Thrive & Commercial Arts Struggle