Licensing International’s Steve Manners on why anniversaries are so important and why they are worth celebrating in the context of licensing.
Back in September, Brand Licensing Europe celebrated its 25th anniversary. In addition to a truly fantastic party during the trade show, I was also fortunate enough to attend a lunch at Informa with industry friends and colleagues that have been to every single BLE since it first launched in 1999.
From the first event at the Landmark Hotel through its days at Business Design Centre, Earls Court, Olympia, and now ExCeL, we reminisced about the early days of the event and reflected on how far the industry has developed over the past 25 years.
Rather than make us nostalgic for the past, looking back on BLE’s first 25 years made us excited for the future as the discussion turned to the many ways licensed products have become ever more sophisticated, creative, imaginative and relevant to consumers.
In addition to BLE’s anniversary, there are also many properties reaching milestones over the next few months, demonstrating the strength of popular brands.
To acknowledge this incredible staying power, here at Licensing International we not only highlighted BLE’s anniversary but also created a series to celebrate other major milestones happening in 2024. We spotlighted the teams at Bandai Namco (Pac-Man’s 45th anniversary and Tekken’s 30th anniversary); Hasbro (Dungeons & Dragons’ 50th anniversary, Peppa Pig’s 20th anniversary and Transformers’ 40th anniversary); Mattel (the company’s upcoming 80th anniversary); and Rovio Entertainment (Angry Birds’ 15th anniversary) in a series of features on our website and in our daily Newslinks newsletter.
This led me to think about why anniversaries are so important and why they are worth celebrating in the context of licensing.
A great example is Hello Kitty’s 50th anniversary. Historically a licensing powerhouse, it felt that over the past few years the brand was less visible at retail. But the celebration of Hello Kitty’s 50th seems to have reversed that trend, bringing the brand back to public consciousness, reminding them of why they loved the brand, introducing a new audience to the property and, ultimately, creating an increased demand for consumer products.
Marketing a relevant anniversary can create a halo effect for a brand, bringing it to the fore. There are, however, some considerations to ensure it is appropriate for consumer products.
Planning is crucial. During my time as a licensing agent, more than once a licensor would suddenly announce that, in a few months’ time, they were celebrating an anniversary. But there was no strategy and no creative, which meant there was no opportunity to celebrate it in the licensing landscape. If you want to take full advantage of a major milestone, it’s crucial that you respect the timelines of retail and manufacturing.
An anniversary can be celebrated for a full year, but if you try to have all of your licensees change their packaging or highlight the anniversary in their products, you could date those items at retail. You don’t want to lose shelf space, so consider whether a run of limited edition anniversary products is more appropriate and then use the overall mechanic of the anniversary to highlight the property at retail through marketing activities.
Think about what the anniversary means to the consumer. This isn’t just a celebration of how long your brand has been around, it’s a celebration of what the IP has meant to consumers during all of those years. Whether it’s a product, an experience, or social media content, every element of your anniversary celebration should be in support of the spirit of your brand and feel authentic to fans.
Steve Manners is head of global marketing and UK managing director at Licensing International.
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