Start Licensing’s Ian Downes has the heritage market in mind this week, taking in Shakespeare’s Globe, Tate Modern and the National Theatre.
Heritage licensing is now firmly on the licensing map. It is a core part of the Brand & Lifestyle Licensing Awards, while a dedicated Licensing Museum & Heritage Book was launched recently.
The growth in heritage licensing has rather fittingly taken time and has been helped by the success of brands like the Natural History Museum and the V&A. These brands have helped create momentum and shown that heritage brands can succeed in licensing. An interesting dynamic of this marketplace is that generally the brands involved in the sector run a mixed economy whereby they blend their licensing programmes into their retail businesses, as most of them have gift shops and ecommerce operations. Generally the licensing programme and licensees have to build a business beyond the gift shop, but there are benefits derived from this kind of integrated model. For example supporting NPD while the shops can also provide a good guide towards consumer interest.
With the heritage market in mind, I used a recent stroll along the South Bank as an opportunity to do some looking out. The South Bank and the adjacent Bankside are rich in heritage. When not ‘Looking Out’ I am often mudlarking in the area or hosting walking tours there. It is a great place to explore. I was able to visit Shakespeare’s Globe, the Tate Modern and the National Theatre on my recent walk.
The gift shop at Shakespeare’s Globe is very well presented and captures the spirit of the theatre well. In many ways it is a destination store for all things Shakespeare. I expect that companies, particularly publishers, see this shop as a must have on their distribution list when launching any Shakespeare-related products.
It makes sense given most visitors will be there because of a passion for Shakespeare. A good example of this was an in-store display for Dame Judi Dench’s book Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays the Rent.
Shakespeare’s Globe has started its own licensing programme building on its unique position within the Shakespearian universe. One of its licensees is The London Sock Exchange which is featured in-store with a prominent display of the product. This is a great example of how a heritage brand can help support a licensee, while also accessing fresh ideas and designs developed by category experts. The trade off is that the licensees need to demonstrate an ability and willingness to build distribution beyond the gift shop. In this regard a brand like Shakespeare’s Globe can help as it provides a convincing backstory for licensees and creates a dialogue that they can use to engage with retailers. In short, it offers licensees an opportunity to build a brand identity for their products.
The Tate Modern has several shops within the gallery which mix its own brand products, licensed products and bought in ‘generic’ products that fit into the Tate aesthetic. Rather like the Shakespeare’s Globe shop, the Tate shops are well presented and engaging. The product mix is a little eclectic. I always visit when I am looking for an original or unusual gift for an art lover or, indeed, someone who I know might appreciate a London-related gift. The heritage shops along the South Bank have recognised that a significant proportion of their customers are visitors to London and as such they stock London-related products but choose ones which suit their shops.
The Tate has a pop-up shop space to the front of the building which is currently hosting a Tate Edit centred on an art movement, Guerrilla Girls. This is a good example of how retailing, merchandising and events can work together in a coordinated way.
Activations like this one give the Tate and its partners ammunition to engage with a broad audience, create content for the media and potentially open up other commercial conversations. This pop up shop could easily be replicated in other retail settings and locations.
The Tate Modern shops also showcase some of the Tate’s licensed product range. On this visit the licensed products that caught my eye in particular were Chilly’s water bottles. The range seems to have grown featuring more designs and was given a feature area in-store. The water bottles feature a selection of designs sourced from the collection, but interestingly the designs are reworked and feature details rather than the whole artwork from which they are sourced. This is a good example of what seems to be a design approach in the sector these days – heritage brands have realised that their collections can be a starting point for design looks, but there has to be some freedom given to licensees to design in an original way rather than restricting them to simply reproducing artworks. Of course, any new design needs to be developed in a sympathetic way in regard to the source work, but it makes sense that there is a growing freedom in design terms. The results show that this approach is an effective one.
My final heritage call was into the National Theatre. A building that divides opinion, but one that is one of my favourites in London. I particularly like the way the building is lit inside. The lighting creates a very relaxing environment and sets off the architecture well – this carries through into the shop space. The shop was redesigned relatively recently. It is a shop that makes the best use of the available space with a heavy focus on books coupled with gifts and other products that are centred on theatre. Like the other shops, it has a destination store feel to it.
The National Theatre recently hosted a production of Ronald Dahl’s The Witches. Because of this there was still a small range of Witches merchandise on sale tied into the production, but also a dedicated space for a broader range of Roald Dahl merchandise and books. This is a great example of how a wider licensing programme can be integrated into the heritage sector.
Productions like The Witches create focus and momentum. It makes sense to use this as a springboard to deliver a bigger retail splash. I definitely see this sort of cooperation becoming more important in licensing. Focused retailing dovetails well with licensing and taps into fan demand. For licensees and brand owners, dedicated space like this can drive significant sales and help underpin a licensing programme. We have to be increasingly aware of what fans want and where they want it.
All in all a productive bit of Looking Out this week – I got some good insights, upped my step count, found some new material for my walking tours and also saw a shop sign that always makes my laugh.
In the Shakespeare’s Globe shop there is a sign that says ‘No Playing With Swords In The Shop’. It sells wooden swords. Of course, very few people can pass a sword without flourishing it and becoming a Shakespearean hero or villain hence the sign. On my visit the shop manager had to ask a group of young men to put the swords down. I’m sure she does that a lot – she did it with humour and authority – but it is also a reminder that sometimes success in retailing is about having the right product in the right place at the right time.
The young men bought some swords and were last seen swashbuckling their way through Southwark…
Ian Downes runs Start Licensing, an independent brand licensing agency. His Twitter handle is @startlicensing – he would welcome your suggestions for what to look out for.
