The final day of this year’s Brand Licensing Europe will focus on sustainability, diversity, equity and inclusion, spotlighting new and diverse brands and voices in order to drive meaningful change.
In addition, for the first time there will be a keynote session focused on brands with purpose.
“Through partnerships with Products of Change, Licensing International, Black Lives Matter Licensing as well as Junk Kouture and many more brands, all aspects of the day three programme will aim to educate, inspire and invite action within the brand licensing community,” commented Anna Knight, svp licensing at Informa Markets.
Day three (Thursday 22 September) will include the following timed events:
9:30-10:00am – Sustainability case study with Hasbro, License Global Theatre
Presented by Catrina O’Brien, head of retail EurAsia – Licensing Consumer Products, Hasbro, and Helena Mansell-Stopher, founder and ceo, Products of Change.
10:00-10:15am – Culture & Unity catwalk. Featuring Black Lives Matter Movement fashion collections and spotlighting Black-owned businesses looking to break into the licensing industry.
10:30-12:200pm – Kelvyn Gardner License This! final: Brand & Design and Character & Animation categories.
This competition for unlicensed brands has been driving new talent and smaller businesses into the industry for over a decade. Watch finalists pitch live to a panel of expert judges to be crowned the winners of the License This! 2022 competition. Entries are free and open until Friday 26 August.
12:30-12:45pm – Sustainability catwalk.
Products of Change, together with the United Nations and Junk Kouture, will present an educational and inspiring 15-minute set with presentations and performances centred around the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals as a catalyst for change. Within the set, Junk Couture will host an exclusive catwalk show, presenting designs from their worldwide competition where 13-18 year old students are empowered to embrace the principle of sustainable living creating apparel and couture from recycled materials.
1:00pm-1.45pm – Day 3 keynote: Panel Discussion: The Good Fight: How Purpose Breeds Success
A panel of industry change makers will debate how leading with purpose can create a competitive advantage for licensors, retailers and licensees alike.
Moderator: Will Stewart, founder and ceo at The Point.1888, with Nicolas Loufrani, founder and ceo at The Smiley Company; Veronica Hart, evp global franchise planning & CP marketing at Paramount; Helena Mansell-Stopher, founder and ceo, Products of Change; and Kingston Myles, head of commercial development at English Heritage.
The timed events are in addition to the following sustainability, purpose-driven and DE&I initiatives, which will take place throughout all three days of the show:
BLE & POC Sustainability Café
The BLE & POC Sustainability Café will recycle materials from last year’s Sustainability Activation and showcase sustainable consumer products and fashion lines from 12 brands including Primark, Eden, Wastebuster, Smiley, Wow Stuff & RSPB, Hasbro and Asda, Smurfs and Pure Top Table, plus Discovery.
Products of Change Lounge
Meet the entire POC team. Helena, Rob and POC ambassadors will run sustainability clinics (available to all attendees) and member meet ups. This is the perfect place to receive advice, education and best practice on creating, progressing or optimising your business’ sustainability action plan.
Black Lives Matter Licensing
Meet the Black Lives Matter Licensing team to learn more about how they amplify Black voices across the consumer products sector, while generating revenue to benefit the Black community. Saphia Maxamed and other members of the team will be available for pre-arranged and drop-in meetings.
Supporting Ukrainian businesses
BLE 22 has offered free of charge exhibiting space to Ukranian business owners looking to continue their work within the licensing industry. Exhibitors include Ukrainian Association of Football and ReadyMadeLicense.
Wellness Lounge
The Wellness Lounge returns for attendees to enjoy some quiet space to work or take a break from the show floor.
Charity discount
BLE is offering a discount to charitable and non-profit organisations who would like to exhibit for the first time.
Licensing International’s Diversity & Inclusion Accelerator
This programme provides benefits valued at over $100,000 to underrepresented, diverse brand licensing entrepreneurs around the globe to help them build profitable, high-growth companies within the industry. BLE will showcase some of the companies involved in the programme in a dedicated space on the show floor.
“It’s a real honour to extend our partnership with Informa this year to deepen the sustainability conversation across the industry,” Helena Mansell-Stopher, founder of Products of Change, told LicensingSource.net. “Visitors can drop by the Sustainability Lounge and meet with the PoC advisors’ team for 121 clinics, be inspired at The BLE & PoC Sustainability Café and see what real innovation is happening with the industry, then join PoC, the United Nations and Junk Kouture for what will be a totally inspiring catwalk showcase, centred around the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals and joining an amazing line-up of young designers from Junk Kouture, who will open our eyes to what’s possible.
“I’m so excited to bring these conversations to the industry, and even more so by what the industry can learn from them.”
Brand Licensing Europe runs from 20-22 September at London’s ExCeL. Visitor registration is open and can be completed via this link.
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