Tom Roe, head of global licensing at Immersive Everywhere, on why licensors should think about the vastly expanding immersive entertainment sector as part of the global voice of their IPs.
“Immersive events can be a significant additional string to the bow for most brand licensing programmes,” Tom Roe, head of global licensing at Immersive Everywhere, tells us.
It may still be a relatively new format in terms of rights availability, but Immersive Everywhere is no stranger to attracting audiences, with its London-based immersive The Great Gatsby being the longest running show of its kind in the UK and the second longest running in the world. Last year – despite the challenges of Covid – the company launched its Doctor Who: Time Fracture immersive theatrical adventure.
Tom says that the company signed a couple of major brands last year which are still under wraps, however one that he can talk about is Peaky Blinders: The Rise which will take place in Camden Market and is already generating serious chatter among fans.
“On venues, we always look to place our shows in interesting or iconic locations,” explains Tom. “This adds to the spectacle and enables us to tell the story in the best manner. To give you a sense of the scale of our productions, typically our venues are between 30-40,000 square feet, and there is obviously so much that can be done with a brand in such a space.”
Licensors should think about the vastly expanding immersive entertainment sector as a key part of their brand offering, plus as part of the global voice of their IPs, says Tom.
“They typically complement any traditional live event activations,” he adds. “Our immersive shows can also provide brand owners with additional revenue streams that they normally do not receive form traditional theatre shows. This is still a very new and extremely exciting format, and the level of engagement is second to none across the live events space. There is also plenty of opportunity that comes from placing immersive experiences in ‘non-traditional’ locations.
“It’s still very early days for this cutting-edge format, and Immersive Everywhere is certainly in the market for more leading IP. If you’re a brand owner, and we’re not already speaking, please get in touch.”
This feature originally appeared in the spring 2022 edition of Licensing Source Book. To read the full publication, click on this link.
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