Long-term Licensing Trendlines Spotlight
Global Growth Opportunities, Strength By Sector
U.S./Canadian Licensing Business Reflects Economic Weakness, State of Retail
The birth of the modern licensing business is considered 1977, when George Lucas’s "Star Wars" was released in theaters
along with a full-scale plan for sales of licensed merchandise. The business has reached several plateaus in the ensuing
30 years, peaking in 1999 at $74.15 billion. The total in 2007: $68.7 billion, according to The
Licensing Letter, which published results of its first annual survey of the licensing business in 1978.
Retail Sales Of Licensed Merchandise, U.S. & Canada, 1977-2007
Global Licensing Business Is Buoyed By
Growth In Latin America, India, China
Worldwide, licensed merchandise sold $108 million in 2007, a figure that has remained essentially flat since the global
recession of 2001. While India, China and, to a lesser degree Latin America, are relatively small markets, these are where
licensing professionals forecast the greatest growth opportunities in the coming decade.
Retail Sales of Licensed Merchandise, Worldwide, 1997-2007
Corporate Trademarks, Sports & Entertainment Account
For Two-thirds Of U.S./Canada Licensing Activity
Licenses based on corporate trademarks and brands accounted for nearly one quarter of retail sales of all licensed merchandise
in the U.S. and Canada in 2007. Another 20% of dollars spent on licensed merchandise went for products based on sports
properties, while entertainment properties represented 18% of the market.
Retail Sales of Licensed Merchandise, By Property Type, U.S. & Canada, 2007
Apparel/Accessories & Food/Beverage Products Represent
33% Of All Licensed Merchandise Sales In U.S./Canada
Videogames based on licensed properties demonstrated the strongest rate of growth in retail sales of licensed merchandise
in the U.S. and Canada in 2007 — with traditional toys and games reflecting the greatest contraction. Still, the combined
apparel and accessories market, and food and beverage products based on licensed properties, dominate among all categories
of licensed products.
Retail Sales Of Licensed Merchandise, By Product Category, U.S. & Canada, 2007
Wal-Mart, Toys 'r' Us, Other Discounters Sell Half Of
Licensed Entertainment / Character Merchandise
Wal-Mart, Target and other discounters carry licensed merchandise based on only a handful of entertainment properties
in any given season, but these account for nearly half of all sales for the sector. Properties beyond these mega-hits are
relegated almost exclusively to other outlets. Drug, convenience and specialty stores are gaining the most momentum for
entertainment-based products.
Retail Sales Of Licensed Entertainment & Character Merchandise,
By Distribution Channel, U.S. & Canada, 2007
The Licensing Business Databook gives you instant access to
a full 10 years of The Licensing Letter’s exclusive trendlines for this dynamic business.
More than 80 charts detail U.S./Canada retail sales for each property type and product category; global data by region;
distribution breakdowns; sports league sales and much, much more so you can benchmark your performance against the industry
as a whole.
An accompanying CD-ROM includes each chart and graph individually so you can drop them into your reports and presentations
for added credibility.
Click here to order your copy of the Databook.
