The Licensing Mixtape

The License Global Team breaks down their top picks of 2020 edition of The Influentials report, as the December issue gives us chance to look back at the brands that broke the decade as well as those to keep a close eye on over the next ten years.

Matt Winton, global head, partnerships, The Smiley Company, shines a much-needed positive light on the stories and people of 2020, discusses the importance of emotional intelligence and the green shoots of 2021 for purposeful brand growth.

Silvia Figini, COO, EMEA (Global, Mr. Men), Sanrio joins us on the Licensing Mixtape to discuss the art of creating iconic characters, how kawaii culture works on an emotional level and what Sanrio is planning for the future of Hello Kitty and Mr. Men & Little Miss.

License Global sits down with Opsec to dig into to new reports on the impact COVID-19 has had on the broader supply chain and retail spaces.

Robert Best, senior design director, Mattel, shares how inclusivity and imaginative play has kept Barbie in the cultural zeitgeist for over 60 years.

From an early ‘90s kinetic whirlwind to a perfect well-oiled machine, the licensing program of pop megagroup New Kids On The Block has evolved today into an ideal blueprint for music licensing. NKOTB’s Danny Wood tells License Global editor Bibi Wardak about going from merch mayhem to merch mastery.

Ben Roberts and Amanda Cioletti of License Global speak with April Heeren, general manager, domestic licensing, Crayola to discuss the company's incredible origin story and what the future holds for one of the world's biggest family brands.

Mitchel Berger, senior vice president of global commerce, Funimation, highlights the impact that streaming media has had on growing anime’s global footprint.

Bioworld Merchandising’s Jennifer Staley and Beth Taylor highlight how the company’s “Fandom Forever” approach has redefined the licensing business in this special Festival of Licensing episode.

Licensing icon Sid Kaufman, UTA speaks with Steven Ekstract about his early days building brand programs for "Alf" and a lesser-known Dinosaur movie called "Jurassic Park", all the way to his work with modern social media influencers. Learn about the evolution of licensing, retail and consumers here on the Licensing Mixtape.