The License This! finale will take place in person at Licensing Expo for the first time this year on 26th May.

Entries open today for Licensing Expo’s License This! competition, which helps designers, illustrators and animators break into the $292b global licensing industry. The competition launched 12 years ago in Europe and premiered in the US in 2021 as part of Licensing Expo Virtual. This year, for the first time, the finale will take place in person in front of a live audience of manufacturers, retailers, brand owners and the highly respected judging panel on 26th May, at Licensing Expo.

The event is run in partnership with the industry trade association Licensing International. Licensing Expo takes place in person at Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas from May 24th-26th, 2022.

Through its two categories – Character & Animation and Brand & Design – the License This! competition aims to give unlicensed brands from across the globe a leg up into the world of licensing and consumer products by helping them secure new deals or agent representation. The competition is free to enter online. The cut-off date is Friday 25th March, and the judges are looking for new, creative concepts which have the potential to be applied across multiple product categories.

Judge Steven Ekstract commented: “License This! does a fantastic job of bringing together innovation and opportunity by helping designers, illustrators and animators to succeed in the wonderful world of licensing. The creativity of last year’s License This! entrants was a joy to behold, so I’m really looking forward to viewing this year’s entries and meeting the finalists in person at Licensing Expo for the first time in May.”

Each category winner will receive: an FOC 100sq-ft booth at Licensing Expo 2023 worth $2,500, a one-year Licensing International membership worth $1,000 for a small business, a one-year Products of Change membership, worth up to $450 for a small business and a one-to-one consultation with License This! judges.

Last year’s winners – Emily Blumenthal and Lindsay Kaye Lippman’s The Charmsters (Character & Animation), Xavier Smith’s Kujifunza Kids (Brand & Design) and Lawrence Canada, The Goodie Jar – will be exhibiting at Licensing Expo.

“We at the Goodie Jar are excited to have been chosen as the License This! winner,” said Lawrence Canada, The Goodie Jar. “This is a dream coming to fruition. We look forward to the opportunities and experiences that accompany this accomplishment at the Licensing Expo 2022.”