As BLE approaches, the great and the good in the field of Licensing share the latest news and look ahead to upcoming developments for their properties.

Andrew Carley, director of Global Licensing, BBC Studios believes the licensing landscape changed about three to four years ago. “The challenge for us now is working with partners and stakeholders to offer a more diverse experience than simply going shopping to buy a product, or going to a theme park, or going to the cinema,” he explains. “All these elements have merged, so we’re trying to create combined experiences.”

Emma Russell, senior Licensing manager at the Natural History Museum is looking forward to meeting both existing and potential licensees at this year’s BLE. “There are significant opportunities within the toy sector,” she explains. “One of my new favourite things to do in the Museum is to walk through the halls on a standard busy day. It’s a joy to see your consumer interact with and immerse themselves in the brand; for our end consumer, there’s value and respectability behind the NHM name.”

There’s much more from a whole host of contributors which, as well as Andrew and Emma, include Julian Moon of Warner Bros. Consumer Products EMEA, Lisa Macdonald of Silvergate Media, Pindy O’Brien of Walker Books, David Sprei of Penguin Ventures, Frankie Lisle of Lisle Licensing, Aidan Taylor-Gooby of Magic Light Pictures, Rachel Clarke of Copyrights Group, Mathieu Galante of The Pokémon Company International, Venetia Davie of Paramount, Vanessa Andreis of Beano Studios, Emmanuelle Cadet of Boat Rocker, Marianne James of Hasbro, Bethan Garton of The Point.1888, Paul Bufton of NBCUniversal, Duncan Tate of Moonbug Entertainment and Rob Goodchild of Aardman.

All our respondents remain upbeat about the challenges facing the Licensing industry. Paul Bufton sums it up: “Tough times are often a spur to innovation and out-of-the-box thinking. Retail is undoubtedly in a difficult spot, but the optimist in me believes the opportunities are greater than the challenges we’re facing. If previous recessions and the pandemic taught us anything, it’s how to deal with the unexpected.”

To read the full article, which appeared in the Licensing section of September’s Toy World, click here.