Brand Licensing Europe Preview

The place to discover gift brands

Brand Licensing Europe (BLE) is billed as Europe’s leading event for licensing and brand extension, and the place to source the hottest and newest brands ready to license

Branded gifts are a huge business. Think Miffy back-toschool kits, Schitt’s Creek candles, Billie Faiers home fragrances, Van Gogh silk scarves, Sara Miller mugs, RHS gardening gloves and Marvel x Pandora jewellery. Brands can really amplify the consumer appeal of the simplest, best-selling products, and can lead to increased revenue, profit and customer loyalty for retailers and manufacturers.

Welcoming thousands of European retailers, manufacturers and brand owners, Brand Licensing Europe [BLE] 22, which will be held at ExCeL in London from September 20 to September 22, is a showcase of brand collaborations, future product ranges, the latest in product design innovation, and new and emerging IPs.

On the showfloor, visitors will find more than 200 exhibiting companies, from TV production and movie studios, to publishing, art and animation, sports brands, heritage, gaming and more.

They will be showcasing thousands of exciting brands ready to license, many of which would be perfect partners for gifting, from nursery staples like Sophie le Giraffe, Elmer and Miffy, to a host of kids’ brands including Bluey, Gruffalo, Paddington and Peppa Pig, and lifestyle brands such as The Style Sisters, Pringles, V&A and Tour de France. Hi, fashion

This year’s BLE theme is fashion, and there will be 10 live, 15-minute catwalk shows over the three days. Fully choreographed, beautifully staged and individually themed, they will be a great source of inspiration for branded fashion that could slot perfectly into any gift shop. ADL

Find original - often unseen - artworks from smaller brands in the Art, Design and Image Licensing [ADL] zone. These brands are often solo entrepreneurs and apply wonderfully to homewares, textiles, stationery and other gift items. Don’t miss the chance to meet Sophie Jonas-Hill, who was one of the Kelvyn Gardner License This! winners in 2021 and has a brand called Tea for Tattoo, which has been uniquely applied to Delft-inspired tea sets. This year’s competition finale takes place on September 22 from 10.30am to 12pm and BLE is expecting to unearth equally brilliant new brands. First time visiting?

If this is your first time visiting BLE and/or you’re new to licensing, don’t fret: the organisers are hosting Orientation Sessions and Show Tours on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings – meet at 9.30am in the License Global Theatre. That’s also the location for BLE’s free conference sessions, which include a day one Barbie x Fashion keynote from Mattel President and COO Richard Dickson, a day two ‘Leaders panel: building a postpandemic retail & licensing strategy’ keynote, and a ‘Forecasting the future of retail through consumer trends’ panel. Networking

Once at the show, visitors can join the likes of John Lewis, Next, Moonpig, Selfridges, My 1st Years, HMV, Papier and Claire’s who have previously attended BLE for useful networking. Attendees can make full use of the Retail Lounge - exclusively for retailers to mingle, gain product inspiration and host meetings - and meet brand owners and fellow retailers at the opening night drinks from 5pm to 7pm on the show floor. Parade yourself

Finally, no visit to BLE is complete without taking a selfie with the much-loved character parade, taking place at 11.30am on September 20 and September 21. More than 1,000 characters have taken part in the parade over the years, including The Gruffalo, Paw Patrol, The Hungry Caterpillar, Sonic the Hedgehog, Peppa Pig, Hello Kitty, Minions, Paddington Bear, The Cookie Monster, The Simpsons, Dennis the Menace, Asterix and many more.

Attendees can register for Brand Licensing Europe for free now at https://www.brandlicensing.eu/en/home.html