TOTAL LICENSING
ragni, comes as no suprise. MeControTe and Chiara Ferragni have, in the last year, been amazingly dynamic in signing licensing deals with any kind of category, from shoes to mineral waters for the former, and from kids apparel to surprise eggs for the latter.
Despite this fascination for new media, the kids publishing business remains in good shape: according to AIE, the Italian publishing association, kids book sales have grown 19,2% in 2021 vs. 2020 - 3 points more than the whole market’s growth. Not only Harry Potter but Luca and the Wimpy Kid are responsible for that, as all YouTuber’s titles launched in 2021 reached the Top 3 in the Italian kids publishing chart. Major franchises like Marvel, DC Comics and Harry Potter are a staple for the Italian licensing market. They are expanding their cultural influcence to the adult target, generating many products for adults with a pop twist. This trend “from geek to fan” includes and explains the recent growing success of Manga/Anime IPs. Some of these, like OnePiece and MyHeroAcademia have become true
hypes in Italy, offering opportunities for apparel and accessories categories, in the “capsule collection” co-branded formula. These licensed “collaborations”, as the global jargon defines them, have expanded in the last couple of years, growing from a storytelling platform once limited to sneakers or fashion/ luxury products to the mainstream apparel and accessories markets. FMCG brands like CocaCola, Pepsi, McDonald’s, Kellogg’s, Chupa Chups, continue to feed limited-edition collections at fast fashion retailers like OVS, Piazza Italia, Alcott and Terranova, underwear and nightwear specialists like Tezenis and Calzedonia, and also at sneaker/ sportswear retailers like AW Lab. This narrative format includes also gaming, forging new paths converging towards platforms like Roblox and Fortnite, often used by lifestyle brands like Gucci, Moncler, or Diesel as a storytelling container to create buzz, and where NFT first tests are starting, mixing consumer products with digital collectibility. Without doubt, this is a very dynamic panorama, which must be monitored constantly.
The Growth of E-Commerce in Post-Pandemic Italy Italy’s economy expanded at a slightly faster-than-expected rate of 6.6 per cent last year, while its fiscal deficit came in far below official targets, as investment, consumption and exports bounced back from the shock of the Covid pandemic. The official figures, released recently, came just after Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, declared that Italy would soon be able to receive its first €21bn tranche from the EU’s Covid recovery fund. According to reports, Italy is set to be the largest recipient of the EU’s Covid recovery fund, and will potentially be eligible to receive nearly €200bn in grants and concessional loans. Of course, the pandemic hit the Italian market, as it did everywhere around the world. One interesting by-product of the
30
Top Italian E-Commerce Platforms with monthly traffic 1
Amazon Italy
180.5m
2
eBay Italy
3
Mediaworld
4
UniEuro
10.4m
5
AliExpress Italiano
8.65m
6
Zalando
8.1m
7
IBS.it
6.3m
8
Decathlon
5.9m
9
ePrice
10
Esselunga
76.9m 11.3m
5.15m 5.1m
