By Gary Symons
TLL Editor in Chief
Licensing Expo started off with a bang as the winners of the 2024 Licensing Excellence Awards were unveiled by Licensing International.
The winners were selected from 197 finalists in 32 categories. More than 800 submissions were received, narrowed down by an expert global judging panel of 200 judges from 20 countries.
The Excellence Awards were hosted for a second year by Cakewalk Entertainment founder and CEO George Leon and La Panadería President and CEO Maca Rotter. The awards were presented by sponsors Alifish, InSpirit Designs, Jazwares, SEGA, and Stumble Guys.
The Excellence Awards ceremony is held by the industry association Licensing International to honor innovation and creativity in the licensing community.
“They spotlight the power of brands to connect with consumers and further a company’s goals, celebrate how licensees develop and bring those products to market, and applaud how retailers highlight licenses on their shelves,” Licensing International says.
A new category was introduced this year to recognize the role of licensing in the world of advertising, marketing and promotions. The category Best Advertising Campaign Featuring a Brand honors print, radio, TV, cinema, and outdoor media advertisements where a property is used to elevate and promote another brand.
The first award in this new category went to a campaign called Golf’s Happy Place, a collaboration with PGA TOUR Superstore and Born Licensing.
Also, for the first time, each individual member of Licensing International had the chance to vote for the Members’ Choice Award, which “celebrates licensed offerings that extend a brand in unexpected and innovative ways.”
Casey Collins to Head Global Licensed Consumer Products at Hasbro
Perhaps not surprisingly, given the immense success of the Barbie brand this year, the Members’ Choice Award went to a Barbie campaign, in this case, a collaboration with the fashion brand Zara for a branded apparel collection.
Mattel’s Barbie also won what is considered one of the top awards, taking away the honors for overall Best Brand of 2024, a feat partly attributable to the blockbuster hit film from director Greta Gerwig.
One of the winners that caught our eye here at TLL was for Best Location-Based Experience or Initiative, snagged by a collaboration between the film character Shrek and Airbnb. In a category where giants like Disney, Six Flags, and Falcon’s Beyond spend billions creating elaborate and creative live offerings, the Shrek x Airbnb collab won for simply coming up with an imaginative and charming experience that brings the films to life in a unique way.
The Dreamworks partnership resulted in a Shrek’s Swamp, a “stumpy, secluded haven fit for a solitude-seeking ogre,” located in a “mud-laden, moss-covered, murky-watered swamp situated among the rolling hills of Scotland.”
Sounds like my kind of place!
It’s also the type of experience that exemplifies the Licensing Excellence Awards.
“The Licensing International Excellence Awards winners represent the boundless creativity, ingenuity, and talent of the global brand licensing industry,” said Maura Regan, President of Licensing International. “We congratulate this year’s winners on their adeptness in bringing the world’s most beloved brands, characters, and properties to consumers in exciting and unique ways.”
Here are the 2024 Licensing International Excellence Awards winners:
BEST LICENSED BRANDS
- Best Brand: Animated Bluey – Ludo Studio & BBC Studios
- Best Brand: Art, Design, or Museum V&A
- Best Brand: Corporate United States Postal Service (Global Icons)
- Best Brand: Food, Beverage, Restaurant M&M’S – Mars Wrigley (Brand Central)
- Best Brand: Interactive or Digital Brand Chefclub
- Best Brand: Live Action Ted Lasso – Warner Bros. Discovery
- Best Brand: Music Artist, Celebrity, or Fashion Grateful Dead – Warner Music Experience
- Best Brand: Publishing, Stationery, or Social Expression Moomin – Moomin Characters Oy Ltd (Rights & Brands)
- Best Brand: Sports, eSports, or Collegiate NASCAR
- Best Brand: Toy Barbie – Mattel
All Art Licensing Leading Zoonicorn Stampede at Licensing Expo
BEST LICENSED PRODUCTS
- Best Product: Apparel, Footwear, or Accessories for Corporate Brands Loungefly – McDonald’s (The Joester Loria Group)
- Best Product: Apparel, Footwear, or Accessories for Entertainment Brands GUCCI – Gremlins
- Best Product: Appliances, Housewares, or Electronics for Corporate Brands Car Off Shore S.r.l. – FIAT 500 (IMG)
- Best Product: Appliance, Housewares, or Electronic Product for Entertainment Brands Dalstrong – Batman
- Best Product: Food or Beverage for Corporate Brands Ferrero/The Coca-Cola Company – Sprite (CAA Brand Management)
- Best Product: Food or Beverage for Entertainment Brands FoodStory Brands – Yellowstone
- Best Product: Health & Beauty Hismile – Wonka
- Best Product: Home Decor Eichholtz – The Met (Beanstalk)
- Best Product: Interactive or Digital Product Apple – Peanuts
- Best Product: Publishing, Social Expression, or Back-to-School Moleskine – Van Gogh Museum (Art Studio 3, Italy)
- Best Product: Toys, Games, Novelties, or Role Play (ages 0-8) Fun.com – Disney Pixar
- Best Product: Toys, Games, Novelties, or Role Play (ages 8+) Big Potato Games – U.S. Postal Inspection Service (Global Icons)
OTHER AWARDS
- Best Advertising Campaign Featuring a Licensed Brand Golf’s Happy Place – PGA TOUR Superstore (Born Licensing)
- Best Collaboration: Hardlines or Packaged Goods Caran d’Ache x Keith Haring – (Artestar/CAA Brand Management)
- Best Collaboration: Softlines Swatch x Jean-Michel Basquiat (Artestar)
- Best Licensed Promotion 7-Eleven x Brown & Minions – CP ALL PUBLIC COMPANY (7-ELEVEN) (Pacific Licensing Studio Pte Ltd)
- Best Location-Based Experience or Initiative Shrek x Airbnb
- Best Retailer: Corporate, Lifestyle, Fashion, or Sports Brands Kohl’s – Crayola (Retail Monster)
- Best Retailer: Entertainment Brands Williams Sonoma – Bridgerton
- Best Sustainability Initiative ERDOS Polar Series – Narwhal Ocean Research Center (ALFILO Brands)
- Members’ Choice Award Barbie x Zara
- Most Impactful Service Provider Dependable Solutions