By Allison Watkinson
TLL Reporter
The upcoming fashion-themed Licensing Expo has been set for June 13 to 15, 2023, at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas.
The event was originally due to take place on May 23 to 25, 2023, but has been rescheduled to accommodate event venue renovations.
“We have been closely following the construction dateline at Mandalay Bay. With their guidance, we have obtained favorable dates to reschedule the event and avoid disrupting the meeting spaces required for Licensing Expo,” said Anna Knight, SVP of Licensing at Informa Markets.
“We wanted to update the licensing community after further discussions with Mandalay Bay to ensure all visitors and partners plan their summer accordingly,” added Knight. “The Licensing Expo team will contact exhibitors and partners to discuss the rescheduled dates, answer any queries, and ensure we deliver the same event experience you have become accustomed to, albeit a few weeks later than originally planned.”
Originally launched in 1980, Licensing Expo is the world’s largest annual tradeshow dedicated to licensing and brand extension. Every year, more than 5,000 brands and 16,000 retailers, licensees, manufacturers, distributors, and licensing agents attend Licensing Expo from more than 70 countries.
This year’s Licensing Expo theme is Fashion, which builds on Brand Licensing Europe’s 2022 theme.
“Seeing the incredible response we had at BLE from the Fashion theme, we wanted to bring it to Expo next summer to spotlight the innovation and creativity that comes from this category on a global stage,” said Knight. “Fashion, apparel, and accessories are all-inclusive and transcend age, gender, race, and nationality.
“It forms such a critical part of the licensing process but is also an integral part of consumers’ identity. BLE was just the beginning of what this theme has to offer, and we can’t wait to bring it to life on Licensing Expo’s show floor.”
Licensing Expo provides a valuable opportunity for exhibiting and attending product suppliers and retailers to secure the rights to thousands of consumer brands, entertainment icons, and more.
Some notable brands that attended the 2022 event included Crayola, Hasbro, Jazwares, Legendary Entertainment, Paramount, Paul Frank, Mattel, Shell, Viz Media, Warner Bros. Discovery, and many more.
“Having fashion as the theme opens so many possibilities in the licensing space and will allow attendees and exhibitors to explore the breadth of consumer products available through the fashion world,” said Maura Regan, President, Licensing International. “We’re excited to see unique collaborations unfold between licensing and fashion, along with the constant emergence of new innovations and trends. Licensing Expo 2023 will showcase some incredible opportunities to grow the licensing and fashion industries even further.”
Licensing Expo is sponsored by Licensing International and a part of the Global Licensing Group at Informa Markets, the industry’s leading tradeshow organizer and media partner.
Licensing International is the leading trade organization for the global brand licensing industry. It works to foster the growth and expansion of brand licensing around the world.