Contact the Editor at karina@plainlanguagemedia.com. Athletic specialty retailer Hibbett Sports will acquire City Gear, a city specialty retailer of premium athletic footwear, apparel, and accessories with 135 stores in 15 states, by early December. The transaction includes $88 million in cash to be paid at closing and the potential for up to $25 million in additional … [Read more...] about Roundup: Sports & Sportswear News
NFL
Roundup: M&A & Partnerships
Contact the Editor at karina@plainlanguagemedia.com. New Media Frontiers At a London event, Viacom CEO Bob Bakish shared that the company is looking at launching a branded AVOD portal that will draw in viewers by providing them with free digital content. Viacom will not, however, "follow Disney down the path of developing a Netflix-type streaming service because of the massive … [Read more...] about Roundup: M&A & Partnerships
Who’s News—8/6/2018
Are you hiring—or being promoted, changing jobs, retiring, launching a new company, or otherwise changing your employment? Contact the Editor at karina@plainlanguagemedia.com to announce the news in our next issue of Who's News. Hasbro's Board extends the employment of Chairman & CEO, Brian Goldner, two additional years through Dec. 31, 2022. In addition, John Frascotti’s … [Read more...] about Who’s News—8/6/2018
Sports: A Closer Look
Licensed retail sales of sports-based merchandise grew 4.3% in 2016 to reach $15.4 billion in the U.S./Canada—the sixth straight year of sustained growth. This year, it remains to be seen if this kind of momentum can be sustained, at least in the first quarter—in part because the impact of the two biggest sporting events, the Super Bowl and the Winter Olympics, remains … [Read more...] about Sports: A Closer Look
NFL Makes a Play for Times Square
Karina Masolova, karina@plainlanguagemedia.com The NFL Experience is now open in Times Square, New York City. The permanent exhibit joins a host of new branded offerings that are helping make Times Square relevant again—including National Geographic Encounter: Ocean Odyssey and SpongeBob SquarePants: The Musical. The $30 million venture is one of the first of its kind, powered … [Read more...] about NFL Makes a Play for Times Square
NFLPA’s Top Players
By Karina Masolova, karina@plainlanguagemedia.com Overall, sports is the second-strongest property type we track. Retail sales grew 4.3% in 2016 to reach $15.4 billion, according to TLL’s Annual Licensing Business Survey. Collegiate-based brands also enjoyed strong sales in 2016 at 2.5% growth, reaching $3.5 billion in sales. NFL sales, in particular, were up 3.7% in 2016, as … [Read more...] about NFLPA’s Top Players
To Join, or Not to Join: Amazon’s Retail Takeover
While some brands are embracing the Amazon marketplace, others are waging war against the ecommerce giant. Brands must make a choice: Deal with the black and/or grey markets, or else become part of the white market. Online/ecommerce grew in distribution channel share by three-tenths of a percentage point last year to reach 11.7% of all licensed sales in the U.S./Canada—or … [Read more...] about To Join, or Not to Join: Amazon’s Retail Takeover
Who’s News
Rob McMenemy leaves Egmont Publishing in his role as CEO Intl. In the U.K., Sarah Bates is promoted to Commercial Director, Ali Dougal moves up to Fiction Publishing Director and John Packard to Brands & Licensing Publishing Director. Henna Riaz launches HRR Entertainment. The music and business management company will manage individuals in the music and entertainment … [Read more...] about Who’s News
4.8% Growth in Retail Sales of Sports-Licensed Goods in 2015: Stellar Years for MLB, NBA, NASCAR and MLS
No Olympics? No problem. Sports licensing still thrived in 2015 at just below $14.8 billion in U.S./Canada sales, according to TLL's Annual Licensing Business Survey. For the second year in a row, sports outperformed every other sector with the exception of entertainment. Its 4.8% increase was double U.S. GDP growth (2.6%) and easily exceeded the 3.6% overall industry-wide … [Read more...] about 4.8% Growth in Retail Sales of Sports-Licensed Goods in 2015: Stellar Years for MLB, NBA, NASCAR and MLS
NFLPA Teams Up with TinyCo for “Family Guy” Game Promotion
By Glenn S. Demby, Esq. Most of the major pro team sports leagues in the U.S. use a two-tiered licensing model, in which the team owners, represented by the league, license the team names, logos and trade dress, and the players, represented by the union, license the players' names, likenesses, numbers and signatures. Historically, the lion's share of licensing revenue has … [Read more...] about NFLPA Teams Up with TinyCo for “Family Guy” Game Promotion