Licensors bring added value with greater involvement

More home accent vendors are looking at licensing opportunities as a way to boost market visibility and enrich their product offerings. Those who are finding success in the licensing arena say it's because their licensing partners bring more than just a name — they also bring their creative juices, a complementary aesthetic, industry knowledge and a fresh perspective to the partnership.

Frederick Cooper president Christopher Mumford said that shared, realizable expectations and a lot of trust are needed to make such partnerships work, “and being a charming dinner companion helps considerably.”

Mumford said his lighting company's licensors, a group that includes Joann Barwick, Mario Buatta, Alexander Julian, John Mascheroni and Larry Laslo, are right at home in the industry and bring added value in their ability to connect with buyers on the design relevance of the offering. “Each of our design partners is very charming in communicating with influencers and decision makers. And they do a fabulous job of attracting more attention to the showroom and product. Buzz always follows great design talent,” he said.

Frederick Cooper's design partners were all selected for their ability to bring a new aesthetic or sensibility to the lighting company. “Once you get past the idea that you cannot be everything to everybody, you find partners who offer complementary skills,” Mumford said.

Those skills, plus a lot of intangibles, are what create a successful product. “The designer must have an eye for that which is both design relevant and commercial,” Mumford said. “Equally important, the designer must be a 'collaborativist' in finding a balance between the intent of the original design and the craftsman's capabilities. As a result, we have what Newell Turner coined a 'No Diva Policy,' namely the designer being open to make adjustments to make the best product.”

John Haste, vice president of sales for Imax, also puts a premium on the licensor's involvement. “For a licensing program to truly work, you really need the licensor to be behind it in doing a lot of things, as much as we do as the licensee,” Haste said. Imax is launching its first major licensing efforts this summer, an accessories program with well-known designer Carolyn Kinder, as well as one with The Trump Organization that was just announced this month.

Imax stands to benefit from Kinder's extensive experience in developing, sourcing, importing and licensing across multiple product categories. “Carolyn brings us her status in the industry, her professionalism and her understanding of the business at all levels, including product development, the marketing cycle and all the way through the sell at retail,” Haste said.

Vintage Verandah's Jane Seymour Home Collection of lamps and accessories has grown fourfold since its 2007 debut. Vintage Verandah marketing director Todd Sawvelle said Seymour is Vintage Verandah's only licensor and its most valuable salesperson. “The amount of attention from having the Jane Seymour Home Collection in our showrooms, especially when Jane visits, has been phenomenal to us and to our own brand. You see the power of celebrity first hand and realize the impact that it can have in attracting considerable attention,” Sawvelle said.

Sawvelle credits the actress for adding value as the brand's inspiration and creative visionary. “It's always interesting because the creative ideas will come to us in various forms, from Jane's drawings on an airplane napkin to brainstorming sessions to conversations with customers,” he said. “She is always working on the 'what's next,' so for us that makes the license even more valuable.”

Brand recognition and reputation are the critical selection determinants for licensing veteran Pacific Coast Lighting, who partnered with Kathy Ireland in 2002, added Dick Idol in 2003 and launched its first National Geographic product at April's High Point Market. Pacific Coast President Clark Linstone said the company conducts extensive research to determine the strongest licensors for the market niche. “Kathy Ireland is the fifth most recognized brand in the home category amongst women between ages 32 and 50, National Geographic has 100% name recognition within the United States, and Dick Idol is extremely well known in the outdoor lifestyle niche.”

Linstone said a positive brand image makes a consumer feel more confident in their purchase decision which translates into faster turn on the sales floor. “We are continually asked for licensed product. Excellent brand management brings added sales to retailers that carry branded merchandise, as the consumers feel more comfortable with making the purchase. This can clearly be seen in apparel and has translated well to the home category,” he said.

Vintage Verandah's Sawvelle said there is no doubt the Jane Seymour line has helped draw new customers. “Just as important, it has brought those new customers into the fold of what we do outside of the JSHC. Where we have had to work harder is with existing customers who may or may not be interested in carrying a licensed line under any name. The common refrain is 'I don't want to pay more for product just because it has a name on it,'” Sawvelle said.

Several of the vendors interviewed for this article said their initial license agreements are typically written for a term of about three years. Licensors are paid royalties, which can inflate the price, one of the drawbacks for retailers.

Sawvelle meets the challenge by giving the licensed product more meaning in the mind of the retailer and, ultimately, the consumer. “We are asking a person to make a purchase of something that is not a necessity. So being impulse-driven, the brand has to be evocative of something that the consumer can understand or want to aspire to.” In addition, products from other Jane Seymour licensees are displayed alongside the Jane Seymour Home Collection in the Vintage Verandah showroom, to facilitate the growth of the brand by presenting as much of a story as possible.

A key point here, Sawvelle added, is that when the license is developing its roster of companies to distribute specific product categories, they should have complementary agendas and distribution channels.

Pacific Coast also places a great deal of effort in providing coordinating lighting and accessory product to fit its licensor brand partners' furniture groups. “Licensors provide actual samples of materials used by other brand partners and all final designs are ultimately approved by each brand,” Linstone said. “This collaboration provides for outstanding new and unique products that are consistent with the brand across all product categories.”

Similarly, Surya Rugs' B. Smith Collection debuted in April at the High Point Market as part of a lifestyle grouping that builds on the designer/lifestyle expert's furniture collection for Clayton Marcus. The furniture is complemented by B. Smith licensed products that include Surya's rugs, Picture Source's wall art, TLC Lighting's lamps and Roma Moulding's mirrors.

Vignettes from the B. Smith Collection were exhibited not only in the Clayton Marcus and Surya showrooms, but in the partner showrooms as well. Surya Rugs' president Satya Tiwari said, “The whole idea is to bring together a cohesive look that gives more value to our customers. For us, it's one of the key things that make a license successful — tie in our product and brand with other products and brands so you can see a well-coordinated overall package.”

Maria Hoo, Roma Moulding's creative director, said Roma researched the best-selling mirror sizes in the furniture marketplace when developing the line. “We wanted to hit the furniture market and give them the most popular mirror sizes, positioned in B. Smith's four lifestyle categories,” she said.

The launch of the B. Smith Collection of mirrors coincided with the company's rebranding efforts. Roma has split itself into custom framing and home decor divisions, and the B. Smith line fit in well with the home decor push. “We are really well-known in higher-end interior design houses and higher-end home accent storefronts,” Hoo said, adding that the company's current focus is on capturing the furniture store business as well. “We wanted to position our products for this marketplace and offer some clarity.”

Roma marketing manager Mark Appleton said Roma will look to add to the collection, and may consider adding new licensors as well. “We are interested in partnering with people who value the highest quality and best design,” Appleton said. “The marriage has to be right, so we are looking for people who are like-minded. We will pursue other opportunities, but we are in no rush.”

That same sentiment is shared by the other vendors. Finding a talented design partner who not only brings something new but also complements the company's existing brand takes time, but is key to a profitable pairing.

“Having a licensed product does not automatically generate sales,” Imax's Haste said. “It depends on who the licensor is, and it all comes back to the product itself and how it fits in with a company's overall standing in the industry.”

Mumford said Frederick Cooper's collaborations work because everybody brings some thing unique to the partnership. “In the end, these collaborations all come down to being design relevant, commercial and built on trust,” he said.

At Pacific Coast, each licensor provides initial design inspiration and guidance and works with the company's in-house design staff to ensure the products meets the design direction. “Talented licensors also push your company's design envelope as you develop product to meet the brand's design directions,” Linstone said. The company has renewed Ireland's contract through 2013 and has no plans to add any more partners in the future. “Pacific Coast Lighting is very happy with the brands that we currently have and believe they are the strongest in our industry,” Linstone said.

All of Surya's licensors — designer Bob Mackie, ceramicist Jill Rosenwald and fabric designer Amy Butler among them — are also very involved in the design process and each brings something different. “We work with all of them on the color and design to get their personality in there as much as possible instead of just creating another line,” Tiwari said.

Coupled with solid sales, marketing and operations, Haste feels a good licensing program can create the opportunity for an additional boost. “This is a complement to what we're doing. We think we're doing a lot of things right and this is a natural evolution for us as a company to be in a position to run with this line,” Haste said. “In a challenging environment, we have to constantly be looking at new ways to impact the marketplace.”