Brand News

According to the drum, Vimto will launch Weight Watchers soft drinks in the UK in 2012.

Launch will coincide with the New Year, rolling out nationwide from January, with a variety of premium flavoured cordials, ready-to-drink fruit drinks and lemonade products.

Naturally for diet products, January is the strongest month, right after the holidays and new years resolutions.

Wellness drinks have seen much growth in the early 2000s.
But calories aren’t much of a consumer concern. The beer industry as well as Coca Cola and Pepsi learned that already.

The over crowded eyewear market gets a new brand license.
Safilo Group and Céline announced a new multi-year licensing agreement.

The collections will be available from January 2012 in Céline boutiques and selected retail outlets worldwide.

Celine belongs to LVMH and Safilo already holds licenses from other LVMH brands.

On a side note:
As a multi-brand licensor, it is always bad policy to push one brand at the expenses of others. Or in plain terms, you do not push additional licenses down your licensees throat.

Xcel Brands announced a fragrance license for its for the Isaac Mizrahi New York brand with Cloudbreak Group.

The license is worldwide. It covers fragrance, bath and body products, home fragrance and other related beauty products.

Product will debut in Fall 2012.

Targeted distribution are department stores.

Is brand licensing entering mainstream?

We had an interview request from a national TV network. Either they are ahead or brand licensing is gaining consumer interest.

Sadly, the hook is a bad example of brand licensing, where a brand has licensed lower quality product for promotional channels and does not fulfill its brand promise.
Or as the interviewer suggested, it is misleading the brand customers.

As reported by WWD, Armani moved its eyewear license to Luxottica.

The license will run for 10 years.

The previous licensee has been Safilo.