Licensing News From the National Hardware Show

The 68th annual National Hardware Show took place in Las Vegas last week from  May 7-9, with more than 2,500 exhibitors across multiple categories and more than 30,000 attendees. Many major brands announced new licensing deals in various home improvement categories. This year’s event included an expanded range of product categories including: farm and ranch, pet products and building products.

Here’s our recap of some of the key licensing developments from the show:

-Scotts Miracle-Gro announced several partnerships including an American Lawn Mower Co. line of reel lawn mowers; GreenScapes lawn fabric; children’s garden kits from Peachtree Playthings, sprayers from H.D Hudson and gardening tools from Bond

-Polaroid  is partnering with Green Lighting Technologies  for LED light bulbs

-Lysol is introducing furnace filters from Quality Filters, Inc.

-Stanley is working with Sleep Innovations for a line of floor mats

-Duracell  is collaborating with Jiawei on LED light bulbs and gardening lighting

-Weber Grills  is working with Bryson Industries on grill cleaning products

-Pella Windows is introducing window cleaners from Bryson Industries

-Energizer is partnering with Power Bright on 12 volt electronics

-Ford is collaborating with Pulsar on power washers and generators

SoBe Partners With Blank You Very Much For An Exotic Design Competition

Image via http://www.blankyouverymuch.com/sobe

The Joester Loria Group, has partnered our client SoBe, the original South Beach Beverage Company, with crowd-sourced design platform Blank You Very Much (BYVM) for a “Show Us Your Exotic” design competition.

This collaboration launched on April 23rd and will run through May 23rd. The BYVM community will be challenged to reinvent SoBe’s official brand assets. BYVM’s community consists of almost 50,000 graphic designers, artists and fans. The innovative design platform was created by street wear impresario Darren Romanelli who has worked with a number of iconic sports and lifestyle brands including Disney, Converse, Burton, Beats By Dre, HUF, and Kanye West among others.

As part of this collaboration, designers will have access to official SoBe brand asset files including logos and lizard icons that may be used to create unique designs that will be uploaded to the BYVM gallery. Designs will be critiqued by BYVM community members and a panel of exclusive judges including renowned contemporary visual artist Jen Stark. Contestants have the chance to win $4,000 and other great prizes including exclusive SoBe swag.

SoBe Frozen Bars Coming This Summer

Image via http://www.licensemag.com/license-global/jlg-sends-sobe-freezer-aisle

The Joester Loria Group has brokered a license agreement between SoBe Lifewater & Elixirs and Philly Swirl, extending the beverage brand’s most popular flavors to frozen bars. The bars will arrive in US grocery stores this summer and will include two exotic flavors based on SoBe’s top-selling Lifewater flavors- Yumberry Pomegranate and Pacific Coconut.  The bars will be naturally sweetened with refreshing flavor and contain only 20-45 calories per bar.

“Expanding into frozen novelties allows consumers to experience and enjoy the distinct and delicious flavors of SoBe in a brand new way,” says Joanne Loria, executive vice president, The Joester Loria Group. “Philly Swirl is a leader in the category and will be a fantastic partner.”  The Joester Loria Group is the exclusive licensing agent for PepsiCo North America.

Global License! recently shared SoBe’s freezer fresh news here: http://www.licensemag.com/license-global/jlg-sends-sobe-freezer-aisle

New Insights About Consumer and Brand Relationships

Private Label Store Brands recently reported the results of a Nielsen study on consumer and brand relationships. The study concluded that most consumers prefer new products under familiar brand names over new brands. The article points out that United States shoppers are drawn to their go-to established brands after developing relationships and trust over the years. While brand familiarity is a key trigger in purchases, this article shares that consumers can be open to new brands as long as there is a strong value proposition.

As a premier licensing agency, The Joester Loria Group works to develop brand extensions for established brands that leverage the trust and affinity consumers have for those brands. When licensing is used effectively, brand owners are able to extend their retail footprint, further engage consumers and monetize the brand equity through new product extensions.

Read the full Private Label Store Brands story here: http://www.plstorebrands.com/top-storymost_consumers_prefer_new_products_under_familiar_brands_over_new_brands-4012.html

Pepsi Gets In On The Harlem Shake Craze

Pepsi, named by U.S. News as one of America’s Most Connected Companies for its social media strategy, as reported this past May, understands that digital and social media marketing are important tools for building relationships and engaging with their customers.   Their digital content remains consistent and references pop culture phenomenons, most recently the YouTube Harlem Shake trend.

Recently short viral videos featuring the 2012 song “Harlem Shake” by electronic musician Baauer have become increasingly popular.  Typically the videos begin with one person, who is usually helmeted or masked, dancing to the song alone, surrounded by other people oblivious to the dancing individual. Then the videos usually cut to the entire crowd doing a haphazard dance for the rest of the video.  As of February 15, 2013 approximately 40,000 Harlem Shake videos had been uploaded to YouTube, totaling about 175 million views.

In order to capitalize on this current pop culture trend and remain relevant to its audience, our client Pepsi created its own Harlem Shake video. Watch Pepsi cans do their version of the Harlem Shake here:

Pepsi’s effective social media campaigns drive buzz for the Pepsi brand and Pepsi licensed products.  Pepsi provides a great example of how brands stay relevant and engage with their consumers.

Top Licensing News From The 2013 International Home + Housewares Show

New Licensing Deal for Kellogg’s Rice Krispies Treats

The Joester Loria Group brokered a new licensing deal on behalf of our client Kellogg’s for a new line of  Rice Krispies® Treats™ Shaperz™ with Evriholder Products. Inspired by the popular family tradition of Rice Krispies® treat making, now consumers can make 3D shapes out of their favorite Rice Krispies® treats.

The Kellogg’s® Rice Krispies® Treats™ Shaperz™ join Evriholder’s line of popular Kellogg’s® licensed products such as the Pop-Tarts™ container and the Special K Tote-A-Bowls™.

Kellogg’s® Rice Krispies® Treats™ Shaperz™ are the perfect way to add more fun and creativity to the Rice Krispies® treat making experience for any occasion. The new line includes three themes: Everyday, Holiday and Easter. The Everyday line includes a Monster Truck and Cupcake, offering something for both boys and girls; the Holiday-themed molds are available in a Christmas Tree and Snowman shape; and the Easter theme includes two fun miniature shapes – an Easter Bunny and an Easter egg.

The Everyday and Holiday lines will retail for $2.99 for a one pack and $4.99 for a two pack; while the Easter line will retail for $2.99 for a two pack and $4.99 for a four pack.

Every Kellogg’s® Rice Krispies® Treats™ Shaperz™ includes the Rice Krispies® Treats™ recipe on the back of the package. In addition, all of the Shaperz™ are BPA free and top rack dishwasher safe.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Featured in Pizza Hut’s BOOK IT! Literacy Program

Mountain Dew Kickstarts Breakfast

Image via MountainDew.com

Our client Mountain Dew recently expanded their brand with a new line of breakfast beverages called Kickstart. The new drinks are a blend of Mountain Dew and fruit juice that come in two flavors: Orange Citrus and Fruit Punch. Kickstart has 92 milligrams of caffeine per 16 ounce can, which is far less caffeine than most energy drinks or coffee. The drinks are also infused with Vitamins B and C. Mountain Dew wanted to capitalize on an opportunity to give consumers an alternative to more traditional morning drinks like coffee, tea and juice. Kickstart hit shelves on February 25th.

New Apparel Collection for The World of Eric Carle