All award categories for this year’s Licensing Awards are now open for entry via the website www.thelicensingawards.co.uk, with returning categories including those for licensed products and properties, retailers, marketing, and honorary achievement.
This year will also see accolades awarded out for sustainable licensed products, international retailers, and licensed live events.
In a change from previous years, all entries for the licensed product categories will be online only, rather than physical products needing to be submitted.
Ian Hyder, joint managing director, Max Publishing – the team behind the awards, explained: “Having consulted with the industry, in light of the uncertainty and disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we wanted a failsafe method for people to be able to enter their licensed products. With the majority of offices and warehouses currently closed and with many people working from home, submitting imagery and accompanying information online seems an ideal solution.”
Judging for licensed product categories will also be undertaken online, in line with social distancing guidelines, by an extensive judging panel, made up of retailers from across the board.
The 2020 awards cover licensed product launches, licensing activity and licensed retailing execution in the 12 months up to the end of May 2020. Entries will be open until 29 May, 2020, and are, as always, free to enter, via a quick and easy process.
The three new categories are The Sustainability Product Award, The Best Licensed Live Event Award, and The Best International Retailer of Licensed Product Award.
Jakki Brown, joint managing director, Max Publishing, added: “It has always been our core belief that to maintain their respected status, The Licensing Awards categories would need to evolve in order to reflect the developments with the industry. The addition of a dedicated Licensed Sustainability Product Award is a perfect example of this.
“The changing UK retail landscape has seen the proliferation of international retailing brands who are engaging in licensing also needed to be recognised, hence the new Best Overseas Retailer of Licensed Products category.”
The new Best Licensed Live Event Award will be open to all paid for theatrical shows and events, fairground rides, or events within paid for experiences.
“While the current situation precludes these events from taking place right now, as the period for entry goes back to the start of last June, all the great licensed live events activity over last summer, right up to the middle of March, can be entered,” added Hyder.
The Licensing Awards 2020’s headline sponsor is Brand Licensing Europe, while Licensing International is also an official supporter.
The finalists of The Licensing Awards will be announced in July, and the winners will be unveiled on Wednesday 9 September in The Great Room at The Grosvenor House Hotel, set to welcome 1,400 licensors, retailers and licensees.
