Licensing International welcomes seven new members to its Board of Directors

A raft of seven industry executives has been welcomed to the Licensing International Board of Directors, bringing with them diverse experiences that ‘will help foster the growth and expansion’ of the global licensing industry.

Mad Engine Apparel’s Dean Allen, ViacomCBS Consumer Products’ Veronica Hart, and The Brand Liaison’s Steven Heller join Spirit Halloween and Spencer Gifts’ Holly Rawlinson, Isaac Morris’ Milin Shah, OneTeam Partners’ Malaika Underwood, and WildBrain CPLG’s Maarten Weck to take up their positions on the Board of Directors from July 1st this year.

“I’m pleased to welcome the seven new members of our Board, whose invaluable and diverse experiences will help Licensing International foster the growth and expansion of brand licensing around the world,” said Licensing International president, Maura Regan.

“I’d also like to thank the outgoing members of our Board for their time and dedication – Liza Abrams, Naz Amarchi-Cuevas, Sam Ferguson, Bill Patterson, and Jason Sutton.”

Mad Engine Apparel’s Allen is an industry veteran with more than 20 years in the apparel industry. Having been the company’s chief merchandising officer since 2018, Dean served as executive vice president for the company from 2014 to 2018 overseeing and leading the sales, licensing, production and product development teams. 

Meanwhile, ViacomCBS Consumer Products’ EVP global franchise planning, Veronica Hart leads CP strategic planning, brand positioning and trade marketing executions across key markets for ViacomCBS Consumer Products. Veronica came from CBS, where she built the franchise planning team for Star Trek while running the company’s licensing and consumer products division. Previously, Hart handled licensing at a variety of entertainment companies such as HIT Entertainment, Sesame Workshop, and The Jim Henson Company.

Founder of The Brand Liaison, Steven Heller is a trademark and licensing attorney. Throughout his 30-year career, Heller has been active in all aspects of licensing from launching new brands to representing both brand owners and manufacturers in licensing deals with some of the world’s largest brands. Heller is nicknamed “The Professor,” as he is a renowned public speaker and professor of business and law.

Rawlinson – GM business development, Spirit Halloween & Spencer Gifts, has held executive licensing positions at DreamWorks, Paramount Studios, Mattel, and Pokémon. Winner of “Wonder Woman” and “Licensing Executive of the Year” awards from the Women in Toys association, Rawlinson, in her previous leadership position, oversaw the launch of FanShop, the ecommerce site of NBC-Universal’s movie ticketing division, Fandango.

Milin Shah currently serves as senior vice president and general counsel for Isaac Morris and Culture Fly leading sales, licensing, and new business. Prior to IML and CultureFly, he worked for Earthbound Brands and Bradford License India. In 2015, Milin was awarded by Licensing International as a Rising Star. Milin graduated from Seton Hall Law School with a concentration in IP and Entertainment, and is currently admitted to both New York and New Jersey Bar Associations.

Malaika Underwood – SVP Licensing, OneTeam Partners was recently named one of Sports Business Journal’s 40 Under 40. Underwood is Senior Vice President of Licensing at OneTeam Partners where she is tasked with providing oversight for the company’s growing licensing business and positioning the company to deliver value to college athletes as the NCAA landscape changes. Prior to joining OneTeam Partners, Malaika worked for The Brandr Group (TBG), IMG Licensing, and the Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC).

Finally, Maarten Weck, EVP and managing director, WildBrain CPLG brings more than 20 years of licensing industry experience to his role overseeing global operations for WildBrain CPLG. Formerly WildBrain CPLG’s managing director for Northern Europe, the UK, Nordic, Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and Benelux territories, Weck has been with the agency for over 13 years.