Tag Archives: food and beverage

Cosmopolitan uncorks its own wine collection with Guarachi Wine Partners

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Hearst Magazines has moved in on the wine-making market with the launch of a new brand Uncorked by Cosmopolitan. Via a deal brokered by IMG, the magazine publisher has partnered with Guarachi Wine Partners to bring a curated selection of Cosmopolitan branded wines to market.

Leveraging Guarachi’s more than 35 years of success pioneering wine brands in the US as an importer, marketer and supplier of fine wines, the Uncorked by Cosmopolitan collection has been curated by Cosmo’s editorial team and features labels designed by the world’s biggest young women’s media brand.

“This is the most natural collaboration we could imagine – Cosmo readers have had 36 million glasses of wine in the last seven days,” said Jessica Pels, editor in chief, Cosmopolitan. “Young women represent a massive wine consumer base, and yet they’re under-served by the current market, which doesn’t target young women at all.”

Uncorked by Cosmopolitan offers four popular varietals: Rosé, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon, all sourced from California appellations including Napa, Sonoma and Central Coast with a suggested retail price of $14.99. Future line extensions are already being developed with Pinot Grigio as the next varietal launch.

Guarachi Wine Partners founder and CEO, Alex Guarachi, said: “I’ve always found success in delivering high quality wines that customers will enjoy at prices that over-deliver. As the entire wine industry focuses on how to reach young female wine drinkers, I’m thrilled to be partnered with the world’s leading young women’s lifestyle brand.

“Who better to help design and curate what young women want than Cosmopolitan – a brand that has done this successfully for more than a century?”

Uncorked by Cosmopolitan was created with the magazine’s audience in mind. Its own research suggests that almost nine out of ten Cosmo readers celebrate special occasions at home with friends and family, and three out of four are buying gifts as a way of expressing gratitude. The company believes that these statistics highlight greater opportunities for wine purchases and general interest in wine among this audience.

Emoji renews its collectable toy promotion with Greek F&B specialist Chipita

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The Emoji Company has renewed its partnership with the Greek food and beverage specialist, Chipita SA for a successful promotion that delivers a collectable Emoji toy with each pack of its Fineti dips and sticks products.

The renewal of the partnership was brokered by WildBrain CPLG, the Emoji company’s international licensing representative.

Fineti is a popular European chocolate confectionery brand that, established in 1990, has held a strong presence in the market for 30 years. The chocolate brand is currently marketed in more than 20 countries including Greece, Romania, and the Balkans.

The partnership with Fineti Dips and Fineti Sticks sees the introduction of collectable Emoji premiums with each pack, including erasers, sharpeners, sticky notes, and key chains featuring more than 10 designs.

“We are pleased to work with a company like Fineti and to be part of children’s everyday lunch, who will be able to enjoy the delicious taste of this product and will also have the opportunity to collect a bunch of emoji brand premiums for this back to school season,” said Marco Hüsges, CEO and founder, The Emoji Company.

Kraft Heinz moves into the family gaming space with Big G Creative partnership

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Kraft Heinz has found another means of getting itself all over your dining table thanks to a new partnership with the US games publisher, Big G Creative, that delivers the company’s globally renowned food brands to the board gaming sector.

Under the new deal, Big G Creative has launched the new Kraft Heinz Variety Game Pack – a three-in-one set of games inspired by Heinz food brands Heinz Ketchup, Jell-O Gelatin, and Kraft Macaroni Cheese.

Big G Creative’s new Kraft Heinz Variety Game Pack includes three family-friendly games that bring beloved pantry essentials to life: the Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Game has players roll the dice to play matching noodle cards and push the Cheesasaurus Rex piece up the Noodle Meter, the Jell-O Jiggler Slap Game is a quick thinking, hand-slapping game, and the Heinz Ketchup Dice Game has players rolling dice and collect as much ketchup as possible to score 57 points.

“For most families, more time at home means getting extra creative with day-to-day routines and seeking out fun experiences in between,” said Steven Anne, creative director at Big G Creative. “Kraft Heinz has always brought a playfulness to the dinner table, and now we’re thrilled to bring that same spirit to family game night.”

The fun with food starts from the moment families open the pack, as each game is packaged like the original food favorite. For example, the Heinz Ketchup Dice Game comes in a bottle just like the classic condiment, which also acts as a dice-rolling cup.

All three games are designed with inclusive play in mind. The games are easy to learn, fun to play, and only take about 20 minutes. Plus, the games accommodate families of all sizes, allowing two or more players aged eight years and older to go head to head.

Big G Creative’s Kraft Heinz Variety Game Pack is now available exclusively at Target stores.

Aardman teams with Yeo Valley Organic to bring Timmy Time to the Little Yeos kids’ range

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The multi award-winning independent animation studio, Aardman, has teamed up with the British organic brand, Yeo Valley Organic to bring its recently re-launched pre-school favourite, Timmy Time to the company’s kids’ range Little Yeos.

The partnership marks the fourth time that Aardman has teamed with the Little Yeos brand. The new promotion will feature Timmy – the smallest lamb in the Shaun the Sheep flock and the star of his own spin off series, Timmy Time, which returned to CBeebies in the UK last year.

The partnership on Little Yeos Fruity Favourites four-pack will support children’s education in learning more about the environment, healthy lifestyle and taking care of the planet supporting Yeo Valley Organic’s latest campaign to encourage its consumers to Put Nature First.

The campaign, which is set to run for two-years, will allow Yeo Valley to feature Timmy Time on its channels sharing content about the environment and healthy lifestyles.

Tor Crockatt, Little Yeos brand manager, said: “We’re thrilled to be working with Aardman again and continuing our partnership on the Little Yeos range. Little Yeos is perfect for pre-school children and just like Timmy, our core consumers are also heading off to nursery school.

“Timmy’s cozy little Nursery in an old farm building nestled in the rolling hills, is like the real Yeo Valley family dairy farm in Somerset. As organic dairy farmers we’re keen to help show children the importance of the environment and ways they can help to Put Nature First.

“Just as Timmy and his animal friends learn together, we’ll be bringing a little bit of that to our Little Yeos consumers too.”

Laura Burr, senior brand manager from Aardman, added: “We are so pleased to be partnering with Yeo Valley Organic again. Timmy loves learning about the world and we are delighted that this collaboration goes beyond a straightforward on-pack promotion, providing Timmy and his friends with a platform to help Yeo Valley Organic inspire young children to Put Nature First.”

Little Yeos Fruity Favourites are billed as 100 per cent organic, made with real fruit purees and no artificial flavours and available in most supermarkets. The Timmy Time partnership is now appearing on packs in store.

Chefclub to serve up first children’s TV series in France as lockdown fuels new cooking craze

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The popular cooking brand, Chefclub, has signed an exclusive agreement with the French pay-TV channel, TeleToon+ for the first children’s television series Chefclub Kids, We Have Fun in the Kitchen. The new series will begin broadcasting this month, making its debut on October 12th, during the Week of Taste.

The full series will be available on the SVOD platform myCANAL.

Chefclub is recognised as a world leading producer of culinary videos on social networks, with more than a billion views per month worldwide, including more than 200 million in France. It aims to engage viewers with fun and easy recipes that has already inspired a community of more than 90 million followers across the globe, including 8.6 million in France.

Chefclub Kids, We Have Fun in the Kitchen, aims to serve up recipes in a series that offers a ‘cooking spectacle’ to motivate children to take their turn in the kitchen. Through it, children discover a variety of healthy recipes that have been created especially for them.

Chefclub has previously outlined its mission to ‘transform the kitchen into a game.’ Guided by the Chefclub brigade, children will be immersed into a universe designed to help them discover healthy eating habits and cooking autonomously.

These 21 5-minute episodes are also available for international distribution, giving Chefclub programs a new and even more extensive network of broadcasting.

Marie-Laure Marchand, SVP, global consumer products and business development at Chefclub, said: “We are very pleased to collaborate with the Canal+ group and its children’s channel TéléToon+ in France. Following the craze for cooking during lockdown, Chefclub’s cooking videos have known an unprecedented success, particularly the children’s vertical, Chefclub Kids. It seemed natural to us to offer a format adapted for television that will allow us to promote our brand on all media.”

Interview: Ready Steady Cook whips up fresh new licensing take for the modern audience

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Of the many changes necessitated by the arrival of the pandemic, a common experience that we have all shared over the course of the past nine months of lockdown, is that – in some capacity or another – it has made home cooks of us all. With more time spent in the home, it was inevitable that even more time would be spent in the kitchen.

Toss this into the same salad bowl as the matter that coronavirus has forced many of us to think more carefully about the money we are spending, and underlined the importance and value of the sustainability message through a heightened consumer awareness of environmental issues, and it would appear that the relaunch of Banijay’s hit afternoon TV series, Ready Steady Cook couldn’t have been more timely.

Over the course of the decade that has passed since Ready Steady Cook was last on air, things – the world – has certainly changed. Consumer sensibilities have shifted, sustainability is a topic increasingly on the minds of shoppers, and our relationship with food and its value has evolved somewhat, and as it finds new life on the BBC once again, it is all of these points that the popular cooking challenge television show that first surfaced some 25 years ago, is looking to encapsulate.

Following the announcement this week that Banijay isn’t just re-heating, but firing up a whole new audience passion around the Ready Steady Cook IP, Licensing.biz catches up with Alice Bernardi, director of international brand licensing at Banijay Brands, to discover how licensing will be promoting the show’s new values for an audience of reinvigorated home cooks.

Can you tell us why now is an exciting time to be relaunching the licensing plans around Ready Steady Cook?  

It’s an incredibly exciting and appropriate time to re-launch the licensing programme around Ready Steady Cook because the world has changed a lot since the show was last on air in the UK – over 10 years ago – and times have certainly changed. Our attitude to food, it’s provenance, preserving the climate and our increased awareness of eating a balanced diet have all contributed to a different culinary environment. More than ever sustainability and ethically produced food are part of our day to day thinking as we make purchase decisions around what to cook with.   

There are a number of initiatives that the show is adopting to reflect this – for example, plastic bags have been replaced with re-usable jute bags, single plastic use is avoided with glass being used as much as possible, recycling is so important as part of the show with colour coded waste bins both on set and backstage, local suppliers are used as much as possible and given the show is produced in Scotland this gives a fantastic range of great fresh and seasonal produce and at the end of the day, unused fruit and vegetables and non-perishable goods are delivered to a local food bank.  

So the production team works incredibly hard to deliver this key element of the show which as we all know could not be more relevant nor important in 2020.  An additional element which remains so relevant is cooking on a budget and making sure that we don’t throw away our surplus food but find a way to re-use it. 

Households everywhere are challenged with weekly budgets and finding a way to cook wholesome and tasty food cost effectively at the same time as being aware of the impact food has on the environment is a compelling proposition. In the most recent series, we are using the same values as 15 years ago with contestants who had a shopping budget of just £3.50 up to £10 which adds an additional challenge given inflation, but wanted it feel inclusive, which is what we want to reflect in the licensing programme, there will be something for everyone.  

What is the strength of Ready Steady Cook here in the UK? How has it maintained its popularity over the years?

You can’t underestimate the power of a legacy show with such high awareness. Ready Steady Cook aired for 16 years on the BBC and is still much loved and recognised – the green peppers and red tomatoes are such strong icons which are instantly recalled by so many of us today. 

Many of today’s audience still remember coming home from school and watching the show when they were young and now can enjoy it as families with their kids. Originally it was broadcast in the same slot at 4.30pm, stripped daily on BBC 1 and was also on iPlayer. The show’s ratings were very strong, delivering a highly desirable younger audience of 16 to 34 year olds alongside adults aged 35 to 54. The show regularly performed above the slot average and has a consolidated audience of 2.35m viewers beating the BBC 1 slot average by 34 per cent.   

Internationally, the show has travelled to over 25 markets including the US, Australia, Brazil, France, Germany the Middle East and the Nordics. The simple format, combining a cooking challenge on a budget remains the same but with added timed food challenges and more curved balls from unpredictable audience participation which enhance the viewing experience. 

Having Rylan Clark Neal (X-Factor, Celebrity Big Brother) at the helm brings a new energy, charisma and passion to the show, appealing to both younger and older audiences, and is a hugely popular presenter here in the UK so is a big draw for audiences. And because he’s not a chef, I’m sure he makes those who are less talented in the kitchen feel a lot more included.

Rylan is the ideal foil to the five new chefs who have the task of completing the challenges and is able to hold the show together in a humorous and quick-witted way, keeping the pace and energy levels high. We have also made sure to reflect the current diverse range of foods we all now love, and our chefs feature recipes from all over the world so there’s something for everyone to relate to. 

Basically, the original and central message of brand is still as relevant as ever – cooking on a budget, in very little time – but with the important element of sustainability front and centre, which ultimately resonates with the viewers and is why it continues being so popular for all ages.

Lockdown seems to have encouraged more home cooks, and more home cooking than ever before. How will you be tapping into this new found audience through licensing? What are the key audiences you are looking to tap into here?

Exactly, lockdown made home cooks out of many of us! The world has never cooked at home more through pure necessity and with a focus back on the kitchen, cooking, whether you are enjoying an evening alone, with friends or family, it has become an even more important part of our daily lives as we connect through food.  But we have less money than before, so we need to cook carefully and hopefully responsibly. 

We still want to experiment with dishes and try new things, so this show encourages us to do this whilst still living within our means. So hopefully Ready Steady Cook offers everyone something they can take away and apply in their own lives. Our demographic is broad as cooking speaks to everyone so our licensing programme will offer cost effective products which are true to the ethos of the show and can be used by everyone and anyone with no barrier to entry.

What licensing deals will you be coming out of the starting blocks with? How will this set you up for a wider programme to roll out?  

Our initial licensing programme will focus on the core categories of publishing, foodstuffs and kitchenware. We see storage containers, measuring and recycling tools as key product lines. We’re also keen to develop an experiential offering so people can enjoy the brand in person and have fun with it – hopefully this space will open up more next year.   

Partnerships with organisations in the sustainability area are also a key area of focus to ensure the brand DNA extends off screen into real life practises. Great value for money resonates with today’s consumers and this will be factored into our licensing programme. We also know that consumers care more and more about what they eat and where in comes from both for health reasons and for environmental reasons. Therefore, we plan to offer consumers a range of products that will incorporate all of these elements and make Ready Steady Cook the standout brand in relation to sustainability.

What sort of retail partnerships will you be targeted with the licensing programme?

As we all know the retail landscape is in flux with the impact of lockdown. Consumer’s behaviour patterns have changed with online and value more dominant than ever. We will respond to this and partner with the best and most appropriate retailers to deliver the best consumer offering.  We are open to multi territory partnerships delivering scale and working with organisations to amplify the sustainability message.

Barratt and Icefresh retro ice cream launch brings joy to a locked down nation

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A licensing partnership between confectionery brand Barratt and Icefresh has surpassed sales expectations during lockdown, thanks to the launch of an ice cream range targeted at retro sweet fans.

The range of four ice lollies and an ice cream tub was made available exclusively at Iceland this summer, with ice cream versions of childhood favourites Fruit Salad, Dip Dab, Flump, Black Jack and Wham.

The partnership was brokered by brand licensing specialist, The Point.1888, which is now seeking new partners for the Barratt brand following the increased awareness that has been generated through the collaboration.

The fun-filled range entered all of Iceland’s more than 1000 stores nationwide from April 20th, a month into the UK’s lockdown experience. Once on sale the range repeatedly sold out, with more than 1.3m units sold in the first 12 weeks, despite the strict social distancing measures and without a significant launch investment.

Valeo Foods, owner of the Barratt brand, has stated its belief that the success was linked to ‘a strong national affection for a familiar British brand we have all grown up with’ and the fun and escapism it brings to consumers.

Russell Tanner, marketing and category director at Valeo Foods, said: “During a challenging time for the nation, the supermarket shop became the only time many people left their homes.

“The Barratt ice cream range became a sell-out success not just because of the fantastic lockdown weather, but because shoppers were seeking small and cost-effective ways to bring fun into their lives at a time when that wasn’t easy to come by.

“Although this was a brand-new product in freezers, buyers trusted the Barratt brand for a taste sensation that would help to infuse their lockdown summer with joy. As a result we’re thrilled to be emerging from a challenging trading period with an army of new and reinvigorated brand fans.”

Sarah Crimes, head of marketing at The Point.1888, added: “Against the backdrop of Covid, to reach this type of result is amazing and is a testament to the strength of the Barratt brand. As experts at bringing licensing partners together, we’re thrilled at a job well done and are now ready to take advantage of the increased interest in Barratt from retailers to explore more collaborations in the near future.”

Icefresh was responsible for translating Barratt’s range into the ice cream experience.

Lucy Wright, brand manager, said: “As we developed this new range we knew that sweet-lovers would be unforgiving of anything that didn’t truly recreate that joyful feeling of enjoying a sweetie in the playground. We kept coming back to the original sweets and refining the recipe until we were confident that we had a product that was completely true to the Barratt brand – for example, the Dip Dab ice lolly even comes with sherbet for dipping.

“Thanks to the strength of the Barratt fan base and the quality of the ice creams, this has been our highest performing licensed ice cream launch to date, with more than 1.3 million boxes of ice cream sold in the first 12 weeks.”

An earned media campaign whetted the public’s appetite for the frozen treats. After samples were sent to journalists up and down the country, national coverage rolled in with more than 40 mentions secured across titles including The Sun, Daily Express, Metro and You magazine.

Meanwhile a colourful and creative social launch delivered exceptional ROI, with the product seen by 1.3m people and a quarter of a million video views tracked.

Iceland, it turns out, was equally as thrilled with the range performance. Sally Bentley, senior buyer, commented: “We always knew that Barratt and Iceland would be a great fit and as expected, the ice creams flew out of our freezers as fast as they came in. Our store staff were big fans of the range, and were outstanding advocates when it came to promoting the product in store.”

Discussions are ongoing to extend the range in 2021, with more exciting flavours and formats added to maintain consumer interest.

Banijay launches new consumer products programme for Ready Steady Cook

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Banijay has launched a new consumer products programme for its iconic cooking brand, Ready Steady Cook, marking the return of the show and its licensing efforts with a modern style guide and suite of creative assets.

With its new look in tow, the Ready Steady Cook brand is looking to develop products across a range of categories, including food storage, kitchen appliances, cookware, textiles, foodstuffs, and digital products for the much loved heritage IP.

Jane Smith, group director, brand licensing of Banijay Brands, said: “Worldwide consumers and audiences love Ready Steady Cook and we’ve seen a real rise in fans from younger demographics. This classic heritage brand is both nostalgic and fresh in bringing together people, generating culinary ideas, and providing great entertainment, creating an exciting opportunity for new licensees and partners. The quality and popularity of the Ready Steady Cook brand means the products are sure to fly off the shelves.”

The popularity of home cooking reached new heights during the world’s period of lockdown, and with the pandemic threatening further restriction measures to be taken once again, Banijay has spotted that the relationship between consumers and their food ‘has never been more important.’

‘It’s for this reason,’ states the firm, ‘that now is the perfect time for Ready Steady Cook to be a brand partner for licensees in the culinary space.’

Banijay continues: ‘The Ready Steady Cook brand values mirror that of kitchens around the world, with a particular focus on value for money, sustainability, managing food waste and provenance; all of which will resonate with economically-conscious and environmentally-aware consumers looking for exciting culinary products to add to their homes.’

Ready Steady Cook is an internationally recognised brand, having seen the show adapted in over 20 territories. Consumer brand awareness has also been amplified this year in the UK following the successful TV relaunch on BBC ONe from Remarkable TV.

Popular presenter Rylan Clark-Neal was at the helm as he introduced the TV classic and gave new meaning to the phrases, “green peppers” and “red tomatoes”. The show performed well for younger viewers and was above the broadcaster’s slot average by +10 per cent for Adults aged 16 to 34.

The show has once again taught a new generation about contemporary food themes; from how to cook on a budget, to eating healthily, and feeding a whole family, whilst reflecting the changes in food and British cooking over the past decade.

Banijay Brands will launch at next month’s Festival of Licensing with senior executives available for meetings at the virtual conference.

The Banijay Brands portfolio includes MasterChef, Temptation Island, Peaky Blinders, Survivor, Deal or No Deal, The Inbetweeners, Big Brother, Mister Maker, Operation Triunfo, Eat Well for Less?, Simon’s Cat, Mr Bean, Don’t!, Sunday Brunch, Tipping Point, The Biggest Loser, Ready Steady Cook, Black Mirror, Miss France, Maddie’s Do You Know?, Wipeout and Crystal Maze.

12 year old vegan cooking sensation Omari McQueen appoints Brands With Influence

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Following the recent announcement of his first cookbook and a new BBC TV show, Omari McQueen has appointed Brands With Influence to develop and widen a merchandise and licensing programme around the 12-year-old and his new vegan brand, Dipalicious. 

McQueen is already taking the world by storm and cooking up a wave of enthusiasm for his innovative take on vegan cooking. In recent weeks, the youngster launched his own range of vegan dips under the Dipalicious umbrella. BWI has now been brought on board to help the brand reach a wider audience through licensing partnerships.

Dom Wheeler of Brands With Influence, said: “Omari is an incredible young man with a real penchant for not just cooking, but communicating too. His passion for Veganism coupled with his flair and showmanship is proving a really popular formula online and is now also being extended on TV.

“We are really looking forward in taking his brand, products and ideas to a wider mass market through a really exciting new licensing programme.”

McQueen has already detailed the launch of his first cook book, to be published by Scholastic, while CBBC is preparing to broadcast a new series titled What’s Cooking, Omari?

McQueen said: “I am really excited that the team at Brand With Influence will be helping me share my love of vegan food with a wider audience. We have so many great ideas that it feels like the right time to be sharing the yummy opportunities with more people. I just want to bring people together to share great food without harming animals.”

Fruit pickings: Richard Pink talks the history and future of the Vimto brand in licensing

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With the tagline ‘Seriously Mixed Up Fruit’, Vimto already spans a wealth of foods and drinks from Vimto Fudge packaged in artwork that will take consumers on a trip through the brand’s history, to the more contemporary looking, and sounding, Vimto Candy Spray. But with a new licensing agent in Pink Key Licensing and the food and beverage licensing specialist, Richard Pink himself, the Vimto brand is about to embark on a seriously new venture entirely.

It was earlier this month that Pink lifted the lid on his company’s new partnership with the Vimto brand, appointed to manage the non-food activity for the 110 year old brand here in the UK, marking the first time in its history that Vimto’s logo, slogans, and imagery would be thrust into the licensing limelight.

Armed with a library of designs spanning more than a century of Vimto, the programme, Pink declared, will cover both the depth of the Vimto archive, as well as the design and style of the contemporary brand. Now, as Richard Pink, MD of Pink Key Licensing prepares to showcase the brand’s style guides at the upcoming Festival of Licensing, Licensing.biz takes its chance to talk with Pink about how he got himself seriously mixed up with the fruity new brand.

Hello again, Richard! It’s clearly a busy year for Pink Key Licensing this year. Can you talk to us about the latest addition to the portfolio then, what attracted you to the Vimto brand and what does it bring to the Pink Key offering?

Vimto is a brand that I’ve always felt was a good fit for us. Its combination of heritage and contemporary styling as well as the product categories it lends itself to fits brilliantly into the business model we have already developed for our other brands. At the same time it has some unique features that mean that there is little or no conflict with our existing portfolio. 

What does the Vimto brand bring to the licensing space, spanning its 110 year heritage and its contemporary appeal?

While there are a number of brands that have heritage programmes, there are very few who also continue to change and develop the way that Vimto has. This is a unique combination that gives it the broadest possible appeal to the older consumer who will be drawn to the heritage aspects that play into what they remember growing up, but also the younger generation who see it as a brand for them. In addition there is an ‘Englishness’ about the brand that is at the core of its identity. 

So why is now the right time to be bringing the Vimto brand into the consumer products space for the first time? And, what are your plans to make this an impactful launch into the market?

The launch now is because the brand feels that the time is right for them – they have a proven track record of food licensing that they have made a great success of and they can see the value in also leveraging their unique heritage to consumers who have grown up with the brand. Our plan is to identify the categories and products that are the most natural fit for Vimto and build a platform from there for the long term. 

What is the strategy for tapping into both the heritage/vintage style of the brand, as well as its more modern look? 

We are very lucky as we feel like we have two distinct audiences to go after, and while there will be some product overlap it will mean the range of categories and styles will be bigger than it would have been with, for example, just the heritage.

If we know the kind of brands that catch your eye, Vimto will be one with a rich history and story to tell… How will you be telling that story through its licensing programme?

It think that’s going to come down to the licensee execution – the archive is a story in itself, and if the licensees feel that it’s appropriate to support what they do with the story of the development of Vimto, then we have all the tools they need to allow them to do it.

What is it about Vimto that keeps it relevant to audiences today? How big a part will licensing play in maintaining that?

The modern execution of the Vimto brand is very different to its heritage – the product stands for different things today, but it always carries its history with it. Part of the reason why it’s more popular now than it ever was, is because it hasn’t stood still, its adapted to consumer tastes and styles – our programme is going to reflect and re-enforce the brand position. 

What will be the first steps taken in this new partnership for you? What product categories do you think Vimto will perform best within?

It’s important to make sure that we’ve identified the categories that we think are most relevant. Obviously things related to the core product will be key such as drinkware, but the archive is almost an art gallery so that gives us endless possibilities for development into categories where this might work. 

If I know one thing about licensing – whatever you think will happen probably won’t! I could guess that housewares and food gifting will drive this programme but all it take is a retailer to find design they like for a T-shirt and the whole game could change!

How will you guys be pushing the envelope of innovation in licensing as you develop the portfolio?

It’s funny; the words ‘heritage’ and ‘innovation’ would seem to be mutually exclusive, but we’ve seen some great ideas from licensees we’ve worked with that has given a whole new take on the brands we manage that can make a difference. I’ve learnt that the more focus there is on innovation the more longevity there is in a programme. There are products that will be obvious for this programme and driven by the design from the style guides but we are always open to new ideas on any brand.

We want to hear from any licensees who think they can do a great job with this brand – the art we have available is amazing and we can’t wait to hear what licensees could do with it.