Brand Licensing Europe unveils first brands confirmed to take part in this year’s fashion theme
Events
Brand Licensing Europe (BLE), the leading European event for licensing and brand extension, has unveiled the timetable for its first ever live fashion catwalk, with nine inspiring 15-minute shows over the event’s three days. BLE takes place 20-22 September at ExCeL London and visitors can register for free online.
To date, attending companies include Primark, Stradivarius, FASHION UK, George @ Asda, Sainsburys Tu, Next, John Lewis, ASOS, GEMO, and thousands of other leading retailers and manufacturers.
“Attendees really can expect the unexpected as brands take to the runway to showcase exciting new collabs and fashion ranges, either through immersive catwalk takeovers from world renowned brands – like Mattel and SEGA – or as part of an overall themes, which include Brands & Lifestyle Collabs, Kids, F&B, Entertainment Collabs, Culture and Unity, and Sustainability,” said Anna Knight, SVP of Licensing, Informa Markets.
Several shows will feature exclusive first looks, including Mentos from global confectionery powerhouse Perfetti Van Melle, which has regular drops in fast fashion retailers. Mentos will spotlight an exciting collaboration with the internationally renowned artist Philip Colbert – the Mentos x The Lobstars collection – which will be presented for the first time.
The collection is inspired by the mint brand’s fresh vibes and the collection of unique Lobster Portrait NFT’s that were recently released by the artist on Decentraland, covering 57 parcels. The collection is aimed at young women and consists of eight bold outfits.
The full timetable for the catwalks confirmed so far includes:
Tuesday 20 September
10am CATWALK: Brands & Lifestyle Collabs
12.30pm CATWALK: Branded Catwalk
2pm CATWALK: Kids, featuring NBC Universal, Sony Interactive and IMC Toys (Cry Babies)
4pm CATWALK: Mattel
Wednesday 21 September
10am CATWALK: F&B, featuring Perfetti Van Melle (Mentos x The Lobstars) and Pink Key Licensing
12.30pm CATWALK: SEGA
2pm CATWALK: Entertainment Collabs, featuring NBC Universal, Smurfs & Wildbrain CPLG (Teletubbies x Ellesse x GoGuy)
Thursday 22 September
10am CATWALK: Culture and Unity
12.30pm CATWALK: Sustainability
SEGA Director of Licensing Jason Rice said: “The team here at SEGA are looking forward tremendously to the catwalk event at this year’s BLE. As a Platinum sponsor we will be showcasing the best of our fashion and lifestyle products, underlining the amazing design and innovation to have come from collaborating with some of the industry’s leading designers, retailers and licensees worldwide.”
“With a focus on Sonic the Hedgehog we are looking to wow the audience with a great show and to use the event as a platform to shout about the world of ‘Sonic Fashion’. We have had great success in this category across mass, mid-tier and high-end & luxury retail. Sonic’s undisputed status as a leading global entertainment brand as well as a long-standing gaming icon gives a real edge to the collections we have helped create and we’re excited to show this to the world. We’ll be showcasing a cross section of some of the best fashion programmes developed over recent times.”
Phillipe Glorieux, Head of Marketing and Communications, IMPS The Smurfs: “We have Smurfy news for you! You have certainly not yet seen a fashion show with very beautiful Smurfing collections, including the most emblematic brands on the market – and that’s because it’s a world premiere exclusively on the BLE 2022 catwalk. So… see you on September 20th to admire these beautiful collections. You’re going to love it, we’re sure of it. Happy Smurfy summer to all of you!”
The catwalk is brought to BLE this year as part of the event’s Fashion theme. In addition to the catwalk shows, attendees can also enjoy an Opening Keynote with Mattel President and COO on ‘Barbie x Fashion’ on Tuesday 20 September at 1pm in the License Global Theatre. Fashion displays will also be available throughout the event to showcase additional partnerships and collaborations, and the show entrances will each be taken over by Mattel, Paramount, SEGA, CAA-GBG and Products of Change to immerse them as soon as they arrive at the event.
