What Is Licensing? Insights from 25 Years in the Industry

Many people think of licensing as something as simple as slapping one brand’s logo on another brand or manufacturer’s product. While that’s not uncommon, it only scratches the surface of what’s possible through licensing.

So, what is licensing? Licensing is a strategic partnership in which a business (the licensor) grants another business (the licensee) the rights to use its intellectual property, such as its brand name, logo, signature character or trademark, across a variety of products, categories and experiences.

For brand owners, licensing enables their brand to be applied in new ways: to different products, in new stores, and as part of joint promotions–often opening it to exposure in new industries and among new audiences. For the licensees, licensing is an opportunity to leverage a well-known brand’s recognition to kick-start demand for a new product or offering. When both sides are aligned, licensing creates value for everyone involved.

From the outside, licensing can look like a company simply applying a brand’s intellectual property to its own goods, but from a business perspective, licensing is a tool that unlocks significant business growth and often, entirely new revenue streams.

Through our work, we’ve seen how licensing can breathe new life into brands that have faded from the spotlight. By partnering with trend-forward brands or popular personalities, these once-dormant names can quickly regain relevance. We’ve helped brands expand far beyond their original offerings—breaking into new retail categories, reaching fresh audiences and unlocking additional revenue streams—all without the overhead of managing manufacturing or distribution.

Put simply, licensing offers brands a way to capitalize on the brand equity they’ve already spent many years–and a lot of money–establishing, to introduce net-new opportunities for growth. Now, through licensing, there’s lower upfront risk and investment.

It’s important to note, however, that licensing is an umbrella term that covers a wide range of protected assets, beyond those described above. It also applies to patents for inventions and copyrights for creative works like books, music or software. That’s because licensing, by definition, is the legal framework that enables the sharing of any intellectual property between businesses.

Brand licensing is a specialized form of licensing that’s specific to leveraging a brand’s identity. We’ll talk about that in more detail next.

The iconic logos and brand names we know, and trust, hold immense value, and can serve as gateways to the discovery of new products and unique customer experiences. At the heart of many of these discoveries is brand licensing.

So, what is brand licensing? Instead of licensing an invention, brand licensing refers specifically to deals and collaborations involving a brand’s identity. Brand licensing revolves around creative partnerships whereby one business is permitted to use another’s name, logo or design elements on its own products and services. A streaming platform, for instance, might license characters from one of its original hit TV series to a toy manufacturer to create limited-edition products that fans can interact with. This is a great way for the streaming platform to leverage its existing brand equity to create a new product that it’s not able to manufacture on its own–without significantly investing in production or infrastructure.

Brand licensing has the unique power to transform a business from a single product or category into an entire lifestyle. A good brand licensing strategy can exponentially expand a brand’s commercial potential and multiply its consumer touchpoints to both existing and new audiences.

The scale of brand licensing’s impact today is staggering, with $369.6 billion in licensed merchandise sold in 2024 alone.

We define brand licensing as a way for companies to extend their presence. A brand that already has a robust customer base can venture into diverse sectors like apparel, beauty, home goods, food and beyond, tapping into different audiences and creating constant newness that keeps consumers engaged and loyal.

Through our comprehensive brand licensing program, we have guided household names like Ford, Girl Scouts and Hallmark through the process of turning their brand equity into millions in incremental retail revenue and billions of digital impressions.

At Earthbound, we approach brand licensing as a long-term growth and marketing strategy. Our full-service brand licensing program is built to guide partners through every stage of the journey, from upfront strategy to on-the-ground execution.

We start by uncovering opportunities where the brand has room to expand. This includes category gaps, unmet consumer needs and potential areas for improvement where brand equity can drive growth.

Then, we build a customized brand licensing strategy that includes licensee prospecting, deal execution, relationship management, and product approvals. We also provide full financial oversight, ranging from royalty tracking to forecasting and compliance.

Between negotiating terms, drafting contracts, protecting intellectual property and enforcing licensing rights, our legal expertise ensures that every partnership is built on a strong foundation. Each licensing contract we oversee is crafted to protect brand integrity, drive partner success, and ultimately, amplify consumer engagement.

➡️ Don’t know where to start? Talk to our licensing experts.

Licensing often sparks unexpected collaborations that bring fresh energy and unique value to both brands and consumers. These creative partnerships keep brands relevant, spark online conversations and open doors to new markets.

Below are five real world brand licensing examples that illustrate how brand collaborations can drive innovation and engagement across diverse industries.

These examples demonstrate how licensing can be an engine for growth— brands can stay top of mind and continuously evolve with their audiences without falling behind.

We know that taking a brand into new categories can be a high-impact opportunity, but it takes specialized expertise, established infrastructure and deep industry relationships to see real results. That’s why leading businesses choose to work with agencies that have a proven track record of managing the complexities that come with brand licensing.

Here’s how a full-service licensing partner typically supports the process:

When consumer tastes shift overnight and cultural moments ignite viral movements, standing still is falling behind.

For brands ready to grow smarter (not just bigger), licensing offers a tried-and-true formula: align with the right partners, tap into emerging markets and keep the brand fresh across every consumer touchpoint. It’s a low-risk power move for explosive growth. Licensing is an adaptable value creation tool that keeps brands visible in a world where relevancy can come and go at a moment’s notice.

Here’s how brand licensing can drive long-term value: