Licensed Merchandise Sales Worldwide Down 10.8% in '09; Properties From Chanel to Coca-Cola, Bakugan to Nate Berkus Span the Globe in Search of New Profit Opportunities

NEW YORK, June 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Retail sales of licensed merchandise worldwide totaled $149.77 billion in 2009, down 10.8% from 2008, according to THE LICENSING LETTER'S "International Licensing: A Status Report."

The sixth edition of the "Status Report" will be released June 8th in conjunction with the Licensing International Expo in Las Vegas, NV. The report covers retail sales of licensed merchandise in 40 countries and includes profiles of media and retail infrastructures for each market. A table of contents, including a list of 140 exhibits, is at www.epmcom.com/intl.

The U.S. is the largest single market for licensed merchandise worldwide, valued at $83.15 billion in 2009 – or 56% of global sales of licensed merchandise. Sales in the U.S. declined 11.6% between 2008 and 2009. Western Europe is the second largest territory at 22%, followed by Asia at 12%.

Globally, fashion labels from Chanel to Cherokee dominate the licensing stage, accounting for 23% of retail sales of licensed merchandise. Trademark/brand licensing, which includes food (Coca-Cola, Marie Callendar's), automotive (Ford, Harley-Davidson), and other sectors, is second at 21%, and entertainment/character (Disney Nickelodeon) is third at 18%.

"The focus right now for future growth in licensing is two fold: First, the BRIC and other developing countries, and second, a two-year strategy for recovery in mature licensing markets," says Ira Mayer, publisher of THE LICENSING LETTER and the "Status Report."

"Brazil is one of the few recently healthy economies," adds Mayer, "with malls sprouting up even in the Amazon. In fact, Brazil bolstered the entire Latin American market last year, where the aggregate decline in retail sales of licensed merchandise was only 4.7%.

"Russia holds lots of promise but is very difficult to navigate. India and China are both expanding, albeit much more slowly than many in licensing had hoped."

THE LICENSING LETTER is a trade publication from EPM Communications, Inc. which tracks trends, data and deal-makers in the business of licensing intellectual property for sale on consumer products including apparel, toys, home furnishings, gifts/novelties and other goods.

SOURCE EPM Communications, Inc.