We are thrilled to have a guest blog for you all from one of our brands Annie Phillips. This blog gives real insight into why licensing should be considered by all brands.
Here at the The Point.1888 we are incredibly lucky to work with such a wide spread of brands across all industries and we believe there is no brand that we can’t help to boost their revenue and brand affiliation through our services. We hope Annie’s blog gives you a bit of an insight into why Licensing is firmly on their business plan!
The way forward for the ‘Annie Phillips art for living’ brand is absolutely through the world of Licensing to help us grow globally. I believe that the brand has universal appeal, and I would love to share the diversity of ‘art for living’ with everyone.
In order to reach the widest possible audience and develop products in as many categories as possible, I realise that having professional Licensees on our side is essential. They have the expertise and local knowledge of what sells in their particular territory and product category and so can help steer our presentations so that they are specifically targeted for success. Just as important, the Licensees have close relationships with key retailers and are able to champion the brand for their marketplace. They ensure the consistency of the brand for their market, across the overall look, quality and packaging of the finished product.
I love working with Licensees because I suddenly feel part of a team, part of a bigger family than just the ‘Annie Phillips art for living’ brand. Two (or ten!) heads are always better than one and I am learning all the time how the marketplaces in different countries function. I love working with different nationalities and seeing how their cultural influences have a bearing on how I design and how I work commercially in each territory. I am interacting with teams of professionals who know and understand everything I need to be armed with to build the brand globally.
The collaborations that I have had to date have been both individually and collectively exciting and have been instrumental in establishing the Annie Phillips ‘art for living’ brand. Highlighting a few of these collaborations below it has to be said how successful and beneficial they were for both parties.
I have had several collaborations with Liberty, initially creating multi coloured rugs, and moving on at their request to then create two-tone rug designs. This brief was both exciting and daunting for me but without it I would never have developed my ornate artworks that are so popular and which are now so integral to the ‘art for living’ brand. These new ranges of two-tone rugs sold extremely well from Liberty’s rug department, offering a different look to the initial multi-coloured options.
When working with Orlebar Brown to design a surface pattern for their top end Menswear lifestyle ranges, I created a pattern that had more of a traditional batik look than I would usually do. I found this both inspiring and exciting to express my hand in a slightly different way. The ranges consisted of co-ordinated swim shorts, shirts and flip flops in a variety of summer colourways. The items were sold worldwide in top end stores across the UK, US, Europe and the UAE, with great commercial success.
Working with Stella McCartney was all about designing something that looked like a batiked necklace around the neck of a T-shirt to be worn on the catwalk. The result was original and striking and looked gorgeous on the models that wore them.
I love collaborations because it is all about working as a team to create something that works aesthetically on the chosen products, while still remaining true to the ‘Annie Phillips art for living’ hand and look.
Working with my UK Licensing Agent, The Point.1888 is fabulous. They are an inspiring group of people, disrupting the licensing world with a new slant on how business can be done. They have helped me crystallise my brand offering and have closely advised me in the development of my Brand Deck and Style Guide. They are also assisting me with my social media presence and are championing the expansion of the brand in the UK.
I totally believe that we are nothing without others! I know that partnering with professional Licensees and Licensing Agents will help grow the ‘Annie Phillips art for living’ brand in a way that I could never do on my own! I also know that the experience will be enriching and fun as our different talents combine to create something wonderful.
Big thanks to Annie Phillips! Head over to their website to learn more or get in touch with us to see how we can all work together by e-mail – helloyou@thepoint1888.com or on our Linked In.