Caroline Mickler Limited will be showcasing its hottest new property, Fifty Shades of Grey, at this year’s Brand Licensing Europe, taking place Oct. 16-18 in London."The best-selling Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy is the biggest sensation to hit publishing in many years. The market's interest in Fifty Shades of Grey as a brand is enormous,” says Caroline Mickler, managing director, Caroline Mickler Limited. “With continuing book sales and a film version keeping awareness high, we expect this property to make a very strong showing in a number of licensed categories over the coming months."
Sales of the trilogy continue to be strong, with British bookseller W.H. Smith attributing unexpectedly positive year-end projections to “the recent positive publishing schedule,” which was led by E.L. James’ series. Fifty Shades of Grey broke U.K. publishing records by selling 1 million copies in 11 weeks. In the U.S. the series has sold more than 13 million copies.
The licensing push for the book series has already begun, with U.S. agency CopCorp signing deals in apparel, hosiery and sleepwear. (Caroline Mickler Limited was appointed at worldwide agent for the brand in June and subsequently appointed CopCorp in North America.)
Mickler will look to continue the success of the brand in Europe at BLE where she will pursue partnerships in lingerie/sleepwear, apparel, fragrances, beauty products, bedding, home furnishings, stationery, jewelry and adult products.