BLE Notes Attendance Increase for 2014

Brand Licensing Europe 2014, which took place on Oct. 7-9 at London’s Olympia, boasted 306 exhibitors, of which 88 were new, making it the largest BLE ever. 

Exhibitor numbers increased across all three of the show Zones:

·      The Brands & Lifestyle Zone witnessed a 25 percent increase in exhibitor numbers from 2013.

·      The Art, Design & Image Zone saw a nine percent growth.

·      The Character & Entertainment Zone experienced a four percent growth.

This year’s Retail Mentoring Program was also the biggest yet since its launch. With more than 50 individual buyers from 10 of the major U.K. retailers, the program now officially forms part of Tesco’s training program for buyers.

Visitors also attended the License This! Competition, where new property RaNT! was crowned this year’s winner.

This year’s show also hosted more educational sessions with the introduction of a new Brands & Lifestyle Theatre, run in partnership with Brand Jam.  

“We couldn’t be more thrilled with this year’s event,” says Darren Brechin, event director, BLE. “Our key objective for 2014 was to deliver more qualified buyers. We are in a fast paced and exciting industry, and this year’s show was a true reflection with so many new properties, and many well-loved favorites, brought to market to explore the endless opportunities licensing offers. We are looking forward to an exciting and busy year ahead.”

BLE 2015 takes place October 13 to 15, 2015 at Olympia, London.