Maca Rotter, chief executive officer and Jessica Juseppe, chief operating officer, La Panadería, the Mexico-based licensing agency, are long-standing exhibitors of Licensing Expo. Here are some of their take-aways on the benefits of the show, what offerings they will highlight and the power of the portfolio they represent. 

License Global: Why does La Panadería want to exhibit at Licensing Expo? 

Maca Rotter, Jessica Juseppe: Panadería’s team has been exhibiting for over 25 years non-stop since we were born as an independent company acquired by Televisa back in 2000 and then back to be an independent agency in 2017. It has been our place to show new items and to get new representations for our main territory, Mexico. Having a presence at Licensing [Expo] is key to see the trends and to establish a footprint as part of the industry. 

Tell us about La Panadería and what the company does. 

Panadería is the biggest licensing agency in Mexico with great experience in classic brands that make the stability in our balanced portfolio but also having the reputation of being one step ahead of the trends every time, first agency to have a live action kids’ series being sold in the territory and also the first product ever launched with an influencer was Panadería’s strategy since day one. Our focus is to have a full-service agency that can address anything that a licensor may need locally from product development, brand assurance, finance, approvals, retail, design … anything … and not to have many brands, we have only the brands we can serve and manage with a dedicated team of more than 35 people. 

What do you look for in a licensing partner? 

We must share purpose, projects, perspective and values. We trust, we care and we inspire … it is our core value line as a company and part of every person working here for something bigger than just a license.  

Since the event is in-person this year, how do you think that will be an advantage for La Panadería? 

We believe that in-person meetings will always be more powerful and productive than conferences, you get to be closer to anyone’s reaction and are able to better “read” the clients’ needs. We can’t wait to be there and get the feeling that finally everything is going back to normal … at least more normal. 

How has COVID changed the industry? 

As far as industry, I believe the only change that really mattered is the acceleration of e-commerce and  digitalization in some of the countries that were slower or a bit back in the power race for the instant reward anywhere/everywhere coming from the digital world. That definitely changed the retailing strategy once again and put all in perspective in terms of inventories, minimum order quantity (MOQ), time to market and even margins … the need to adapt and become resilient.