2012 Olympic Games Announces Licensee Line-Up, Characters

The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games has so far appointed 34 licensees who will ultimately produce approximately 10,000 pieces of merchandise. The LOCOG licensing program is expected to raise approximately £70 million ($101 million) in royalties, which go toward the staging of the games. 

The latest licensees appointed are Aykroyds and TDP Licensing (children's and adults' nightwear and underwear); BL Sports (bags and luggage); Cohen & Wilks International (infant and babywear); Football Mania (stationery and partyware); Grant Barnett (umbrellas); Hy-Pro U.K. (sports and outdoor toys); If Cardboard Creations (bookmarks);

Pyramid International (posters and fine art prints); Roy Lowe and Sons (casual socks); Samlerhuset (ingots); and Spearmark Housewares (drink bottles, lunchboxes and melamine tableware).

Yesterday, LOCOG launched Wenlock and Mandeville, the Olympic and Paralympic mascots, which will form an important part of the 2012 merchandise program. Wenlock and Mandeville are available to all the official licensees and (aside from some limited-edition T-shirts and pin badges launched this week) the first licensed mascot products will be on sale beginning July 27. Their names evoke two places in England associated with the modern Olympic and Paralympics movements.

"We are building an impressive team of licensees, from large to small, who will produce a fantastic range of London 2012 merchandise over the next couple of years," says Charlie Wijeratna, LOCOG's director of commercial negotiations. "Now we've welcomed our mascots Wenlock and Mandeville to the world, our merchandise program will really move up a gear. Our online shop is live and later this year we will open our first dedicated London 2012 shop. By the time we celebrate two years to go this summer, the merchandise and retail programs will be fully up and running."