i+D - March/April 2019 - 22

Business
of Design
Licensing

Tilebar brings a
Stacy Garcia vision to
life with Pintuck tile,
a small scale triangular
pattern that adds
depth and dimension
to a space.
(Image: Stacy Garcia)

WHAT'S
IN A NAME?
BY JESSICA GOLDBOGEN HARLAN

What designers need to know before licensing
their brand
INTERIOR DESIGNERS MAY NOT ALWAYS ENTER THE FIELD
HOPING TO BECOME A HOUSEHOLD NAME. STILL, THERE
ARE VARIED WAYS THEY CAN SHARE THEIR AESTHETIC
WITH A BROAD AUDIENCE, AND LICENSING IS KEY
AMONG THEM. WITH AN ORIGINAL POINT OF VIEW, THE
RIGHT MANUFACTURER PARTNER, AND A CAREFULLY
MANAGED PLAN, DESIGNERS CAN TRULY WIDEN THEIR
REACH AND RENOWN, AND SEE THEIR PRODUCT IDEAS
BROUGHT TO FRUITION.

Licensing, however, is not an endeavor to be undertaken lightly, caution
industry experts and designers who've taken the plunge. And, the first thing
to know, says Kate Verner, founder of Kate Verner + Associates (KV+A), is this:
"Licensing is not a get-rich scheme. It's an exercise in brand building."
Verner is not an agent, but a creative strategist for her clients, mainly designers
and manufacturers. A former product designer who helped open the iconic
home furnishings store Moss and who also partnered with designer Clodagh
to develop custom products and licensed collections when the concept was
still in its infancy, Verner assists designers with their business strategies and
product development by helping target and manage opportunities for their
intellectual property. "In today's world, especially at the higher end, you can't
get a deal unless you show something to start with," explains Verner. "And,
it's really important that your ideas are unique to you, and that you own
the rights to that point of view." After all, the benefit to the manufacturer of
licensing a designer is to get a different perspective or voice than the company's
own in-house design team.
A designer doesn't necessarily need to be nationally recognized in order
to snag a licensing deal. More important is they have their own original
intellectual property, whether it's a notebook full of product sketches
or a custom light fixture they had made for a project.

22

i+D - March/April 2019

More specifically, says Keith Granet, "I don't recommend
[licensing] to designers if you don't have the ability to have a mass
appeal and to be very relatable to a larger audience." And, if you
can't generate enough ideas to spin your license into an entire
collection, "your chances for success are very slim." Granet's company,
Granet & Associates, specializes in management consulting for
designers, and also serves as an agent and project manager, from
concept to sales, for designers wishing to delve into the world
of licensing. The company's first deal was orchestrating the
Barbara Barry Collection for Baker, a license that is said to be
the most successful line in the furniture company's history.
Of course, having a recognizable name doesn't hurt. Canadian
interior designer Sarah Richardson was well-known enough from
her television shows to be approached often by companies wanting
to license her name for product collections, but she kept hesitating
when the opportunity didn't seem right.
The first collection that she finally did, however, was the perfect fit:
a fabric line with Kravet. The fabric house already was familiar with
her work as she was a regular customer for her design clients, so
the collaboration felt natural. Says Richardson, "Textiles are such a
huge part of my work, this was the collection that I would have done
even if I didn't get paid for it!" Today, Richardson has five licensed
programs, including two paper collections, a textile collection, a
wallpaper collection, and a soon-to-launch furniture collection that
includes upholstery, case goods, rugs, and throws.
i+D - March/April 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of i+D - March/April 2019
