Driven
to Win College
Fans Covet Tire Covers by BG
Tailgaters
may not always know whether they’re coming or going,
but thanks to Tire
Covers by BG the rest of the world knows which
college team they’re rooting for. As the name implies,
the company makes high-quality NCAA licensed tire covers.
Its other products include front-grill covers, stadium cushions,
seat towels, and table coverings. Tire Covers by BG is family-run,
produces all of its items in its Michigan plant, and has been
in business for 35 years.
“Licensing makes up about forty percent of our business,”
says CEO Dick Slack. “We do an awful lot of imprints
for RV and automotive dealers, who use the tire covers for
marketing their businesses. We started doing licensed products
around 1980, and with the growth of tailgating this has become
a significant part of our business.”
Sweat
the Details Heritage
Metalworks Puts Quality First
Not
every business is tailor-made for the licensed sports industry.
Steve and Scott Ballor originally felt that way about Heritage
Metalworks. When they started the company 20
years ago, their focus was the better gift marketplace. That
made all the sense in the world given Heritage’s fine
pewter gift creations.
But when the Super Bowl came to the Ballors’ home state
of Arizona in 1996, the brothers saw an opportunity to branch
out. Today, collegiate licensing has become an important part
of the Heritage landscape.
Read
All About It Hawk’s
Nest Publishing Redefining Licensed Best-Sellers
You
won’t find many better Red Sox fans than Peg Connery-Boyd
and her family. In fact, the Boyds’ love of the Beantowners
has given life to one of licensed sports world’s most
intriguing companies. Hawk’s
Nest Publishing produces MLB coloring and activity
books for kids.
As
Connery-Boyd notes, however, adults have just as much fun
with them. “The books are targeted to children ages
seven to twelve,” she says. “But they are equally
popular with adults. I was at a trade show recently, and the
guy in the booth across from me spent an afternoon on one
of our crossword puzzles.”
PPW
Has a Hot Potato NFL
License Comes to Classic Hasbro Toys
When
PPW
Toys began tackling the licensed sports market
for classic toys, retailers had one question: When’s
your football stuff coming out? Well, it’s here. The
company has rolled out its popular Mr. Potato Head Sports
Spud in all 30 NFL teams. Each collectible spud comes with
a helmet, jersey and foam fingers emblazoned with team colors
and logos.
“Incorporating
team and fan icons and history into these products has been
our priority since the design stage,” says Dean Gorby,
Manager for PPW Toys. “We are not just slapping a team
logo on the box. Sports fans really respond to the specific
details we add to these products.”
Teamwork-manship Fan
Creations Setting New Standards in Home Decor
Is
craftsmanship a lost art in the sports licensed business today?
Not when you consider the offerings at Fan
Creations. Since its launch in 2001, the Georgia
manufacturer has been producing some of the industry’s
most charming items for the home and office. According to
CEO Kevin McClary, attention to detail is a hallmark at Fan
Creations.
“We’re
very selective in what we do,” he says. “For example,
ee don’t use stickers or decals on our products. Everything
is painted.”
The
Complete Package KnowledgeBall
Launches QB Power Plays
Knowledge
is power—and the secret to helping kids learn the fundamentals
of the passing game. That’s the message from JJ Stone,
president of KnowledgeBall,
a relative newcomer to the sporting goods landscape. This
past June the company launched QB Power Plays, an innovative
training tool for young football players.
“QB Power Plays is the first-ever educational football
in the consumer sports market,” says Stone. “It
includes a top grade composite leather football featuring
the passing tree, passing plays and offensive formations embossed
directly on the ball, as well as the Power Plays Wristband
Coach and sixteen Power Cards.”
Sticky
Business Hockey
Stick Putters Scoring Big in Licensed Marketplace
You
drive for show, but you putt for dough. So said Lee Trevino,
and hockey star-turned-golfer Happy Gilmore confirmed it.
Now, inventor David Graham has taken the concept to the next
level. He’s the owner ofHockey
Stick Putters, a company that makes exactly what
its name says.
“I wanted to get my dad and brother a hockey stick putter
for Christmas one year,” Graham recalls. “I searched
the Internet for days and couldn't find anything close to
what I wanted. It was at that time that I started to carve
a putter out of a hunk of wood in my brother's basement that
resembled a hockey stick. The problem was that it wasn't functional.
I then began designing the Hockey Stick Putter you see today—a
real precision weighted putter. I took no short cuts. I wanted
the putter to be something you could actually use on the golf
course.”
You
Can Keep Your Hat On Legacy
Continues Tradition of Excellence in Licensed Headwear
When
Legacy
Athletic launched more than 15 years ago in a
family basement, did anyone expect the company to reach the
penthouse of the licensed industry? Maybe not, but that doesn’t
change the fact that the headwear and accessories manufacturer
has become one of the marketplace’s most reliable suppliers.
Indeed, with several hundred schools in the fold, Legacy is
a true success story.
“We’re very particular,” says Dwayne Unger,
Legacy’s College Bookstore Sales Manager. “We
pride ourselves on the look and fit of our caps.”
The
Ultimate Numbers Game Stats
Begin to Define $20 Billion Tailgating Marketplace
Call
it a breakout. A breakthrough. A breakaway. Call it whatever
you want, but in recent years tailgating has shattered its
once-modest projections and preconceptions to become a dynamic
consumer product category with sales touching the $20 billion
mark.
Once
folded into camping, RVing and other outdoor activities where
folks gather in large numbers to share their particular passion,
tailgating has distinguished itself as the nexus of three
culture-defining American pastimes—eating, cars and
sports.
Licensing
Outlook: Q&A
with Carter Wallace, Vice-President for Jenkins Enterprises
Do
you have questions about the college sports world? Then perhaps
you should check out the Magic Answer Ball, one of the new
licensed items available from Jenkins
Enterprises. If you’re more interested
in what else is on tap from Jenkins, then Carter Wallace is
the guy to talk to. He sat down with LicensingOutlook.com
to discuss his company and the state of the marketplace.
LOGO!:
Jenkins offers a wide variety of products, collegiate licensed
gifts and souvenirs of all kinds. What does best for you?
Carter Wallace: Currently our best selling
items seem to be our new line of baby goods. We offer a pacifier,
no-spill cup, bottle, bib and infant cat. It has been fantastic.
Customers are not just buying one item out of the line—they
are buying the entire line.
Straight
From the Heart Jewelry
Maker Finds Success Through Simplicity and Value
From
the Heart—or
FTH Wholesale, as many in the business know them—is
as aptly named as they come. Launched eight years ago in America’s
heartland, the Oklahoma-based company has become one of the
sports licensed industry’s most reliable manufacturers
of themed jewelry and accessories. As CEO Gary Cawood explains,
From the Heart’s success is a direct result of its commitment
to core values.
“From the beginning, we wanted all of our items to have
meaning,” he says. “Every category we offer does
extremely well, especially our sunglasses, earrings, necklaces
and bracelets. We got into the licensed business in response
to requests from our customers.”
Camera
Ready Rick
Anderson Enterprises Looking to Extend Its Reach in Licensed
Photography
When
Rick Anderson celebrated the birth of his son in 1987, he
had no idea the bundle of joy also heralded the start of a
new career. “I bought a camera and photographed him
everyday,” recalls Anderson. “I learned a lot.”
Six
years later, Rick
Anderson Enterprises was born. The company offers
a wide variety of prints and posters, including an impressive
selection of licensed shots of college stadiums. Among Anderson’s
other lines are City Skylines and the American Series.
Sports
Licensing and Tailgate Show to Add ‘Team Spirit’
Section in January Select
Group of Exhibitors Will Tap Into Passion for the Game
Nothing
says “team spirit” like the merchandise mix available
at the Sports
Licensing and Tailgate Show January 21–23,
2009 at the Sands Expo Center, Las Vegas. For 2009, the show
continues its effort to broaden product selection for its
buyers and selling channels for its exhibitors with the creation
of an exclusive “Team Spirit” section of the show.
Team
Spirit exhibitors will offer equipment, apparel, accessories
and other goods that may not fall into the “licensed”
category—and are not traditional tailgating items—but
still speak strongly to the active fan and athlete.
“We
showed up in Las Vegas with really just a tease of products
in the grand scheme of things,” he says. “That
led to 30 new licenses for us, including Georgia, Auburn,
Florida State, Miami, Kansas and Michigan. It will be a great
deal of work. We’ll do a lot of game shots and some
of the campus, as well.”
Sticking
With It Sport
Pins Grows into International Sensation
The
American Dream is alive and well. Just ask Jeff Bivens of
Sport
Pins International. The family-owned company—in
business since the late 1970s—was the brainchild of
Jeff’s mom, Tawny. His dad, Jon, headed up the art department
out of the garage. Mike, Jeff’s brother, is the company
treasurer.
“I
played soccer as a kid,” recalls Jeff. “My teams
did a lot of traveling. We went to a tournament up in Canada,
and my mom noticed that many of players had lapel pins. She
thought it was a great idea for a business.”
Crocs
In Shape for Football Season Company
Has Mammoth News for Tailgaters
With
the football season right around the corner, retailers looking
for a tried-and-true item in the casual footwear category
need look no further than Crocs.
The company carries its signature shoe in adult and kids sizes
featuring the logos and colors of all 30 NFL teams—and
is also introducing a new footwear line that should be of
great interest to tailgaters, especially when there’s
a nip in the air.
“Few
sports have a following that is as large and brand loyal as
the NFL,” says CEO Ron Snyder. “We are thrilled
to partner with the NFL and to provide our customers with
additional options in Crocs styles and a new way to support
their favorite teams.”
Flash
of Inspiration MLB
Math Cards Connect Students with the Stars
In
the good old days, what math teachers were unable to drill
into the heads of their thick-skulled students, the backs
of bubble gum cards often did. Indeed, there was a time when
a nation of nine-year-olds could convert two-sevenths into
28.6% not because they were precocious savants, but because
they knew that two hits in seven at-bats gave you a .286 batting
average. Where have you gone, Manny Sanguillen?
Two generations after the fact, the American educational market
is rediscovering the teaching and motivational virtues of
sports—and the results are finally beginning to find
their way onto retail shelves. Among the leaders in this trend
is Sports
Equation, maker of Major League Baseball Math
Word Problem Cards.
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