The Licensing Shop Inc. Celebrates 15th Anniversary

This month officially marks The Licensing Shop’s (TLS) 15th anniversary in business. The licensing agency was founded by husband-and-wife team Steve and Nancy Fowler in 2006. Previously, Steve was the President of video game developer 3D0 Europe based in the U.K. and California, and Nancy was the Vice President of Worldwide Licensing for Viacom Consumer Products and President of DIC Entertainment’s Consumer Products division based in Los Angeles.

“We set out to become a ‘boutique’ agency meaning we didn’t want to grow so big that our clients weren’t working with us directly and daily. So we really have to pick and choose the brands we worked on carefully,” explains Steve Fowler. 

TLS has worked with iconic brands such as Pokémon, Shopkins, Star Trek, Skechers and Sesame Street. In 2016, TLS won a coveted “Award of Licensing Excellence” from industry association License International for Best Character/Toy brand program representing client Moose Toys.

“We are proud that we license imaginatively and always strategically into an extensive scope of product categories, consumer experiences and co-brand collaborations. Once we have created a brand’s licensing plan and have client sign-off, we find the appropriate licensees and retailers to partner with,” says Nancy Fowler, Executive Vice President at TLS. 

Steve continues, “Beyond the usual categories (apparel, toys, publishing, home, etc.), we have developed brand extensions into mint bullion and stamp collections, lottery tickets, video games and mobile apps, art exhibitions, pop-up stores, saunas, barbells, craft beer, cereal, and even a municipal town!”