The Walt Disney Company once again takes the top spot in annual listing.
The latest annual Top 150 Global Licensors report has been released – with the companies included in the listing accounting for more than $272 billion in global retail sales of licensed merchandise in 2016.
This marks a $10 billion increase over the previous year, according to License Global which puts together the report.
Once again, The Walt Disney Company comes out on top, increasing its sales by $4.1 billion in 2016 to a total of $56.6 billion.
Its performance was driven by strong franchises and brands including Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Captain America: Civil War, Finding Dory and Moana among others.
Seven new companies made their debut in the report this year including Viz Media (150); Diageo (78); Santoro (134); and premium ice cream franchise Cold Stone Creamery (142).
Climbers included The Pokémon Company International (19), Moose Toys (53), Rovio Entertainment (63) and Sony Pictures (87).
Notably, 55 of the brands profiled reported retail sales of $1 billion or more in 2016, accounting for more than $244 billion in retail sales or 90 percent of the total list.
“This report reinforces the importance of licensed brands as a critical business for many of the world’s largest retailers,” said Tony Lisanti, global editorial director at License Global.
The Top 10 Global Licensors 2016 are:
- The Walt Disney Company
- Meredith
- PVH Corp.
- Iconix Brand Group
- Warner Bros. Consumer Products
- Hasbro
- Universal Brand Development
- Nickelodeon
- Major League Baseball
- IMG College Licensing/Collegiate Licensing Company
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