How Museum IP Licensing Impacts the Retail Placement of Brands

In today's competitive market, chain retailers are constantly on the lookout for unique products and exclusive deals to stand out from the crowd. Manufacturers play a crucial role in meeting this demand; however, they often find it challenging to provide distinct product lines for different retail channels at competitive costs, especially when using popular entertainment IP and character IP or sports IP such as Disney, Hello Kitty, or Major League Baseball. This issue is particularly pronounced in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) sector, where product differentiation and cost efficiency are key.

Museums Attract More Visitors Than Disney and All Sports Events

Few are aware that more people visit museums annually than attend all major sporting events and theme parks combined. Yes, you heard it right.

According to the American Alliance of Museums, over 2 billion people visit museums each year, showcasing their widespread appeal and significant foot traffic. This fascination with art and culture represents a massive, untapped pool of potential shoppers for manufacturers and retailers alike.

Museum Brand Licensing: A Unique Solution

Museum IP Licensing, also known as Museum Brand Licensing, offers a compelling solution for manufacturers and retailers. Museums hold rich and diverse collections, providing endless possibilities for creating unique products.

For example, the British Museum, which attracts over 6 million visitors annually, houses more than 8 million artifacts ranging from Egyptian murals to Greek pottery and Roman sculptures. These historical treasures enable manufacturers to develop culturally rich product lines that resonate with consumers and stand out in the market, all with a single IP, eliminating the need to secure multiple IPs for different collections.

Case Study: Anchor China × The British Museum

In 2018, Anchor, a renowned New Zealand dairy brand, acquired the British Museum IP license and successfully created two distinct product lines, each exclusive to a specific chain retailer in China.

One licensed product line was designed for Alibaba’s Freshippo, one of the largest high-end grocery retail channels with nearly 300 stores in China. For this collection, the design inspiration was drawn from the 'Lewis Chessmen'. The Lewis Chessmen, part of The British Museum collection, are intricately carved 12th-century chess pieces that epitomize medieval artistry. Seven unique cheeses were selected and crafted into small, cute, and unique statues, sitting atop milk bottles with one chess piece for each day, closely related to the product's name, "Fresh Every Day." Within the first two days, it became an event as customers shared pictures on social media and competed to collect the full set of milk bottles.

While this product line is exclusive available at Freshippo, Anchor developed another distinctly different collections for another Chinese retail giant — JD.com, a competitor of Alibaba. The new collections featured flora-inspired designs and Egypt-inspired patterns from same museum.

Tangible Benefits of Museum Brand Licensing

Museum IP licensing offers numerous advantages over traditional character licensing, providing a strategic edge for manufacturers and retailers. Here are some key benefits:

• Versatile Collections: Museums hold rich and diverse collections, allowing manufacturers to develop multiple unique product lines from a single license. This versatility contrasts with character licensing, which often revolves around a limited set of well-known figures and stories.
  

• Unique Consumer Engagement: Products inspired by museum collections tell unique stories and carry cultural significance, deeply engaging consumers who are inspired to collect entire series. This creates a more profound connection compared to character licensing, which may rely on the established popularity of characters without offering new narratives.
  

• Retailer Satisfaction: Retailers benefit from exclusive and differentiated product lines that attract and retain customers. Museum-inspired products offer a fresh and distinct appeal, making it easier for retailers to stand out in a crowded market.
  

• Cost Efficiency: A single museum IP license can generate multiple unique product collections, spreading the IP royalty fees across various deliverables. This approach is more cost-effective than securing multiple character licenses to achieve similar variety.