License Global unveiled its "Top Global Licensors 2025" whitepaper, powered by SEGA, revealing how brand licensing demonstrates remarkable resilience, proving that emotional connections between consumers and their favorite brands remain a powerful market force. In an era where discretionary spending faces increasing pressure, consumers prioritize products that deliver meaningful connections, nostalgia, and identity expression.
"What is remarkable about this year's report is how it demonstrates the resilience of emotional connections in consumer decision-making," said Ben Roberts, content director, License Global. "Even as economic pressures mount, consumers continue to prioritize brands that matter to them personally, creating a foundation of loyalty that transcends traditional market forces." The whitepaper features 93 brand owners, including several first-time entrants such as Gordon Brothers, The LEGO Group, Legendary Entertainment, Hormel Foods, Mike's Hot Honey, and more, that reflect the broadening appeal of brand licensing as a strategy for deepening consumer relationships.
This year marks a historic milestone as the whitepaper comfortably breaks the $300 billion barrier in total submissions, with global retail sales of licensed consumer products as reported by global brand owners seeing a $26.7 billion (10%) increase over the previous year's total, according to the whitepaper. This unprecedented achievement provides compelling evidence of the sector's extraordinary resilience, continued growth trajectory, and hints at a far greater level of activity outside of the submission base.
Out of 93 rankings, the Top 10 Global Licensors generated $208 billion in retail sales of licensed consumer products during 2024, vs. $192 billion in 2023. Over the past five years, the combined retail sales of the current top 10 have exceeded $1 trillion dollars, demonstrating the long-term stability and growth potential of strategic licensing.
CONSUMERS REMAIN COMMITTED
The Walt Disney Company maintains its position atop the Top 10 Global Licensors, followed by Authentic Brands Group and Dotdash Meredith. The whitepaper reveals several key factors driving this consumer commitment:
- Identity Expression – Licensed products allow consumers to externalize their passions, fandoms and affiliations
- Multi-generational Bonding – Brands like Pokémon and Sanrio create shared experiences across varied demographics
- Everyday Brand Moments – Food and beverage licensing creates accessible touch points in daily routines
- Fandom Culture – Entertainment properties foster community and belonging through licensed consumer products and experiences
Alongside a comprehensive submission base of brand owners, License Global's proprietary Brandscape research also reveals several key trends shaping the future of brand licensing:
- Generational Shift: While millennials currently lead licensed product purchasing at 28%, Gen Z is expected to take a slight lead in 2025/26, with Gen Alpha growing in relevance to 22%.
- Category Dominance: Fashion (apparel) continues to top the list of growth categories with 70% of brand owners highlighting the section as a key opportunity for licensed consumer goods in 2025/26. Fashion is followed by toys and games (54%) and food and beverage (52%), which has risen dramatically in strategic importance.
- Experience Ecosystems: The aggregated results of the key strategies survey show that successful brands will move beyond individual products to create integrated experiences across physical, digital and hybrid platforms.
- Digital Transformation: Brands with agile content strategies across platforms like Roblox, TikTok and social commerce channels are positioned to lead the next wave of innovation in consumer engagement.
