Iconix International is preparing to celebrate the 100-year anniversary of its premier home brand, Waverly, in 2023. This upcoming Home Textiles Market will feature the Waverly brand anniversary print collection which will unveil the brand’s updated design point of view, further cementing its place as the industry authority for color and pattern.

Founded in 1923, the Waverly brand goal was for the American consumer to have access to design for their homes without the use of a decorator. The brand is known for its signature mix- and-match aesthetic, allowing the consumer to personally curate their own home. While the brand has its origins in fabric and wallcoverings, their expansion throughout the decades to bedding, window treatments, decorative accessories, and more have created the immersive world of Waverly that consumers know today.

“Waverly has always been an innovator when it comes to print and pattern, and as the way people live and decorate their homes has evolved, we have made sure that Waverly reflects that change,” said Lauren Steinke, SVP of Home at Iconix International.

The following licensees are our Waverly partners in bringing the anniversary to life:

• P Kaufman – Fabric
• Keeco- bedding, window, sheets, bath towels, shower curtains
• St James- Utility bedding
• Nourison- indoor/outdoor accent and area rugs, indoor/outdoor dec pillows
• Home Expressions – closet storage, pantry, cleaning, and melamine
• Lintex- Table Linens
• Popular Bath- Window Hardware
• York Wall- Peel and Stick Wallpaper
• Shalom- Gift Bags
• BEN Trading- soaps and lotions
• Plaid- Craft Paint

Umbro is proud to announce a partnership with the Confederation of African Football (CAF).

This exciting new technical sponsorship will see all referees, volunteers, and associated personnel at Africa’s biggest international tournament kitted out in the double diamonds.

In addition, Umbro will also supply the tournament’s official ball. Named after traditional Cameroonian outfits, the ‘Toghu’ match ball features vibrantly coloured panels inspired by the finely embroidered designs of the cultural garments.

Fans will be able to purchase the official replica ball as part of a limited-edition collectible range created for the tournament via umbro.za soon.

We look forward to an exciting partnership with CAF over the coming years.

Brands that were fashion hits back in the 2000s are enjoying a resurgence. Juicy Couture, True Religion and Ed Hardy have bounced back after some lean years.

BY EZREEN BENISSAN

Back in the early 2000s, America’s True Religion was one of the coolest denim brands in international fashion. However, when Michael Buckley rejoined the company in 2019 as chief executive, he was tasked with rebuilding the brand after the pain of bankruptcy, alongside creative director Zihaad Wells, who had first moved to True Religion in 2006 alongside Buckley.

The bounce back has been impressive. True Religion will top $235 million in revenue this year, making it the “most profitable the business has been in the last eight or nine years,” Buckley says. He wants to turn it into a billion-dollar business in the years to come.

Brands from the Noughties — or Y2K brands — are making a comeback after years of battling to remain competitive in a saturated market. Besides True Religion, Juicy Couture and Ed Hardy are also building momentum again. Their business strategies? Collaborations, a broader product mix and an elevated embrace of e-commerce and social media.

Ed Hardy, an American brand best known for its trucker hats and tattoo-inspired graphic T-shirts, has expanded its product categories to develop into a full lifestyle fashion brand. “Over the past nine to 18 months we started to integrate into new categories — shoes, accessories, outerwear — and just sort of letting it unfold organically, not trying to over-instill ourselves into people’s lives and culture,” says Andie Lipton, SVP of marketing, creative and public relations at Iconix Brand Group (IBG), which first invested in Ed Hardy in 2009, paying a further $55 million in 2011 to build a majority stake.

Stepping too far away from the identity of the brand the first-time round can be risky. “That is also when they will start to lose their original customer base,” says retail and business consultant Sophie Biggerstaff. “Retained customers buy into much more than just the product; they buy into what the brand stands for. Products can evolve to target new trends and customers without having to move completely away from what they stand for as a brand.”

Old and new customers are flocking to Ed Hardy for its signature graphic tees and artwork, says Lipton. The brand is using original art created by the late tattoo artist Don Ed Hardy to make a reassuring link between new product categories and its heritage. “We have a plethora of art that we’re able to utilize and create a unison within our apparel, footwear and accessory categories as opposed to another brand, where everyone is designing into their own thought process. We have a library of art that we’re able to utilize,” says Ryan Sainsott, VP of brand management and operations at IBG.

A pricing rethink has been a fundamental move at True Religion, with jeans now selling for $149 rather than $250 back in the day. T-shirts retail for under $80. “We’ve got our price points at prices where the consumer shops today,” says Buckley. “With the size of our audience and with where we’re positioned in terms of brand image, product and price, we can now cater to a much wider audience.”

Digital-first: Reaching Gen Z

The relaunch in July by ABG of juicycouture.com has reignited Juicy’s e-commerce business. The platform, launched on Shopify, has been a game changer, says Fishman. “Pent-up demand has been phenomenal. Our audience, and the new audience… want to come to a branded space and really experience the brand.”

Younger customers are also drawn to new payment methods. Juicy Couture customers can use the buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) service, delivered by Swedish fintech company Klarna, accounting for more than 16 per cent of site sales, according to the company.

E-commerce makes up over 35 per cent of sales at True Religion and is expected to hit 50 per cent over the coming years as the focus shifts from vertical retail to digital communication. The potential for growth through digital is far greater, Buckley adds. The brand’s 140 store portfolio has been trimmed to just 50. “When we talk about controlling our destiny, it’s heavily through the digital experience.”

Redefining the brand

Juicy Couture, which is now owned by Authentic Brands Group (ABG), has tapped into the heritage of its long-time bestseller, a velour tracksuit. Nostalgia surrounding Juicy Couture is being leveraged as a springboard to develop further, expanding into new categories such as nightwear as well as developing spin-offs of its velour tracksuits. “The brand’s signature is that velour track. We have learned, don’t walk away from that,” says Natasha Fishman, CCO and EVP of marketing, lifestyle at ABG. “[But] as much as the velour tracksuit is a core line of Juicy, there are additional lines that continue to be developed.”

Ed Hardy, which has international distribution through over 50 retailers, is also focusing on digital. “Everything we do is in the digital space,” says Lipton. “Social is a big component of our brand and a way for us to talk to our community with a mix of user generated content, campaign images, artwork. And we’re getting into Tiktok.”

Lipton was surprised to find some 25 million Ed Hardy tags on Tiktok, given the brand originated before social media existed. Now, she says, “to have the opportunity to reach so many people in a social space is really beneficial for all these brands to resurface”. Over the past 12 months, Ed Hardy has picked up 16,000 followers on Instagram to add to its 1.5 million followers on Facebook.

Applying streetwear tactics to mainstream fashion, Juicy Couture is using a mobile app, Tapcart, to release exclusive drop collections. Its OG Big Bling velour hoodie in rose pink sold out within a day. Since its launch in September, the app has driven 20 per cent of sales, according to the company “The app has proven that the consumer wants it now and wants to know that these are limited edition with only a few hundred pieces,” says Fishman.

Collaboration maintains momentum

Juicy Couture worked with its partners in China to identify the most appropriate collaboration, says Fishman. A partnership with Shanghai brand Staffonly in September was a first in the Chinese market and the first collaboration with an international womenswear brand for Shanghai’s Staff Only, which is best known for its menswear. “[Our customers] got to see a revived version of Juicy Couture… It gave the brand a new outlook for future expansion here in China,” say designers Une Yea and Shimo Zhou.

Meanwhile, also in September, True Religion became the latest name to collaborate with Supreme for its Autumn/Winter 2021 collection. “We look at True Religion as a modern streetwear brand rooted in denim. I think Supreme saw that,” says Buckley. Some 40,000 units sold in minutes, he says. “It’s a compliment to do something with Supreme [and] it was really fantastic to see the consumer really resonate with the brand again.”

Juicy Couture collaborated with ABG-owned retail chain Forever 21, in the US, widening its customer base. “We saw an opportunity,” says Fishman. “[Forever 21] has great distribution, and a lot of our collaboration strategy is around pushing into further distribution and accessing a new audience.”

Iconix International Inc. is excited to announce new licensing deals in their heritage home brands that expand on existing categories while creating full lifestyle statements. These new partnerships will launch during the October 2021 New York Home Textiles Market Week. Iconix owns a robust portfolio of over 25 consumer brands, including five home brands: Waverly, Cannon, Charisma, Fieldcrest and Royal Velvet. Iconix will also continue growing their owned fashion brands into the home space with the launch of  Ecko Unltd., Rocawear, and Danskin which join the already existing home brand expansion of Ocean Pacific, Candies, Mudd, Mossimo, Material Girl and Joe Boxer.

“We are especially excited about our new partnerships coming to market this Fall,” said Bob Galvin, chief executive officer and president at Iconix Brand Group, Inc. “The home industry is growing exponentially as consumers continue to shift their focus to their living space.

We anticipate continuing our success in the home industry with the growth and expansion of our heritage brands and look forward to introducing our fashion brands to the home category allowing them to reach their full lifestyle potential.

Recent deals for Iconix’s home brands include:

• In an exclusive multi-year licensing agreement, the Waverly brand will partner with Lintex as its new licensee in kitchen textiles and table linens with a focus on the prints and patterns for which the Waverly brand is known for.
• In another brand extension for Waverly, they have appointed St James Home as its US licensee in a 3-year deal for utility bedding including pillows, comforters, blankets, mattress pads and topper and bedding accessories.
• Popular Bath, a Brooklyn-based home furnishings importer known for their innovation, has signed a multi-year license for the Waverly brand in the hard window category including curtain rods, tiebacks, and finials.
• Britannica is the new exclusive US & Canadian licensee for home brand Royal Velvet in the utility bedding category. This multi-year deal will have a multi-tiered distribution strategy.
• VCNY, a leader in home textile manufacturing, has signed agreements with Royal Velvet, Cannon Home, and luxury home brand Charisma as their exclusive US licensee for accent and area rugs.
• The Royal Velvet brand is also expanding into the window treatment category with an exclusive multi-year agreement with Universal Home as the US partner for curtains, valances, hardware, blinds, and shades.
• Everyday basics brand Cannon Home is joining forces with Chesapeake, an authority in rug manufacturing, as its new US & Canadian licensee for bath rugs.

Additionally, Iconix is leveraging some of its fashion brands by bringing them into the home space for the first time through several recent licensing deals. Developments include:

• Danskin, a health and wellness brand synonymous with femininity, innovation, quality, and superior comfort and fit for women since 1882 will expand into fashion bedding through a new licensing partnership with Evergrace. The collection will feature the brand’s aesthetic, with a fun, modern, relaxed style combined with rich textures and patterns.
• A new licensing deal with Pem America will bring Rocawear, the brand born from music and now a leader in style and culture, into fashion bedding.
• Ecko Unltd., a leading brand in global youth culture and known for its fusion of design, street, and action sports, breaks into fashion bedding and bath with their exclusive 2-year deal with Sky Home in US & Canada as well as its new partnership with Popular Bath, signing on as Ecko’s partner in Hard Windows for an exclusive 3-year deal in the U.S.

Brand management company Iconix Brand Group, Inc. has signed a new three-year licensing agreement with Genesco Inc. to be the exclusive US and Canadian footwear licensee for STARTER, the iconic premium athletic brand. The deal includes a three-year renewal option, which would extend the partnership through December 31, 2027. Iconix is excited to enter this fast-growing market.

“Genesco is the perfect partner to help Iconix further grow and maximize the STARTER brand,” said Robert Galvin, chief executive officer, president, and a member of the board of directors at Iconix Brand Group, Inc. “STARTER has been part of the sports and fashion landscape for almost five decades and as we celebrate our 50^th Anniversary, entering the footwear market will allow us to capitalize on the growing consumer demand for heritage brands.”

Genesco, a Nashville-based specialty retailer and branded company, has been a leader in the footwear industry for over 9 decades. With a reputation for producing high quality, innovative styles with a sharp attention to detail, Genesco has produced outerwear for many top brand names, such as Levi’s, Dockers, and Bass.  The STARTER brand brings to Genesco new sources of revenue as they partner up to join forces on the retro/heritage brand footwear trends that are dominating the industry. The STARTER brand is one of the most iconic global sports brands in history.  The brand pioneered the fusion of sports clothing with popular culture, including logo apparel, and continues to produce apparel that honors its heritage and emphasizes quality and style. Genesco will design and manufacture the STARTER brand footwear for men, women, and kids with MSRPs ranging from $49 – $150.

“We are excited to partner with Iconix on the STRARTER brand” said Andy Gilbert, President of Genesco Licensed Brands. “STARTER’s authentic sports positioning combined with its affiliation with all major Pro and College sports leagues, created a tremendous platform for the extension into footwear.”

The new line of footwear is planned to launch in sports and shoe specialty stores by Spring 2022.

Iconix Brand Group, Inc. has partnered with licensee Luneau USA Inc. to launch a new line of Ed Hardy Flavored Sparkling Tequila, RTD, (Ready to Drink), 12 oz cans, just in time for summer.  The new line will expand the Ed Hardy brand’s presence in the alcohol industry as the tattoo-influenced brand currently has a well-known assortment of wines and sangrias.

Ed Hardy Sparkling Flavored Tequila is the future of the hard seltzer industry. Brewed in Mexico, Ed Hardy Sparkling Flavored Tequila is paired with bold fruit flavors, making it a standout product in the market today. While most of the major players in the industry are producing a vodka-based product, the brand plans to separate itself from the pack with this new premium offering.

“We are thrilled to continue our successful partnership with Luneau to launch another Ed Hardy Ready To Drink beverage. The expansion comes at the right time as this category continues to rapidly grow. This is a natural progression for the brand, and we are confident this new offering will capture the attention of the Ed Hardy brand audience.”  – Bob Galvin, Chief Executive Officer and President at Iconix Brand Group, Inc.

The Ed Hardy brand is renowned for its bold creativity and fearless originality. It is a reflection on the life of Don “Ed” Hardy, known as “The Godfather of Modern Tattoos,” and it is the brand’s mission to honor his legacy. The Ed Hardy brand is built on a global community of unapologetically passionate individuals that are enthusiastic about telling their stories. Art, self-expression, and reinvention are at the heart of the brand.

The new line of Sparkling Flavored Tequila from Mexico and will be available in 2 flavors at launch: Orange Pineapple and Blood Orange Pomegranate. Containing 4.5% ABV, 99 calories per serving, 0g Fat, 0g Protein Ed Hardy Sparkling Flavored Tequila, Hard Seltzer will come in 12oz cans sold in 4-count packs. They are set to hit the shelfs later this month and will be available in strong Ed Hardy brand selected regions nationwide to start.