TOTAL LICENSING
Licensing and brand trends in France in 2023 The French market is experiencing the same international trends in licensing as most big markets, yet there are a few areas where local brands and trends are likely to have an impact this year, as Laurent Taieb, co-president of Licensing International France, explains. In many ways, France is similar to other big markets. Covid brought challenges – including increased costs, manufacturing and delivery delays (of both products and content) – but licensing is now enjoying a strong revival in a market eager to be re-enchanted by brands that embody values and tell stories. Of course some media did well during Covid: streaming platforms for example, are still multiplying and are driving a lot of popular content output, though a slightly less predictable side-effect of the pandemic has been a growth in licensed board games. However, with no need to stay at home,
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not least in sport via Le Mans 24 Hours and, its own hosting of a major event in the form of the Rugby World Cup. In fact, a number of local brands are performing very well. The Little Prince, celebrating its 80th anniversa-
blockbuster movies and megabrands are very much back, with much more to come in 2023. These include French star Asterix but, realistically, the big international names still dominate.Thus the French market, like most others, will be celebrating 100 years of Disney and Warner in 2023, as well as responding to the ongoing appeal of animé and manga names like Naruto and Dragon Ball, video games such as Pokémon, Mario and Minecraft, international music brands like AC/DC, Nirvana and KPop, or corporate brands, like Chupa-Chups and Mc Donalds. But France has some local alternatives to offer too,
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