New York, NY – License Global, the licensing industry’s thought leader, today unveils its annual Top Global Licensors Report, highlighting a comparison of the world’s biggest brands by total retail sales of licensed consumer products in 2023. This year’s report also includes trend-predictive data for 2025 from intellectual property owners across toys, fashion, food and beverage, entertainment and other consumer verticals.

Key findings from this year’s report indicate significant growth in the consumer product space from several global companies such as Authentic Brands Group, Hasbro, Sanrio, NBCUniversal and Bluestar Alliance. In total, this year’s report shows a total of more than $281 billion* in licensed consumer products sold at retail worldwide in 2023, which represents over $3 billion* growth in comparison to 2022, a measure of the strength of continued consumer reception to the market.

License Global’s Top Global Licensors report is built to track the growth of consumer behavior and retail activity of the leading companies that leverage brand licensing as a business model. Over the decades, this report has become an indispensable industry resource spotlighting market drivers, tracking critical trends and charting market trajectories.

Top Five Global Licensors 2024

1. The Walt Disney Company

2. Authentic Brands Group

3. Dotdash Meredith

4. Warner Bros. Discovery

5. Hasbro

Find the full ranking of retail sales of licensed consumer products from those participating in the Top Global Licensors report at www.licenseglobal.com

Leading brand owners also include The Pokémon Company International, Procter & Gamble, Paramount, The Electrolux Group, Caterpillar, The Hershey Company, BMW, PGA TOUR, SEGA, Sony Pictures Entertainment and Tommy Bahama to name only a few featured in the Top Global Licensors 2024 report.

Among the notable new participants this year are John Deere Company, White Castle, Laura Ashley, Pernod Ricard – Kahlua, Chinese Theatres, Sunkist Growers, Edgewell Personal Care, New Zealand Mint and “Poppy Playtime” owners Mob Entertainment.

The Top Global Licensors 2024 also identifies critical areas for future licensing opportunities.

Apparel, Food and Beverage, Toys and Games and Location-based Entertainment emerged as leading categories in the exclusive survey, which explores what consumer categories brands are looking to explore in 2025.

“Today, it is harder than ever to reach a highly fragmented consumer,” says Amanda Cioletti, Vice President of Content and Strategy for Informa Markets’ Global Licensing Group, which includes the License Global media brand, as well as industry-leading tradeshow events Licensing Expo and Brand Licensing Europe. “A hallmark of every brand licensing professional’s research each year, the Top Global Licensors Report breaks down which brands consumers are allocating hard-won dollars for. Companies may leverage this data and forecasting to stay ahead of trends to ensure planned product ranges align with the latest consumer preferences.”

Based on self-reported figures or License Global’s independent research, the in-depth report reflects a portion of market predictions and performance indicators. Even through fluctuating consumer spending, brand licensing continues to demonstrate resilience and growth as seen in the latest findings. The multi-billion-dollar total figure of retail sales for licensed consumer products, provided by participants of the report, represents the proverbial tip of the iceberg, with countless brands noting individual shifts in activity, while still driving substantial revenue through global consumer engagement.

*For the exact totals, figures and rankings in the Top Global Licensors 2024 report, please visit www.licenseglobal.com.

The Top Global Licensors Methodology License Global publicly calls for companies across the global brand licensing business to submit global retail sales of licensed consumer products for the year prior (2023)—along with their equations, formulas and workings—via an open survey. The License Global team validates each submission and works closely with the submitting company where possible before cross-checking and curating submissions to build each annual report and, in turn, a barometer for activity across the global brand licensing market. Despite working with submitting brands to ensure accuracy, many businesses often need more time to participate due to reporting timeframes or facing limitations through private company structures, challenges in the news or, quite simply, acquisition. To mitigate the impact of absentees in the broader market picture provided by the report, License Global includes editorial estimates for carefully selected companies based on previously provided data, cross-referenced with the previous year’s financial reporting and editorial research. License Global’s Top Global Licensors report remains a vital resource, offering rare insights into one of the most influential yet unseen consumer markets. As the brand licensing industry navigates an ever-changing landscape, it continues to climb, endure, and adapt, shaping the future of global consumer trends and brand loyalty.

About License Global
License Global, part of the Global Licensing Group at Informa Markets, is a leading source of news and analysis for the global brand licensing industry, providing comprehensive insights into market trends, key players, and industry forecasts. Through its annual Top Global Licensors report, License Global offers an authoritative overview of the brand licensing market, helping businesses navigate and thrive in a dynamic consumer landscape. The magazine also serves as the official publication for the sector’s trade events, which include Licensing Expo, Brand Licensing Europe and Licensing Expo Shanghai. License Global provides insights into the overall market in daily and weekly newsletters, six published editions per year, podcast, webinars and live tradeshow coverage.

About Global Licensing Group
The Global Licensing Group at Informa Markets, a subsidiary of Informa plc (LON:INF), is the licensing industry’s leading tradeshow organizer and media partner. Its mission is to provide licensing opportunities around the world by bringing brands and products together. The following events and information products are produced for the licensing industry by the Global Licensing Group at Informa Markets: Licensing Expo, Brand Licensing Europe, Licensing Expo Shanghai and License Global. Global Licensing Group events are sponsored by Licensing International.