Most of the Collaborations on the ballot for recognition within the 2020 Licensing International Excellence Awards involve apparel, whether teen- adult- or kid-oriented; here’s also one in children’s accessories. What they all illustrate is the creative and marketing power that can be created by the combination of two strong equities.

Overall, more than 600 entries were received this year from companies in 22 countries and were judged by a panel of 152 executives from 20 nations. The licensing industry will make its selections from a ballot that includes 175 nominees in 23 categories of brands, properties and companies.

For a full listing of the categories and the nominees please click here.

Here are the nominees for Best Licensed COLLABORATION:

Coca-Cola x Diesel

Coca-Cola x Diesel: The (Re)Collection, where two iconic brands, Coca-Cola and Diesel, have joined forces to create a beautifully crafted and edgy capsule collection partially made of recycled materials.  The range includes recycled materials such as recycled PET derived from plastic bottles and recycled cotton, to create a fresh, modern interpretation of Diesel’s casualwear aesthetic combined with Coca-Cola iconicity to make a statement. Creating beautiful fibers from plastic, this collaboration aims to raise awareness on the value of recycling with all pieces made with recycled PET fibers.

The collaboration rolled out worldwide, with a global first showcase of The (Re)Collection taking place at renowned department store Galeries Lafayette in Paris. This event unveiled the collection and brought to life the unique recycling message during Paris Fashion Week as well as give Parisian style seekers the chance to dress in style with a collection incorporating recycled materials. The launch event in Paris was followed by a series of collateral events that took place around the world including London, Berlin, Milan, Tokyo, Shanghai, Beijing, Amsterdam, New York, among others.

Crayola x Levi’s

Two American icons, Crayola and Levi Strauss & Co., partnered in 2019 to bring color to the kids’ clothing aisle.  Macy’s teased the Levi’s x Crayola collection at the inaugural launch of its STORY shop-in-shop in April, and the full, sixteen-piece collection rolled out to the Macy’s apparel floorpad last Back-to-School season.

Produced by The Haddad Apparel Group, the program put a creative spin on classic Levi’s silhouettes with color-blocked denim trucker jackets, rainbow trims and candy-colored hardware.  The tees and sportswear separates for toddlers and kids inspired self-expression, quickly rising to best-seller status at Macy’s in 2019.

Kikkoman & Primitive Skateboarding

In its 150-year history Kikkoman has never allowed a co-branded license and after a two-year-long journey, they have allowed a partnership with Primitive. Kikkoman really loved every item sent to them for approval and also appreciated the great attention to product detail as well as the kindness and respect we’ve shown them in communication — so much so that they allowed us to come to their office in Japan with unprecedented access to their office, staff and production facility. The trip to Japan was so inspired it became a full skate team tour that launched a Kikkoman video edit, look book, and several campaign shoots.

Highlights of the collection include a CNC (cut special shape skateboard) shaped like the iconic sauce bottle as well as cut & sew items, socks that looked like they were washed in sauce, and a vast range of other items that all have a touch of car racing elements.

Peaky Blinders x Kent & Curven

Kent & Curwen’s ‘Garrison Tailors by Order of the Peaky Blinders’ Autumn/Winter ’19 tailored menswear is an authentic, well-designed capsule collection, with a nod to the dress and style of the TV series.  The collection was incredibly well-received by critics and fans alike.

Show creator Steven Knight commented, “These men were gangsters — but they were absolute dandies, too, which feeds right into this partnership with Kent & Curwen. We’re a match made in heaven.”

Peppa Pig x Hunter

The Peppa x Hunter collection truly celebrated the joy of jumping in muddy puddles with playful designs featuring the show’s much-loved characters across a colorful range of rain boots, backpacks & umbrellas. The natural synergy between these two British brands made the multi-territory collaboration a perfect fit and the designs created must-have items with a timeless appeal.  The collection made a big splash at retail and several lines sold out within 24 hours on day of launch in Hunter’s UK store. To meet consumer demand, Hunter extended the partnership into 2020 with plans for further lines in the pipelines.

SpongeBob SquarePants x Nike x Kyrie Irving

The Nike x Kyrie Irving x SpongeBob collaboration debuted in two releases in August and October 2019 and garnered over 1.6B impressions. It included footwear, apparel and accessories for toddlers through adult with something for every fan. Both footwear releases sold out in less than 30 minutes digitally, were highly coveted but in no way limited in quantity.  The marketing around this collaboration included support from Nike, Kyrie Irving and SpongeBob, as well as, a massive amount of press and social support from sneaker, fan, fashion and sporting accounts creating a pop culture moment that won’t soon be forgotten.

Stranger Things x Nike

Netflix and Nike celebrated the launch of this global partnership for Stranger Things Season 3 with three footwear collections and a “Hawkins Physical Ed” inspired apparel range. The sneakers were authentic 1985 styles, “Cortez” and “Blazer” and “Tailwind” in a variety of colors and used the actual sneaker fabrics from 1985.  There was a special style in the range that featured a special “upside down” inspired show where the outside fabric that can be scraped, burned and destroyed to reveal secret fabrics and  designs underneath. Many hidden details to excite our fans were built into the products such as secret codes and show references for an authentic Stranger Things experience.

The Marketing campaign revolved around missing Nike shipments from 1985, with social teasers, billboards, and videos encouraging fans to call hotline.  Launch events included launch parties at Kith and Bait LA stores. A scavenger hunt was held during San Diego Comic Con with hundreds of fans completing the scavenger hunt and 100% of participants purchasing the early release sneaker.