The global licensing community is powered by an incredible group of professionals whose diverse backgrounds and creative energy drive innovation and excellence. Each week we profile one of these professionals in this ongoing series.

How did you get into licensing (or how did licensing find you)?
I started my career in sports marketing. A few months into my role at The National Hockey League, the youth marketing department was dissolved, so I applied for an opening in their consumer products department. The rest is history.

What’s a “typical” day in your current position?
As everyone in this industry knows, there’s never a typical day in licensing, which is what I love about it. Depending on the season or a client’s needs, we’re constantly adapting to the newest opportunity or challenge at hand. We love getting involved in the licensor/licensee relationship and finding new ways to evolve the program through product development, eCommerce solutions, or retail marketing initiatives.

What’s your biggest personal or professional accomplishment?
I started Be Well Brands in early 2020, about six weeks before the pandemic shut down the world. Four years later, I feel so fortunate to still be working with so many amazing women-led and women-focused companies and providing them with the resources needed to grow their own brands through licensed merchandise.

What are the most significant trends or changes that you’ve seen in the business in recent years?
There’s so much hype and excitement surrounding women’s athletics and the female consumer. The “pink it and shrink it” model of producing women’s product is done (FINALLY!) with licensors and licensees looking to provide licensed product that serves targeted consumer needs and interests.

What keeps you up at night? What’s your biggest challenge these days?
The growth potential of women’s athletics and how we get ahead of offering meaningful licensed merchandise.

In your opinion, what is the top skill every licensing executive should have in order to succeed?
The key to succeed is to be a team leader that’s open, honest, and empowering to others (especially women!). We pride ourselves on giving straight answers that help us get to the root of the issue and quickly find an “out of the box” collaborative solve.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received, or what’s your favorite quote?
There’s an old Chinese proverb that says “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.”

What is your favorite licensing deal of all time? (It doesn’t have to be one that was signed by you.)
My favorite licensed products are those that truly bring the brand to life, like the SpongeBob piggy bank (in the shape of a pig because SB morphs into shapes), or the Zamboni machine ride-on toy and popcorn bucket (sold at arenas).

If you weren’t in licensing, what would you be doing now?
Finding homes for rescue dogs.

The last licensed product I bought was…
The LEGO Seinfeld set—and I wouldn’t let my kids help me build it!