Tightening consumer spending could trigger a wave of caution across U.K. retail that would limit the opportunity for new properties to break through, according to Gary Pope, CEO at marketing firm Kids Industries.

Pope’s remarks, delivered during the Licensing for Retail Day event in London last week, came as retailers gathered to discuss strategies, including price matching and deepening investment in private label brands.

Industry executives warned that the potential for recession in the U.K. could lessen retailers’ desire to experiment with new brands and products as they focus on identifying and targeting customers. Pope, however, argued that an overly cautious approach to new brands would be short-sighted, and called for retail buyers to have the freedom (and time) to explore product categories fully and experiment with offerings.

In order for U.K. retailers to succeed in the current landscape, the also need support from licensors to better understand a property’s intended consumer and where those opportunities might sit, said Kris Hamer, Director of Insight at the British Retail Consortium.

Several licensing deals that were highlighted at the event put that type of creativity and collaboration on display.

For example, Kellogg’s Pringles brand recently launched the Pringles x Minecraft Suspicious Stew collaboration, named for a recipe well known to players of the game. The conservation and stewardship charity English Heritage Trust, meanwhile, manages more than 400 buildings and gardens in the U.K. and has licensed the brand for crisps (Made for Drink), fabric and wallpaper (Designers Guild), and beer (Purity Brewing Co.).

And the Van Gogh Museum, represented in the U.K. by Link Licensing, has a licensing program that draws from its archive of 1,750 paintings with a focus on younger consumers. The average age of visitors to the museum is 32 and 79% of visitors are 21–55 years old.

Another strategy to reach consumers that are cracking down on spending is to connect with them on issues like sustainability and inclusivity, industry experts at the conference said. Mattel has added its first autistic character—Bruno the Brake Car—to the new Thomas the Tank Engine series and its new Monster High doll line includes Frankie Stein, a non-binary character.

Another takeaway from the Licensing for Retail Day event was an ongoing investment in location-based entertainment and gaming properties.

LBE continues to gain in popularity with U.K. consumers across all age groups and price points. And while content inspired by gaming properties has seen recent success (The Super Mario Bros. Movie earned $375.6 million globally its opening weekend), the category is becoming a go-to for retail because the evergreen nature of popular gaming brands means the products are appealing to consumers even when there isn’t a new film or television series to spike interest.