ATLANTA, Ga.  – The University of Oregon (UO) announced this week that it has finalized a new seven-year partnership with Fermata Partners to serve as the University’s first-ever trademark licensing agency. The University’s licensing program was started as a self-operated program more than three decades ago and has grown to be one of the top ten licensing programs in the country. The new partnership with Fermata formally begins immediately.
“We are excited about expanding the University of Oregon brand through our new partnership with Fermata Partners. Fermata will help expand the university’s relationships with licensees and retailers in the state and across the country,” said Matt Dyste, UO’s director of marketing & brand management. “We will continue to work with our licensees to deliver Duck merchandise to our students, alumni and fans.”
Oregon becomes the fourth major university in the past four months to select Fermata, joining Kentucky, Miami, and the University of Georgia, which will begin as a client of the firm on July 1, 2015.  Oregon currently has almost 400 licensees that will begin the transition process immediately with Fermata.
“Fermata will help accelerate and further enrich the university’s efforts to bring Oregon merchandise to Duck fans everywhere,” UO Athletics Director Rob Mullens said. “We are proud of our alliances with licensees and retailers across the country and we will remain innovative and progressive in our approach to telling the Oregon story.”
The New York Times recently found the UO to have one of the largest followings among college football fans in the country through its analysis of Facebook fans’ Likes across 84 teams. The data (here) showed the Oregon Ducks football team as the most popular team across a wide swath of the Pacific Northwest and the Western U.S.
“We are humbled by the invitation to sit alongside the University to advance and amplify Oregon’s brand through the touch-point of consumer products,” said Chris Prindiville, a Fermata co-founder and 1996 graduate of the UO Lundquist College of Business. He added, “The University has built a successful independent program, and we look forward to continuing to support the University in growing the Oregon brand well into the future.”
Fermata Partners, based in Atlanta, is a specialized consumer products licensing agency that partners with brands possessing deep affinity in sport, lifestyle, and college to formulate global licensing strategies and deliver practical execution. Founded in 2011, the firm’s Atlanta headquarters is home to a talented and committed team of specialists with over 140+ years of trademark licensing experience with sport and lifestyle brands.
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For more information, contact: Derek Eiler of Fermata Partners at de@fermatapartners.com or 404-996-1962 or Greg Bolt of the University of Oregon at gbolt@uoregon.edu or 541-346-1919