How to Get a License for Hannah Montana Clothes
She's adorable and perky. Hannah Montana is the kid who has enough spunk and personality to light up a TV or movie screen without working too hard to illuminate her star. Preteens adore her, and you can understand why. However, your interest has nothing to do with TV, movies, music, or spunk. You'd like to get your hands on a Hannah Montana® clothing license so you can grab some of the money and success resulting from the dual personalities of Miley Cyrus and Hannah Montana. Disney® owns the brand as a direct result of launching the show on its network. It's going to take some effort on your part to get to the folks responsible for handing out licenses. However, if you're half as tenacious as the character on whom you plan to hang your designs, you should have everything you need to star in your own success story.
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Clothing design skills
- Portfolio of original Hannah Montana designs
- Marketing/licensing contact at Disney to pitch your ideas
- Licensing agreement with Disney
- Formal presentation
- Logos, style guides, color palettes and other Disney mandates
- Nondisclosure agreement
- Intellectual property attorney (strongly recommended)
Instructions
-
-
1
Scout out existing Hannah Montana brand licensees. You won't have to go further than the local mall since her products are so hot. Stroll retail, big box, department stores, and boutiques. Look in any outlet that caters to the preteen market. While you're fact-finding, visit the accessories section of the store to check out handbags and jewelry, and then slide by linens and other departments to see how popular the brand you're hoping to land has become.
-
2
Contact Disney, owner of the brand, to request a Hannah Montana style guide so you know exactly what color palette, design influences and limitations are imposed on anyone seeking a license to design and/or produce goods under the HM umbrella. Use the guidelines you receive from the company to design a portfolio of clothing that's trendy and hot enough to establish yourself as a fashion innovator.
-
-
3
Contact the appropriate Disney licensing division. Formulate a proposal that includes this information: 1) Your experience as a designer/manufacturer; 2) Your name, address, phone number and a biography; 3) A short explanation of why you want to become a Disney licensee; 4) Your product category (Apparel, Accessories & Footwear Licensing); and 5) Samples of other designs you have created in the past. It's very important that you do not send your designs to Disney. Disney doesn't accept e-mail or fax proposals. You must send your ideas to them by mail: Apparel, Accessories & Footwear Division, Disney Consumer Products, 1201 Flower Street, Glendale, CA 91201. You'll be contacted about either mailing your portfolio of designs to Disney, or your contact will set an appointment for an in-person meeting.
-
4
Fly to California for a meet and greet with the Hannah Montana apparel marketing team if you've received a go-ahead. Use your best business presentation skills to show off your designs. Come to the meeting equipped with an understanding of the market and be prepared to discuss why your designs are different from what's already on the market. If your contact expresses interested in your designs, ask pertinent questions about Disney licensing arrangements. If possible, ask for a blank licensing contract so you can review it after your visit.
-
5
Insure and ship your presentation materials to your contact at Disney if you were unable to land a meeting -- but, only if they request the designs and have returned a signed copy of your nondisclosure form. Never send original copies of your Hannah Montana fashion designs and don't mail off materials if they haven't been requested by the licensor. You can make everyone's life easy by scanning your sketches, make them into PDFs and then load them onto a CD before mailing.
-
6
Hire an attorney to comb through the Disney contract so you understand your obligations as a licensee. He or she will look for and possibly negotiate a higher royalty rate (usually a percentage of the wholesale selling price), affirm the method and calendar dates on which you will be paid and will ascertain whether or not your name will appear on your designs. There's no guarantee you'll get it, but have your lawyer ask for an accounting of sales to help you track which Hannah Montana designs are selling. Require samples as part of your contract: finished samples of each outfit will give you an opportunity to build a library for future licensing negotiations.
-
1
References
Resources
- Photo Credit © Disney
