Apparel Advisory Board Member Spotlight: Jennifer Blackmon
Six questions answered by our featured Apparel Advisory Board Member of the Month, Jennifer Blackmon.
#1 Briefly summarize your career path and your current position.
I have been in the Auburn University office of trademark management and licensing since 2001. As a 1993 Auburn University graduate with a degree in marketing, I worked for The Collegiate Licensing Company in Atlanta, Georgia for eight years. While at CLC, I licensed the first collegiate video game, managed the licensing for the NCAA, bowl games, national championships, and conferences, as well as other special licensing programs.
#2 What are the “primary” responsibilities of your current position?
Our office manages how the Auburn brand is used on retail merchandise and internal campus projects. The primary goals of our office are to promote the Auburn brand, protect the Auburn brand, and generate revenue for student scholarships.
We accomplish our goals by: understanding the Auburn brand and why consumers feel connected to it; building these insights into great products that help tell our brand story, connecting with retailers in our main channels, and creating deeper relationships; understanding how our consumers shop, consume content and express their loyalty; protecting the university brand from unauthorized uses and those that do not reflect our message; and, finally, assisting the Auburn campus with branding needs related to product and third-party uses
#3 What are the major challenges of your current position?
The growth trajectory of the collegiate licensed products industry has slowed in recent years. The retail landscape has had an effect on this slower growth with the closing of prominent retailers, the growth of e-commerce, and the consolidation of manufacturers. Finding new ways to reach the consumer with all of the noise they experience on social media, for example, is challenging. The availability of counterfeit goods has grown tremendously. Consumers don’t understand that many sellers on-line are not selling licensed products. Lastly, managing our daily activities to leave time for strategic planning gets more and more difficult.
#4 What competencies are necessary for success in your current position?
In the licensing world, especially in higher education, we have to wear many hats. The ability to communicate with all stakeholders is key. One day, I am meeting with a student and the next day meeting with our attorney about a legal issue. The ability to set goals and a strategy for reaching the goals keeps you focused on the big picture. The day-to-day activities can dominate your time, so making sure you schedule yourself to work on proactive projects is important. Lastly, you need to be a life-long learner. I spend a lot of time reading about consumer trends, retail industry trends, what’s going on in the economy, athletics issues, etc. In order to set a strategy, you have to know what’s going on in the world.
#5 What advice would you offer a student interested in a career in this industry?
If a student is interested in the world of licensing there are many paths from which to choose. Of course, collegiate or sports licensing is obvious, but art, entertainment, and brand licensing are other options. My advice would be to determine an area of interest and see if there are licensing opportunities. If you love Mickey Mouse, Disney has one of the best consumer products programs in the world. In addition to the product development and marketing, the brand protection side offers opportunity for those who are interested in trademark law.
#6 What current trends or issues have the greatest impact on this job/business?
In August 2020, the biggest trend impacting the licensing business is, as you can expect, Covid-19. The long term impact of the recent economic shutdown has had a negative impact on licensees and their factories and the retailers. For those retailers that have been on edge of bankruptcy for a while, Covid pushed them over. Moving forward, a strong e-commerce strategy will be important. Licensees who are seeing retailers cancel orders will pivot to a direct-to-consumer model to survive. It will be important for retailers to focus on the needs of the consumers and be strategic with their product buy and pricing strategy. Maintaining a level of unique product and avoiding a race to the bottom in a pricing strategy will be critical long-term.
Image contributed by Jennifer Blackmon
