Licensing expert Toby Rayfield on gaming, retail and the importance of authenticity

Firstly, can you give us a quick introduction to your licensing career to date.
After a highly successful career in the fashion industry that allowed me to travel the world and live and work in Germany and Switzerland, I moved into licensed fashion with a company that specialised in video game-inspired fashion. They were called Musterbrand, based in Hamburg, Germany. While the company no longer exists, it gave me a fantastic opportunity to work as a licensee and meet with studio heads, game developers and consumer product development teams.

I worked as a Licensing Manager but also as a Product Developer, using skills honed in the fashion industry to develop high-end, high-quality streetwear for fans of games such as Assassin’s Creed, World of Warcraft and Halo.

I have always enjoyed playing video games and fell in love early on with games like Sonic The Hedgehog, Out Run and Space Harrier. I had always been a huge fan of SEGA’s games and consoles, when I was offered the chance to move back to the UK and work for SEGA as a Senior Licensing Manager across EMEA.

“You need retail on your side.”

When I started at SEGA in 2016, people would say to me: “I remember Sonic, I used to love that game”. It took a tremendous amount of hard work from everyone on the UK and US licensing teams to convince retail buyers to take a chance on the ‘blue blur’. The upcoming third Hollywood film is testament to our success and I am very proud to have been part of the team who made it happen.

You mention video games, and these types of brands seem to be a core part of the licensing world these days. Why do you think that is?
Video games connect people to characters and game worlds on a deeply personal level. You aren’t watching someone play the hero, you are the hero. You’re not watching a fantasy world, you are part of it. There is a level of dedication and fandom that is not often seen in film and television.

At SEGA, we also invested a lot of time working together with key industry partners to promote and present the potential of video game licensing to buyers and retailers at key industry events such as Brand Licensing Europe, Licensing Expo and the Brands & Retail Conference.

Given the strength of the sector, do you think there is room for more gaming brands to be in the market? How would you sell licensing to a games publisher who doesn’t currently license their IP?
The video game industry is worth over $200 billion, more than film, TV and music combined. The Top 10 global brand licensing companies generated over $192 billion in 2023.

Fans will always want to show their support by purchasing products that allow them to connect with their favourite brands and characters… While there will always be a market, if fans don’t know where they can buy the product, it won’t sell. Not only is brand awareness essential, but the products also need to be promoted and marketed effectively to be successful.

You have worked a lot on style guide and packaging guide development with design agencies. Do you have any tips on how best to brief a design agency in licensing?
When briefing a design agency, it’s important to be clear about your brand identity, brand guidelines and the target demographic. You should be able to tell a short story about your game to set the scene and support this with key artwork, assets and concept art. I have been fortunate to spend many years briefing large design teams when I worked in the fashion industry and the experience gained has been very valuable in my licensing roles.

Licensing seems to be ever more focused on building and developing relationships with retail and retail buyers. How have you handled this part of the licensing mix in your career?
It’s simple: you will not get placement at retail without the support of retail buyers. You need the market research, and you need to have the numbers and statistics to back up your presentation to retail. You need retail on your side. Working together with licensor retail managers and external partners such as Retail Monster are important contributors to success at retail.

Is there a particular retailer who you think is doing a good job of selling gaming brands at the moment?
I would love to see more creative and fun activations in retailers to support consumer product launches. As part of the HYPE x Sonic collaboration, we took over the HYPE Carnaby Street store and put on a huge party to create a ‘key moment’ at retail and generate a buzz. The store was turned into a ‘Sonic world’ for the night and shared by fans across social channels.

For Sonic’s 25th Anniversary, Drop Dead turned their London store into a pixellated level from Sonic The Hedgehog and it looked fantastic. Fans loved it and the immersive experience generated a lot of chatter, which is essential when building brand awareness.

Retail is fast-paced and promotions are short-lived, normally built around a key marketing beat, but it would be lovely to see more creative gaming product areas inside retailers.

During your time at SEGA you were successful in growing the licensee base by recruiting new licensees. How did you approach new business?
The success at SEGA was a global success that we all worked hard towards driven by a passion to turn Sonic The Hedgehog into a top 50 entertainment brand. The irony was that it took the success at the box office of the first and then second Sonic The Hedgehog movies to catapult the brand into the spotlight at retail and propel the demand from licensees. Never underestimate the power of a successful movie to launch your brand towards global success!

“Video games connect people to characters and worlds on a deeply personal level.”

Once you have recruited a licensee, what’s the best way of keeping them on board and retaining their interest in ‘your’ brand?
I love the licensing industry and the people who I get to work with every day. I believe in long-term successful relationships and I pride myself on excellent customer service, ensuring my partners always have the tools that they need to create and promote successful consumer products. Communication is key.

Thinking more generally about the current licensing market, what design trends would you flag up as ones to look out for in 2025?
The video game industry has some fantastic titles launching next year, such as Fable, Doom: The Dark Ages, The Alters and The Division 2. It will be interesting to see how much creative freedom licensees are given to produce exciting consumer products to support these titles.

Seasonal trends, such as those proposed by global trend agencies like WGSN – who I have worked with previously – will dominate in homewares and apparel and accessories. Sustainability, especially in the toy and game category, is still a very important theme.

More importantly, today’s customers look for authenticity and they want to know that a brand is genuine. That is probably one of the most important trends, authenticity.

Finally, if you had the opportunity to work on and represent any brand of your choice, what would it be and why?
As someone who has always loved gaming, I would love to be given the opportunity to represent Sony PlayStation. They have an amazing portfolio of titles and first party studios with fantastic characters and IPs, such as Horizon Zero Dawn, Uncharted and Astro Bot.

Thanks again Toby.