In this episode of The Licensing Exchange, hosts David Schnider and Greg Pan speak with Stu Seltzer, President of Seltzer Licensing Group, NYU professor, co-author of Brand Licensing for Dummies, and 2024 Licensing Hall of Fame inductee.

Stu shares how he began his licensing career at Yves Saint Laurent, managing 15 global licensees across 60 territories, before moving to Warner Bros./DC Comics and overseeing hundreds of partnerships connected to Batman, Superman, Looney Tunes, and major film releases. He explains how launching Seltzer Licensing Group allowed him to help brands—from UPS to the American Red Cross to Scott’s Miracle-Gro—grow through strategic licensing programs.

The discussion covers:

• Why licensing can make a good product great
• Why licensing cannot make a bad product good
• Collaborations like C4 x Popsicle, Kate Spade x Klondike, Dove x Crumbl Cookies
• Corporate & nonprofit licensing opportunities
• Risk, compliance, monitoring and evaluation
• Stu’s NYU brand licensing course and hands-on learning approach
• Underrated trade shows like Expo West and the Hardware Show
• Strategic licensing plans: how brands identify market categories & revenue potential
• Why brand impressions now matter as much as royalty revenue
• How licensing creates sustainable competitive advantages

This is a masterclass in brand strategy, consumer products, and the evolving licensing landscape.