Brand Licensing Europe 2026 — Day Three: From Creative Inspiration to What Comes Next

New Format | Day Three: 8 October 2026 | ExCeL London

The final day of Brand Licensing Europe 2026 brings our three-part editorial series to its closing chapter. After introducing the event and exploring the relationship between stories and products, we turn to the question that gives those ideas lasting value: what comes next?

Thursday, 8 October was the final scheduled day of BLE 2026 at ExCeL London. The event’s focus on licensing, brand development and collaboration provides the setting for this concluding New Format perspective on film, gaming, collectables and creative business.

For us, the most useful way to close this series is to consider which questions deserve attention after an event ends. How do you decide whether an idea fits your audience? What makes a collaboration meaningful? And how can inspiration become a realistic next step?

Looking Beyond First Impressions

An eye-catching concept is a starting point. Understanding its purpose takes more thought.

Throughout this series, we have returned to the relationship between recognition and relevance. A familiar character or visual identity can draw attention, but our interest lies in what a project offers beyond that first moment.

Would someone use it regularly? Would they display it proudly? Does it express something they love about a story? These are the questions we would use to assess a product or creative proposal.

Our closing perspective is that a strong idea should be explainable in everyday language. If we can describe who it is for and why they might care, we have a better basis for deciding whether to explore it further.

Film and Television: Protecting the Feeling of a World

As creators interested in film and television, we find the movement between screen storytelling and physical design particularly compelling.

A story’s identity can live in small details: a colour palette, a distinctive shape, a costume or an object associated with a character. When considering a new interpretation, we want to understand which of those details carries meaning for the audience.

Our view is that creative development benefits from that attention. A project should feel connected to its source through its design choices and the experience it offers.

This also gives us a useful question for our own work: if someone encountered only one image, object or short sequence from a project, what would it tell them about the wider world?

Gaming and Collectables: The Audience Comes First

The same question applies to gaming and collectables, where our interest centres on the relationship between an imagined world and a personal space.

We can picture very different reasons for choosing an item: making a streaming setup feel more individual, remembering a favourite game or enjoying a carefully designed display piece. Each reason suggests a different approach to the product.

For New Format, it is worth keeping those uses in mind when discussing ideas. We want to consider proportion, materials, practicality and presentation alongside the appeal of a familiar name.

We also want our coverage to leave room for different tastes. A subtle reference may appeal to one reader, while another prefers a bold statement piece. Understanding that difference is part of taking an audience seriously.

Collaboration Begins with a Clear Purpose

An event centred on brand collaboration naturally raises questions about how creative businesses find the right partners.

For our own planning, we would begin with a few practical considerations: what could each side contribute, who would benefit from the outcome, and what would a manageable first project look like?

We are interested in collaborations where the creative connection is easy to understand. That could mean complementary skills, a shared subject or an audience whose interests genuinely overlap.

At this stage, these are directions for consideration. Any specific New Format partnership will be announced when there is something confirmed to share.

Turning Ideas into a Working Plan

The next step for New Format is to apply a more focused approach to our creative planning.

One useful exercise is to separate ideas we enjoy from ideas we can realistically develop. A compelling concept still needs a clear scope, time, resources and a way to judge whether it has worked.

For a piece of editorial content, that might mean choosing one well-defined question and researching it properly. For a visual project, it could mean building a small concept study before committing to a larger production. For a potential collaboration, it might begin with a concise proposal that explains the audience and intended outcome.

This is the approach we want to bring to our future work: curiosity followed by specific, achievable steps.

Closing Our Three-Part BLE Series

Our opening article set out the subjects we wanted to explore. The second instalment examined how stories can inform products and design. This final chapter considers how those questions can guide future decisions.

Together, the three pieces reflect New Format’s interest in the meeting point of entertainment, visual creativity and business. We want to keep developing coverage that explains why an idea interests us and gives readers something useful to consider.

Thank you for following the series. Whether your interest is film, gaming, collectables or building your own creative project, we hope these articles have offered a starting point for further discussion.

What would you like New Format to explore next: film and television brands, gaming-inspired design, collectables or the process behind creative collaborations?

Follow our next articles and project updates at newformat.shop.

Dawid and Kamil ProchazkaNew Format Limited

Editorial note: This closing instalment combines verified event information with New Format’s commentary. It does not claim attendance at particular sessions, report unverified product announcements or confirm business partnerships.

Event sources: Official BLE dates and agenda page · About attending Brand Licensing Europe