A small mention in an article in Publisher’s Weekly has caught the eye of several Outlanders. An article about Licensing Expo ’14 mentioned that Sony, the producer of the Outlander series, has hired a company called Knockout Licensing (they hold the licensing rights for Downton Abbey and Little House on the Prairie) to find products and companies license merchandise for the TV show.
A quick perusal of STARZ originals finds no merchandise available for their shows, including White Queen, Black Sails, POWER, and others. But the popularity of fan-created merchandise, ranging from t-shirts to jewelry to water bottles, should indicate that there’s a huge market for Outlander-themed items. Lots of merchandise has been created for many other popular shows – Doctor Who has enough official merch to fill a mall; Game of Thrones could outfit Daenerys’ entire army. Items including boxers, watches, phone cases, and of course, t-shirts, are available for Falling Skies, Revolution, True Blood, and many, many more. Lots of these items are inexpensive, but can range to the high end, like this Tardis watch for $250.
So, what would you like to see produced? What would you actually buy? (Of course, we’d all buy the season DVDs). I’m not a big promo t-shirt type of girl, but I could be talked into a hoodie. Or a necklace. A watch… definitely a watch. Or… note cards featuring Matt Roberts’ beautiful scenic photos? Take our poll, above, and/or comment below (go all the way to the bottom of this post) on what kind of merchandise you would be interested in (and actually consider purchasing), and what you wouldn’t care for. I’ll make sure that this gets passed along to Starz – the Outlander community has been very vocal and influential so far, and if I were in charge of looking for licensed products, I’d want to know what the fans would really want!
Speaking of “Stuff…”
Keep your eyes open – on Friday, I’ll post information about a flash contest that I’ll be holding for my birthday. The contest will be open only on Monday, June 23, so watch for details and be prepared!
