Las Vegas Licensing Expo: How to Prepare Now (Before It’s Too Late)

Licensing Expo may be in May - but if you’re not preparing right now, you’re already behind.

In this episode of Born to License, David Born shares exactly how he and his team prepare for Licensing Expo 2026, the world’s biggest licensing event, attracting over 12,000 attendees and 5,000 brands from more than 70 countries.

From booking meetings months in advance to surviving long days on the show floor, this episode is a practical, no-fluff guide to making the most of your time in Las Vegas - whether you’re a first-timer or a seasoned attendee.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

• Why Licensing Expo preparation starts months before May
• How to build a smart target list and secure meetings early
• Why licensor showcases are strategic goldmines (and how to get invited)
• How to plan meetings realistically inside a massive venue
• Where to stay — and how to save thousands on accommodation
• What to bring (and what not to bring) to the show floor
• How to manage food, hydration, and energy during long days
• Why Thursdays can be your secret weapon for last-minute meetings

David also shares real-world tips from attending Licensing Expo year after year — including mistakes to avoid, how to move around efficiently, and how to stay sharp through three intense days of dealmaking.

If you’re attending Licensing Expo 2026 — or thinking about it — this episode will help you arrive prepared, focused, and ahead of the pack.

🎧 Next episode: The rise of AI in licensing — and what it means for brands, licensors, and licensees.

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Transcript

Welcome to born to license. I'm david born and today we're talking about something that should already be on your radar. Licensing Expo 2026. This is the world's biggest licensing event. More than 12,000 attendees, 5,000 brands represented from more than 300 exhibiting companies, attendees from more than 70 countries, all converging on Las Vegas for three days of deal making. This year it will take place May 19th to the 21st at Mandalay Bay Convention Center. But the real action will actually start Sunday the 17th and Monday the 18th of May with pre showcases and meetings. And if you think you can wait until April to start preparing, you're going to be scrambling. Let me tell you why I'm starting my prep right now in January. 

 Now, this will be my 12th time at licensing Expo, so throughout the episode I'll be sharing some tips from my time at the show from over the years. My team, at least 12 of us, are attending this year. They're already building target lists. By mid February, we'll know exactly who we want to meet. And by March, we'll be reaching out to book those meetings. Why so early? Because diaries fill up fast. The Disney's, the Warner Brothers, the Paramounts, the Hasbro's the Mattels, they get booked out months in advance. If you wait until a week before or even a month before, you'll be fighting for scraps. And here's another thing. You need to leave room in your schedule for showcases. These are not optional. They're strategic gold mines. 

 If you can get an invite, licensors like Disney, Netflix and Warner Brothers, they host these presentations. They typically go for around an hour, 90 minutes. And they're sharing their entire slate for the next 12 to 36 months. Upcoming films, brand anniversaries, retail strategies, promotional partnerships, it will all be there. These showcases give you the intelligence you need to plan your licensing programs. So block time for them now. But you do need to get an invite and it's often limited to existing licensees, agents and partners. One critical thing to note, last year, companies like Disney, Netflix and Sesame Workshop, they weren't actually located on the show floor. They were in separate locations nearby, which meant adding 15 minutes of travel time between meetings. 

 So you'll need to factor that in to your scheduling as well. Let's talk a little bit about accommodation. If you haven't booked yet, do it now. Do it this week. It's already expensive and it's only going to get More expensive the closer we get to May. I booked rooms for my team about three or four months ago, so did it well in advance while they were still available and reasonably priced. There are three hotels that dominate the Delano, the Four Seasons and Mandalay Bay itself. They're right there walkable to the show floor, but they're also premium priced. And when you're sending a team of 10 plus people like we will be, costs will add up fast. That's why my team stays at the Luxor, the pyramid shaped hotel about a 15 minute walk away. All indoors, which matters when it's 40 plus degrees outside. 

 In Las Vegas summer, it's considerably more affordable, has a great gym and keeps us close enough to maximize meeting time. Now my team is spread across the world. Naturally, as we're a remote first company, we'll have people coming from the uk, from Spain, from Brazil, from the us. But we'll all be arriving in Vegas together because we've actually planned to spend the week prior to Licensing Expo in LA to connect in person before the chaos of Vegas kicks in. So we'll all be arriving at the Luxor together. Let's talk about meeting logistics. Meetings at Licensing Expo typically run in 30 minute blocks, but here's my advice. Plan for 25 minutes of conversation and 5 minutes of transition time. The venue is massive and even moving from one booth to another can eat up precious minutes. 

 You might think you can be strategic, you know, book Warner Brothers Discovery, then line up Sony Pictures afterwards who are right next door. But in practice it's nearly impossible. Instead, take meetings when you can get them and just buffer time in between. And if you're meeting with someone off the show floor like Disney and Netflix were last year, or if the company you're meeting with has booked a suite in the hotel, you need to allow even more time between meetings. Meetings. I've had to block full hour long slots for a 30 minute meeting because it takes 15 minutes to get there and 15 minutes to get back. It's annoying, but it's reality. And here's a practical tip. If you're in back to back meetings and you get a five minute gap, a cancellation or a delay perhaps, use it very wisely. 

 Go to the bathroom. There's nothing worse than being stuck in a three hour meeting marathon and having no break. So what should you prepare to bring to Licensing Expo? A few obvious things. Bring a notepad, bring several pens. You're going to get a flood of information and you need to capture it. Bring a digital deck, a brand Profile or company overview on your iPad. Maybe don't bring printed materials. Not many people want to carry paper home from Vegas. Bring product samples if you can. Physical products make a great impression with licensors. And bring a refillable water bottle. There are water fountains where you can fill that up. It's better than buying bottled water in Vegas. You're spending $10 a pop there. The casino basically has you trapped. There are no nearby supermarkets, no affordable options. 

 So if you solely rely on buying bottles of water, it's going to cost you a fortune. Here's something that we did for the first time last year and I would totally recommend it. If you're looking to be a bit thrifty on the day you arrive, take an Uber to a supermarket. Buy water for your room, bananas or other fruit and other snacks, and anything else that you feel like you would need during the day. I did this for the whole team and with a team of 12 attending this year, you know, go to the supermarket. I dropped $250 at the supermarket buying all those things. That's my cost on day one. 

 But really what I'm doing is I'm saving the team having to think about snacks and water for the entire trip and in the process probably save the business over $1,000 across the week because it all adds up a lot. You know, $10 bottles of water across 12 people multiple times a day. Yes, it adds up very quickly. This strategy really keeps everyone hydrated, energized and focused without spending a lot of money on basics or even having to worry about where they're going to get their water, where they're going to get their banana, where they're going to get their snacks. I remember once, I think it was the first or second time that I went to Licensing Expo is I really wanted a banana and I ended up paying $7 for a banana. That was a bit of a rip off. 

 I won't be doing that again. Now, if your schedule is anything like mine, you'll need to be smart about lunch. There's a food court right outside the exhibition area and it get absolutely rammed between noon and 2pm the lines can be an hour long. People camp at tables all day conducting meetings, so finding a seat is nearly impossible. My suggestion, go at 11:30 or after 2:00pm to avoid the rush. I usually go to Subway. I managed one in Melbourne when I was 19 and I ate a lot of Subway at the time. So that's always my choice when there is pretty slim pickings like pizza and burgers. Subway I feel like is one of the few places where you can get salad and vegetables into your system during the day. 

 I do remember I once had a meeting in the subway line because neither of us could afford to lose time and the line took about an hour. So we ended up having the meeting and then at the end of the meeting we ordered the food and ate it. That's how hectic it can get. So be prepared to conduct meetings in weird places, including lines for food now there's more to Licensing Expo than just meetings. Don't miss the Character parade. It's this wild moment where 50 plus costume characters march together. You'll see SpongeBob, Bluey, Paw Patrol, Bugs Bunny, Scooby Doo, and a lot of other favorites all in one place. It's perfect for social content and just a surreal industry moment. Also, check the agenda for panels and educational sessions. 

 If you haven't filled your schedule or even if you have some of these talks are genuinely valuable. And pay attention to what licensors are showcasing on their stands. You really should take some time to walk the show as well, so block off some time to do that and watch what licensors have on their stands. For example, Universal will likely go big on Shrek as they gear up for Shrek 5 in 2027. Warner Bros. Will lean into key brands like DC and Harry Potter. 

 We can expect Barbie to have a massive presence at the Matel stand as always, as well as Masters of the Universe, considering the film release will be weeks away by the time Licensing Expo rolls around, so keeping an eye on what licensors are prioritizing can be visual cues to demonstrate where they're putting their focus for the next 12 to 24 months. And if you're bringing a team, divide and conquer. As I've said, we'll have at least 12 born team members there this year, which is our biggest cohort yet, and we'll be going to different meetings simultaneously. Prepare to keep meeting groups to three to four people maximum. The tables and the booths can be quite small and more than that gets pretty uncomfortable. As for the evenings, Vegas can be tempting, but my advice is to stay sharp. 

 I personally don't drink during the show because it impacts the my sleep and energy. I'll typically wake up at 5am, hit the gym shower and go straight into breakfast meetings. That's what works for me. But everyone has their own way of working, so if you are more of a night owl than a morning lark, then you know you do your thing. If you do want to network at the Hotel bars in the evenings, go for it. You'll meet licensing folks there in the wild. An opportunity to talk to them perhaps while their guards down a bit, and you can really start to make some great relationships that way as well. Just perhaps don't go so hard that you're hungover the next day, because you really need to be 100%. It is not pleasant being in meetings when you're just not feeling it. 

 So the Thursday will be the last day of the event and it's typically the quietest. If you didn't get a meeting earlier in the week, circle back to the stand, because people's schedules start to clear up on the Thursday and you might get a slot. It does always feel a lot quieter on Thursday. Sometimes the people that you want to meet with have already left the show, so be mindful of that. But if they're still there, they might have some availability. So, bottom line, as we look at Licensing Expo 2026, it's in May that your preparation starts now. Build your target list, book accommodation, start reaching out for meetings. The earlier you move, the better positions you'll be. 

 I'll be doing another episode closer to the event, and in that episode I'll be digging in a bit more about how to best approach licensing expo for 2026. So that's all for today's episode. If you found this useful, share it with someone in the licensing world who'd appreciate it. And if you've got questions about Licensing Expo, hit me up on LinkedIn or on Instagram next week. I'm very excited to be talking about the rise of AI and what that means for licensing. Until then, I'm david born and this is born to license.