Licensing Expo Is Coming + I Trained for 6 Months… Then Everything Changed

What does it really take to prepare for the biggest event in the licensing industry?

In this episode of Born to License, David shares a behind-the-scenes look at gearing up for Licensing Expo in Las Vegas — and why this year is different.

After more than a decade attending, the Born team is stepping onto the show floor as an exhibitor for the very first time. From booth design and team logistics to back-to-back meetings and live podcast recordings, this episode breaks down what actually goes into showing up at Expo the right way.

But before that, a personal twist: after six months of marathon training, an unexpected injury changes everything — opening the door to a completely different challenge: a trek to Everest Base Camp.

In this episode:

🏃‍♂️ From marathon to mountain

• The reality of long-term preparation and setbacks
• Why a cancelled race led to a new adventure
• Everest Base Camp: the next big challenge

🎯 Licensing Expo: behind the scenes

• What changes when you go from attendee to exhibitor
• The complexity of building a booth
• Why preparation is everything

🤝 What really happens at Expo

• Hundreds of meetings, events, and opportunities
• Why schedules fill up faster than you think
• The importance of planning ahead

🎙 What’s new this year

• Live Born to License podcast recordings from the show floor
• Speaking on AI and licensing
• The Born Summit in LA bringing the global team together

🎬 A quick take on original IP & licensing

• Why films like Project Hail Mary face challenges in licensing
• The risk vs reward of backing new IP
• Why the industry still leans toward established franchises

The key takeaway: Licensing Expo isn’t just an event — it’s a moment.

And like marathon training, the results you get come down to how well you prepare.

🎙 Born to License – Hosted by David Born

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Transcript

I'm going to start today's podcast with some personal news that I briefly mentioned at the end of the last episode. If you've been following along, you know I've been training for the Rotterdam Marathon, which is happening this weekend. I've been training for six months and I'm probably the fittest I've ever been. I was honestly expecting to beat my last time, which I was very excited about, but sadly, I won't be able to run the marathon due to an injury that's propped up in the last few weeks. So. So months of early morning sore legs, hundreds of kilometers covered, and I won't be on the start line, unfortunately. But here's the silver lining, and it's a really big one. My doctor has just given me the green light for something I've been planning for a very long time. 

 A hike to the base camp of Mount Everest in Nepal. This is a trip I've had earmarked for my 40th birthday and my 10th wedding anniversary. So Rotterdam closes and Everest opens. I'll tell you more about that on a future episode. Episode. For now, just know I'm trading a flat road race for a very tall mountain. So watch this space all right, let's talk about something that honestly feels a lot like Marathon Prep Licensing Expo. It's next month, May 19th to 21st, in Las Vegas, and for the born team, this year is different. After 12 times attending this event, we are finally doing it. We have our first ever booth. I've walked the floor as an attendee, as a guest, as a speaker, but this year we are showing up as an exhibitor. 

 And I have to say, building out that booth, planning the layout, finalizing the design. It's made me think about Licensing Expert in a completely new way. And I have even more respect for those who work their butts off leading up to the show to make their booths look incredible. We'll have a team of 13 people there between us. We're expecting to attend hundreds of meetings, summits, and side events. Schedules are filling up fast. If you want time with any of us, now is the time to reach out before it's too late. And if you're heading to Expo, keep an eye out because we'll be doing live recordings of this very podcast from the floor. That's right, Born to License Live from Licensing Expo. More details coming soon on that. 

 And I'm also sitting on a panel about AI and licensing, a topic I've got plenty of thoughts on, so stay tuned for more on that too. A Few more updates from the Born world. The week before Licensing Expo will be the Born Summit in la. We'll have team members flying in from the uk, from Spain, from Brazil and from other states of the US to spend a week together as a team. We'll be doing some really fun things. It's really important as a remote first company that we really make the most of the time we have together and I really can't wait. Meanwhile, Amber from our Born licensing team has just landed in New York for a shoot. I can't say too much yet, but I will say that it involves a character that I grew up with. That's all you're getting for now. 

 More on that soon. I'm heading to London this week. A bit of business catching up with the Europe based team and then straight on to Nepal for the hike. So the next few weeks are going to be eventful to say the least. Now, a little detour because I have to talk about Project Hail Mary. I saw it over the weekend and it was genuinely one of the best cinema experiences I've had in a long time. It was absolutely incredible. Highly recommend. Go see it if you haven't already. But and here's when my licensing brain kicks in. I was thinking this while I was watching the film and it was getting better and better. There's not a lot of licensed merchandise out there for it and that's not surprising. This is an original story. 

 There's no pre existing fan base, no decades of IP equity behind it. It was a book before it was a film, but still, you know, it didn't really have the strength of like a Wicked did going into a new film. And that really is increasingly the story with great original films. The licensing opportunity is real, but the Runway is short and the risk is really high. Retailers, licensees, they just can't fully back a film that hasn't proven itself yet. It's something I've covered off on the show before and I'm sure it will come up again. What does the licensing look like for original IP in an industry that's obsessed with sequels, prequels, spin offs, all of that kind of stuff? One last thing before we wrap up. And this makes me smile every time I think about it. 

 We just released the latest episode of Born in Action, our behind the scenes vlog series on YouTube. This episode covers my visit to the Oodies offices in Melbourne. And yes, if you've ever wanted to see me running around Australia on a hot day wearing an Oodie, your moment has arrived. I talked a lot about the Oodie and their licensing strategy on this podcast. And this Born in Action episode gives you a look behind the curtain and have a look at the show notes. We'll include the link. All right, that's a wrap for today's episode. Marathon cancelled, Everest confirmed licensing expo incoming, a booth to build and some live podcast episodes to plan for just a normal few weeks in licensing. If you're heading to Expo in May, reach out. I'd love to connect. 

 And if you're not, follow along here and on our socials because it's going to be a big one. We'll be sharing everything on Instagram, on LinkedIn and our other channels. I'm david born. This is Born to License.