Museums Boost Revenues with Luxury Suites, Fashion Lines and VR Licenses

As public funding dwindles, museums across Britain are increasingly relying on licensing agreements to supplement their budgets. The Natural History Museum now licenses a hotel suite at the Park Plaza London Riverbank, priced from £724 and featuring dinosaur-themed décor inspired by Sir Richard Owen. Recent collaborations include a paint line with Farrow & Ball, dinosaur-print jumpsuits with Lucy & Yak, and a VR adventure with Sandbox.

Industry data from Licensing International shows UK licensed sales rose 7% to $19.2bn, with museum-related “art property” sales up more than 8% and immersive attractions soaring 53%. Representatives from the British Museum and V&A stress that such partnerships help bring collections to wider audiences and create new revenue, as evidenced by numerous institutions exhibiting at the Brand Licensing Europe conference in London.