Retail Licensing Q & A
How many schools are in the program?
K12 Licensing and the GHSA involve as many schools as possible through our vendors and retail distributors. 300+ schools received royalty payment last year. Products are mostly available in retail stores for back-to-school but there are online partners that offer products all year long.
How much revenue will the schools receive?
The schools will receive 60% of the royalty based on a standard 10% licensing fee on the wholesale price of the goods.
How will the funds be distributed?
The GHSA will distribute royalty payments one time per year (October) to the lead GHSA administrator at each school.
Does this program have any effect on merchandise sales by school stores or booster clubs?
No. School merchandise sold by school stores or booster clubs are NOT part of the retail-licensing program. Products with high school logos have been sold for years at retail stores with no statewide system in place to payback royalties to the local schools. Now vendors and retailers have a program managed by the GHSA and K12 that provides vendors and retailers the ability to give back to their community, while schools are able to receive new revenue.
How much money can schools expect to make from retail licensing?
The amount of royalty earned by each school will depend on several factors, such as the number of store locations and size of the store displays. Realistically, projections are that retail licensing will bring modest new revenue to your school.
What retail stores are currently carrying GHSA products?
Stores that are currently supplied by GHSA licensee vendors include: Walmart, Walgreens, CVS /pharmacies, Target, Hibbett Sports, Academy Sports, Dunham’s Sporting Goods, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Dollar General, Amazon, and Spirt Shop (online).
Some of these stores aren’t carrying GHSA merchandise. Why?
Each local store manager has the ability to place orders and determine quantity for their own store. Sometimes these displays could be seasonal, such as “back to school” sales during the summer/fall. If you would like the store to carry your schools’ merchandise, please talk to the manager. If the manager is not familiar with the GHSA program, ask them to contact Brandon Tucker (btucker@k12licensing.com) or by phone at 317-504-5400.
There are stores selling my school merchandise, but I do see a NFHS hang tag on the products. Is my school receiving royalties on the sales?
The GHSA can only guarantee that member schools receive royalty on NFHS hang tag merchandise. Each school can control and enforce protection of their brand. Local companies should support your school financially through sponsorships, advertisements, royalties, revenue sharing, donation of products/services or other agreed upon compensation in exchange for marketing rights.
Should schools develop original marks and logos?
Schools are encouraged to develop original marks and logos or receive permission from the owner of the logo. Several colleges and professional teams have begun to enforce copyright infringements.
Atlanta-based Hartwell Studio Works’ offers sports branding services to assist member schools in creating unique, dynamic, and protectable spirit marks. Read - 5 Things High Schools That Use College Logos Need To Know.
Contact John Hartwell at (404) 543-8825, or by email at john@hartwellstudioworks.com. View their website at www.hartwellstudioworks.com.
If a high school is interested in rebranding through CLC Creative, they can reach out to directly to Trajan Cunningham trajan.cunningham@learfield.com or (765) 480-6499. LEARN MORE
How can a school trademark their logo?
Schools can register school marks and logos through the Georgia Secretary of State online at: sos.georgia.gov/corporations/trademarks.htm. Local legal professionals and several online legal Web sites also offer trademark registration services at various price points.
