Meet the Minds

Enter Esther Jolley, a name synonymous with licensing excellence for two decades. Over the years, she’s worked at esteemed global licensing agencies like Beanstalk and CAA Brand Management, alongside a stint in licensee territory as head of licensing at Zeon.

Today, she holds dual positions as Managing Director of Europe for LMCA and IA Director, Brand Extension at Stobbs. Her magic touch has illuminated illustrious brands including Jaguar Land Rover, Harley-Davidson, and more.

On the agency side, Esther has worked with some fantastic brands, including Jaguar Land Rover, Harley-Davidson, Proctor & Gamble, Coca-Cola, Hershey’s, Castrol, and Electrolux Group.

At Zeon, she’s collaborated with the likes of Disney, Universal, Warner Brothers and Sanrio and manufactured products for M&S and Debenhams. 

Drawing from his MA Fashion at Central Saint Martins and trend forecasting at IWS and International Textiles, Oliver launched Skew to bring style to the licensing industry, introducing a novel trending process to BBC Worldwide, HIT and Nickelodeon. With a jump from design to creative direction, Oliver expanded Skew from trend to a full-service offer, launching core guides for Cartoon Network, Fremantle, and Ubisoft.

Oliver’s move to business development and a focus on strategy won Skew fans across brand, sport and culture with Formula One, The British Museum, and The National Trust turning to Skew to develop their brand extension. He’s now on a mission to bring brand extension into the 21st century with effective methods built from the ground up to make creative accountable, strengthen commercial relationships, and bring your fans closer to your brand.

Enter Steve Manners, the Head of Global Marketing at Licensing International. He has a deep understanding of all aspects of licensing both from a licensor and agent perspective, having worked on many local, multi-territory and global brands.

His licensing prowess spans over 30 years, working in senior management consumer products positions at leading licensors and agents, including 20th Century Fox, Universal Studios, and Beanstalk. 

He also spent more than ten years at WildBrain CPLG as VP of Business Development, overseeing strategy, marketing, and client services.  

Anna is SVP of the Global Licensing Group within Informa. She has over 19 years’ experience working within both start-up and established events-led organisations (Centaur, UBM, Informa); has transitioned from managing marketing teams in exhibitions and conferences to running multi-million-pound event and media portfolios.

For the past four years, she has been leading a global team based in London, Santa Monica, New York and remote US locations working within the brand licensing industry. Experienced in launches, high-growth events and turnaround projects within EMEA, North America & Asia.

Maura's journey with Licensing International began in December 2016. By July 2018, she took the reins as President, equipped with over 20 years of experience in the global brand licensing and media realms. Stepping into the shoes of leadership, her mission focused on steering the organization's worldwide expansion and highlighting the incredible benefits of licensing in the broader business community.

As the former Head of Global Consumer Products at Sesame Workshop — the creative powerhouse behind Sesame Street— Maura drove the non-profit organization’s strategic commercial initiatives with a focus on delivering significant unrestricted revenue to support its overarching philanthropic goals. 

Before her impressive 17-year tenure at Sesame Workshop, Maura held executive positions with MTV Networks, Scholastic Entertainment, and The Jim Henson Company. 

Amanda Cioletti is the Vice President, Content and Strategy, for Informa Markets' licensing group. Cioletti has more than 12 years of experience in the brand licensing news space, having spent a bulk of her career nurturing the License Global and Global Licensing Group at Informa brands.

When not writing, reading or researching the many verticals that encompass the brand licensing space, Cioletti spends her time with her family and friends in the wilds of Colorado.