Designer and illustrator Emma Lawrence on expanding her brand into candles, cards, gardening tools and more

Emma, since we last spoke you have added a number of new partners to your licensing programme, including The Country Candle Company, Fair to Trade and Kingfisher Cards. Can you tell us more about these new licensees and what they are doing?
It has been a busy year and I’ve welcomed some wonderful new partners to the licensing programme. The Country Candle Company are a family-run business known for their beautiful quality products and incredible fragrances. Together we have developed a range of tin candles and diffusers featuring farm vehicles and animals, a Christmas collection, and another called Out & About in Britain, celebrating British locations and traditions such as county shows, fayres, the coast and woodland.

Kingfisher Cards have published cards from several different ranges, with plans to build and expand those collections further. Designs range from farm animals wearing wellies to feminine florals. An exciting development has been the creation of a range of mini tin candles for the greetings card market, developed in conjunction with The Country Candle Company. These feature sentiments and are designed to be gifted alongside a card. It’s a great example of how the licensing programme is developing strategically, with partners working together and creating complementary products.

I met Fair to Trade at BLE and we quickly worked to develop a Christmas range ready for the trade shows. I was immediately impressed by their sustainable ethos and their support for artisan communities in Nepal. They have created recycled cards and gift bags featuring my British wildlife illustrations, alongside hand-painted baubles where skilled artisans carefully recreate my illustrations by hand. It feels like a very natural partnership in terms of shared values and long-term direction.

Thinking about licensing and licensees, how do you coordinate activities between them?
Coordinating activities between different licensees can be a bit of a juggling act and will vary depending on where we are in the product development process. Communication is key, and I try to ensure that everyone understands where designs are being used and how ranges are evolving.

And what goes into crafting a coordinated look across the different collections?
In order to create a coordinated look across licensed products, I design in a versatile way from the outset. Alongside placement illustrations, I create coordinated patterns and smaller supporting elements. This allows the artwork to be adapted across different products and materials while maintaining a cohesive feel.

My style and colour palettes are usually recognisable as being part of the Emma Lawrence Designs brand, which helps create continuity across ranges, even when they are produced by different partners. That recognisability becomes increasingly important as the programme grows.

Another new licensee you have signed is Gardening for Kids. Can you tell us more about this partnership?
Gardening for Kids are a great new licensee and our relationship actually began several years ago. They were previously stockists of my Little Nature Explorers series of children’s books and when they started developing their own products, we began discussing how we might work together more closely.

I had already used the illustrations from the books to create stationery items, which won the Manchester Stationery Show LaunchPad competition and were runner up in Gift of the Year. The Little Nature Explorers range was designed specifically for children and features cute characters such as bugs and minibeasts, while retaining their recognisable features so they can still be identified in nature.

Does your creative process change when designing for children?
The thought process is slightly different when designing for children. It’s important to understand what they find appealing and engaging. In the books, for example, there is a little ladybird to spot on every page, and children enjoy exploring smaller details, which suits the way I naturally draw.

A considered aspect of the design process was that they were coloured with pencil crayons in order to show children what can be achieved with simple and readily available materials. The creatures have been given big friendly eyes and cheeky expressions to appeal to children, while still being educational.

Gardening for Kids share the same ethos and passion for wildlife, so the collaboration is a perfect match with the development of growing kits, gardening tools, accessories and watering cans. It also demonstrates how the brand can extend confidently across different product categories while remaining cohesive.

You recently exhibited at the Spring Fair and were located in the Licensing Lab. What was the thought process behind this – and how was the experience for you?
I had thought for some time that a dedicated licensing area could work well at Spring Fair, although I was initially slightly apprehensive about exhibiting. In reality, the experience was extremely positive.

Other than BLE, there is no other opportunity to showcase the breadth of my illustration portfolio while also bringing together examples from across my licensing programme in one place. I was keen to attract potential new partners and demonstrate the strength of Emma Lawrence Designs as a brand.

The stand was very busy, with a mixture of potential licensees and retailers who could clearly see how the ranges across different partners worked cohesively. I had nine licensees exhibiting at the show, which made it even more valuable for us all to connect and share ideas. The response to my designs and overall brand presence gave me real confidence in the direction of the programme.

With licensees like Farrah’s you have developed products that feature specific parts of the country, such as the Lake District. You also focus on popular subjects like dogs. How do you decide where to focus your design efforts?
Both Farrah’s and Samuel Lamont have used my location-themed designs to create ranges. I have noticed a growing interest in regional artwork, with retailers looking for designs that feel more bespoke and connected to place. Farrah’s were particularly keen to develop ranges that also sit within the heritage and visitor attraction sector.

I create many specific location illustrations for Zippy & George, who produce bespoke wall plaques and magnets, and the number of places I have drawn has gradually expanded over time. Each location is carefully researched to understand what it is known for, as well as the wildlife associated with that area, which is a personal passion of mine. Sometimes the research takes longer than the drawing itself!

When developing other themes, such as dogs, it is often because they are consistently popular subjects or because a licensee has identified demand in that area. I tend to approach new themes with the mindset that the artwork can be used across multiple applications in the future, so I am comfortable investing the time knowing it can have longevity.

You have greetings cards with Kingfisher. What do you think are the elements that make a successful and appealing greetings card?
For me, a successful greetings card needs to be eye-catching and well balanced in its design. It should be appealing from a distance on a busy shelf but also reward the customer with smaller details when they look more closely.

A sense of fun and gentle humour is important, as is broad appeal. While niche designs can work in certain contexts, most publishers are looking for artwork that connects with a wide audience and feels both relatable and uplifting, while still retaining a distinctive style. I always say my cards are designed to make you smile.

How important is it to build a good working relationship with your licensees – and what helps make this partnerships tick?
The relationship is absolutely key. I believe it is essential to work with partners who share your vision and values. Trust and openness allow for honest conversations about what is working commercially and where there may be opportunities to develop further. Strong relationships make the creative process smoother and often lead to new ideas and extensions of ranges. It is something I spoke about in my Licensing Lab talk at Spring Fair, as I believe successful licensing is built on partnership and mutual growth.

Do you have gaps in your licensing programme you are looking to fill?
There are two main areas I would like to strengthen. One is general gifting and stationery, following the end of a previous licence, and the other is crockery and kitchenware within the homeware sector.

Over the last year I have focused on working with partners who specialise in their specific product categories rather than those who produce very broad ranges. This ensures high product quality, strong routes to market and, in many cases, UK manufacturing. Working with specialists also makes the development process more streamlined and commercially focused.

I hope to fill these gaps through continued relationship building and increased brand recognition as the licensing programme develops, particularly within the wider home and lifestyle space.

If we look ahead to 2027 – where do you want Emma Lawrence Designs to be licensing and retail-wise?
Over the next year I would love to secure a couple of new licensees that I am currently in discussions with. It is about building those relationships over time. Filling the identified gaps within gifting and kitchenware would be a great next step.

Alongside that, I want to continue strengthening existing partnerships and expanding current ranges. My long-term aim is for Emma Lawrence Designs to be recognised not only within the gift sector, but more broadly across home and lifestyle. The versatility of my illustrations means they can translate confidently onto larger format homeware and textile products, and I would love to see the brand represented more widely in those spaces. I am just about to announce a new licensee in fabric and textiles which is very exciting.

“I believe it is essential to work with partners who share your vision and values.”

My goal is steady and sustainable growth. I aim to build cohesive, recognisable ranges across multiple categories and at the same time want to maintain quality, consistency and strong partnerships.

Finally beyond your own art and products, was there a particular product or range that caught your eye at the Spring Far?
I didn’t manage to see as much of the show as I usually would, but one stand that caught my eye was Tinit. This was partly because I love tins! The products themselves are functional and practical, but the designs used beautiful and pleasing colours, were eye-catching and had a real sense of nostalgia to them which I found very appealing.

It’s always interesting to see how strong design can elevate even the most practical everyday items and it then makes them collectable. The extra-long tins in particular really stood out. They were for extra-long matches but I was thinking about pens and pencils filling them after their first use. I could easily imagine my own location-based and wildlife illustrations working beautifully on that kind of product!

Good pick! Thanks again Emma.