Company History

In 1984, Gary resigned his position as senior vice president of marketing at the Stuart Hall Company because the urge for entrepreneurship was just too much for him to resist. He was already very well known in the fledging licensing business and decided that the licensing business is where he wanted to be. He decided to strike out on his own and he founded GCI, a consulting practice devoted solely to the development and management of licensed products and programs.

Gary realized that while there were already dozens of “licensing agents,” all of whom represented properties, no one single licensing firm focused on the total needs of the manufacturer. Gary wrote a business plan that filled that void and a plan that seemed to make sense to manufacturers who felt that professional advice and counsel in the area of licensing would benefit them. It surprised even Gary that within the first sixty days, he became the proud “consultant” to ten new clients! Today, the firm represents close to twenty leading manufacturers.

(Gary’s first client in 1984 was The Thermos Company, an American consumer product icon. It was with great pride that both Gary and Thermos recently announced that a new renewal agreement was signed taking the relationship through 2007 … 23 years together!)

GCI’s approach to the business has changed over the years as the licensing business itself has changed. Gone are the days of “label slapping” marketing. What has emerged in licensing is a more sophisticated and considerably more challenging business. The business now requires a more seasoned, rational, and creative approach.

GCI looks forward to staying in the forefront of the licensing business and is committed to making a meaningful difference to their client companies and the licensor / property owners with whom they work.