Brand anniversaries are a fantastic opportunity for brands to create ‘a moment’ to remind existing and lapsed fans about the IP, bring in potential new fans and licensing partners and secure new or additional shelf space at retail.
If planned correctly they can deliver on all of these, usually anchored around a high end fashion collaboration, unexpected co-brand partnership or new content.
2027 has its fair share of anticipated anniversaries. From the kids space Teletubbies will be celebrating its 30th, no doubt with some more edgy fashion collabs it has been engaging in over the past few years; literary classic Peter Rabbit turns 125 so expect some high end partnerships with other British heritage brands; and 80s mainstay Care Bears celebrates 45 years, with activity and excitement around the brand having been building for the past couple of years.
Culturally speaking there are three anniversaries that are likely to cut through. Smiley is iconic and it continues to bring in new fans through fashion collaborations and pro-social activity. The brand celebrates 30 years in 2027 and we are likely to see it across a lot of apparel, accessories and more. Guns N’ Roses will mark the 40th anniversary of their debut album, Appetite for Destruction. This will no doubt see a flurry of Guns N’ Roses and 90s rock collaborations, much in the vein of what we saw this year with Oasis and 90s Britpop. And the legend of aviation that is Pan Am will be celebrating its centenary. The airline that brought you first-class travel and the jet age will no doubt celebrate this milestone with some fantastic partnerships and celebrations.
As tabletop IPs continue to grow, one of the titans of this space, Warhammer 40,000, will be celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2027. With a continually growing core fan base, hugely successful licensed video games like Darktide and Space Marine 2, as well as content from Henry Cavill and Prime in the pipeline, there’s already plenty to celebrate. This anniversary offers up an opportunity to not only delight existing fans but, via partnerships that cut through, to broaden its appeal.
In the video games space two huge franchises celebrate key anniversaries. First up, Grand Theft Auto turns 30, and with the sixth instalment due out in May 2026, love for the game series should hopefully be at an all time high, making 2027 the perfect time to celebrate. And turning 40 is Final Fantasy, fresh off of an incredibly successful collaboration with Magic: the Gathering earlier this year, so we can likely expect other big name partnerships to mark this upcoming milestone.
The studio that has been doing brand anniversaries the longest is probably Disney. Long before Disney+ gave us access to the whole catalogue, the studio would bring its films ‘out of the vault’ for limited edition video or DVD runs to mark anniversaries. 2027 sees 4 big aninated film anniversaries with both Pete’s Dragon and The Rescuers turning 50, The Jungle Book hitting 60 and Bambi 85. Expect fashion collections from the high end all the way through to mass market to celebrate these much loved films. As well as some likely cross overs with the successful TCG Lorcana.
The focus at Disney though is likely to be on the 50th anniversary of one of the most successful licensed IPs of all time - Star Wars. Not only is it a huge IP in any year but 2027 sees not just a new film, Star Fighter, starring Ryan Gosling, but also the half-centenary. So alongside products featuring the newest characters, expect retail shelves to be packed with products marking the full range of movies and TV shows. If there’s one IP you won’t be able to escape in 2027 it's Star Wars.