History


In 1981, while working for Golden Eagle Enterprises in Selma, Alabama, CLC founder and chairman Bill Battle signed the legendary coach Paul "Bear" Bryant to a licensing agreement. In the process of developing a licensing program for Coach Bryant, Battle discovered that The University of Alabama did not have a licensing program. Alabama soon signed on as CLC’s first university client. Eight other schools quickly followed, and in 1983, Battle bought out the rights to the licensing business and moved the newly formed Collegiate Licensing Company to Atlanta.

Since its early days in 1981, CLC's mission has been to serve as the guiding force in collegiate trademark licensing and one of the top sports licensing firms in the country. As such, our company and staff have dedicated ourselves to being a center of excellence in providing licensing services of the highest quality to institutions, licensees, retailers, and consumers.

The consolidated approach to licensing offered by CLC provides every institution with a greater voice in the market, increased exposure, the broadest range of available licensing services, and reduced administration expenses, while still allowing for independent decision-making by each and every client. This approach, combined with our committed staff and industry-leading services has helped to guide and shape the $4.0 billion annual market for collegiate licensed merchandise. CLC’s long-standing relationships with retailers and licensees have also been essential to the growth of the industry and the success of each client’s individual licensing program.

Today, the CLC Consortium represents the consolidated retail power of the many colleges, universities, athletic conferences, bowl games, and other collegiate institutions that comprise the CLC Consortium. The collective efforts that have contributed to the growth of the collegiate licensing industry will remain an important cornerstone of the industry in the future. As the market for collegiate merchandise continues to evolve, our partnerships with clients will remain focused on the goal of protecting, preserving, and maintaining both the integrity and long-term brand value of our clients' trademarks, while ensuring that consumers have access to quality licensed merchandise across all distribution channels.