Want to Sell Book Merch? Here's How to Get Licensed in 2025

If you're like me, passionate about books and have ever dreamed of selling book-inspired merchandise, you're not alone. The world of bookish merch is booming, with readers everywhere loving items that bring their favorite stories to life. But before you start selling, there’s one crucial step you can’t skip: getting licensed. Let’s dive into everything you need to know about how to sell licensed book merch in 2025, step by step.
 

What Is Officially Licensed Merchandise?

Alright, let’s start with the basics: what is licensed merch, anyway? Licensed merchandise refers to products made with the legal permission of the intellectual property (IP) owner. This could be an author, a publisher, or even a film studio if the book has been turned into a movie or series. Put simply, licensing means an author has given someone permission to create and sell products based on their work (aka their IP).

Here’s why this matters: selling products based on a book without being licensed isn’t just unfair—it’s illegal. And trust me, if lawyers get involved, that can lead to all kinds of trouble.

Licensed book merch, on the other hand, is officially approved by the author. That means the designs, logos, and references to characters or settings have all been reviewed and authorized by the IP owner.

 

What Does It Mean to Be a Licensed Book Merch Seller?

As a licensed book merch seller, you’re authorized to produce and sell merchandise based on a book or series. This means you’ve gone through the proper channels to obtain the rights to use specific elements from the book, like:

• Quotes
• Character names
• Settings or world-building elements (e.g., Hogwarts from Harry Potter)
• Cover art or specific logos

Being licensed gives you the legal green light to bring these elements into your designs. Licensing lets you support your favourite author while earning money.

Take this Asher Donovan jersey in my shop, for example. It’s licensed, which means I got permission from Ana Huang—the author of The Striker—to use the character’s name and the football club from her book on the jersey. Customers pay me for the merch, and I pay Ana a percentage of the profits, since it’s her IP that I’m using. Without that agreement, I’d be opening myself up to legal trouble (and seriously, who needs that?).

 

What Does It Mean for a Customer?

For customers, buying licensed merch means getting a product that’s high-quality and authentic. It’s a guarantee that:

• Their purchase directly supports the author who created the story they love.
• The designs are official, original, and not just cheap knock-offs.
• What they’re buying isn’t contributing to stolen or unauthorized work.

That said, licensed merch might cost a bit more because the sales price includes fees and royalties paid to the IP owner.

 

How to Know if Merch Is Licensed

Officially licensed merch is usually clearly labeled on the product page. Most contracts require businesses to disclose this, and reputable sellers are happy to let you know their items are licensed (we’re proud to be licensed merch sellers!).

 
If a product is (super) cheap and there’s no mention of licensing, it’s likely unlicensed. If it seems too good to be true, chances are it is!

 

How to Become a Licensed Merch Seller

1. Identify the Rights Holder

The first step is figuring out who owns the rights to the book. In most cases, the publisher or the author holds the licensing rights, so that’s the person you need to reach out to. Most authors have a website with a contact page where you can get in touch. Some authors, however, may have a publisher who handles licensing inquiries, and that info is often listed on their website. If that’s the case, you’ll want to contact the publisher directly.

If you can’t find any contact info, you could try reaching out via social media. While it’s not the best route in my opinion, it could work if there’s no other way to get in touch. I’ve done it before and, in one case, it led to getting an author’s email—and eventually becoming a licensed seller!

2. Reach Out and Negotiate

Reach out to the rights holder and let them know you’re interested in creating merchandise based on their work. Share some details about your shop, the kinds of products you’d like to make, and which of their works you want to feature. Be sure to propose a royalty fee percentage as part of the agreement. In my experience, this is usually a fixed percentage—most authors and publishers I’ve worked with have used 20% as the standard. Some even had contracts ready to go that specified 20% as the set amount.

In some cases, they might ask for mockups right away. So if you have them ready, go ahead and send those along too!

3. Sign a Licensing Agreement

Two of the authors I work with didn’t have a contract of their own, so they asked me to draft one for them to review and sign. In the case of other authors or publishers, they already had a standard contract they use for all vendors who want to get licensed. You just fill in your details, go over it, and sign.

This agreement will outline what you can and can’t do, how royalty payments will work (usually via PayPal), and the length of the license. It will also specify whether you need to provide mockups or send product samples for approval before they go live.

4. Create High-Quality Products, Share and Sell!

Now it’s time to create your products and launch them! Don’t forget to tag the author when you release your items. From experience, I know not every author will share them, but some might, and that can give your sales a serious boost! I had this happen with Ana Huang—she shared one of my products, and I ended up getting 21 more sales that day, all of which I know came from that post.

It’s also a good idea to join the author’s Facebook group. Be sure to read the group rules first, but in most cases, if you don’t spam, you can promote your items there every once in a while, which is a great way to get more visibility!

Where to Sell Your Licensed Book Merch