LICENSING DEAL: HOME RUN-OR HOUSE OF CARDS? Magazine brand lends its name to real-estate franchise.(News)(Better Homes and Gardens Books Inc.'s deal with Realogy Corp.)

Advertising Age, October, 2007 by Ives, Nat

Byline: NAT IVES

Get ready to see "For Sale by Better Homes and Gardens'' signs sprouting from lawns across the country.

Better Homes and Gardens, which has already licensed its name to products ranging from home decor to computer software, is extending its brand to real-estate agents. Under a long-term contract with Realogy Corp., which owns Century 21 and Coldwell Banker, a residential-real-estate franchise system called Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate will arrive on the scene next July.

It's the rare licensing deal that both embodies the brand and extends it not only beyond the page but beyond retail aisles, too. Of course, these grand plans don't always work out, so Better Homes will have to keep a close eye on the execution-or risk...