May 2010

HIT Entertainment Celebrates 65 Years of Thomas & Friends

HIT Entertainment is celebrating the 65^th anniversary of its preschool brand Thomas & Friends with partnerships with Minor League Baseball, Celebration Foods, Six Flags Entertainment, and Sprout.

Celebration Foods, the makers of Carvel ice cream cake, has been named the presenting sponsor of Thomas’ 65^th anniversary. The company will serve as the exclusive Thomas partner for Thomas & Friends title nights, to take place at 22 Minor League Baseball teams’ games between May 15 and June 30. Celebration Foods will offer free Carvel ice cream cake samples and coupons to fans at the games, and will run free consumer offers at select regional grocery stores.

He-Man, She-Ra to Air on Qubo

Qubo Channel announces the launch of 12 new animated and live-action series with several U.S. premieres that will roll out on the network beginning this summer through fall. The diverse mix of family friendly programming includes the return of The Magic School Bus series from Scholastic for the fall and the U.S. premiere of the animated series Vitaminix, a series of shorts encouraging good eating habits for kids.

Additionally, Qubo brings to its schedule the U.S. premieres of The Mysteries of Alfred Hedgehog, Willa’s Wild Life, Shelldon, Pearlie, and Mighty Machines, plus new episodes of the returning series Turbo Dogs.

In addition, beginning this fall season, Qubo will launch a classic weekend animation block featuring the newly acquired He-Man and the Masters of the Universe; She-Ra, Princess of Power; BraveStarr; and the animated Ghostbusters. To round out the schedule, Qubo will debut Animal Exploration with Jarrod Miller in the fall.

Icon Heroes to Produce “Thundercats” Collectible Statues and More

Warner Bros. Consumer Products (WBCP) has partnered with Icon Heroes to create collectible products inspired by the 1980’s animated series, Thundercats. Under the new deal, Icon Heroes will manufacture a line of six-inch and under-scale statues, vehicle replicas, environments, and dioramas inspired by the television series. The statues will be branded as “Staction Figures” (Static Action Figures), and will be non-articulated, standing on top of a detailed environment base.

Each Staction Figure will be scaled so that they can be displayed individually or alongside other six-inch action figures and statues. The first Staction Figures scheduled for release are Lion-O, Jackal Man, and Jaga. Other products––such as Thunderclaw, Cat’s Lair, and more––will be released at a later date.

Icon Heroes’ products will be available for purchase directly through its store at www.iconheroes.com.

“The Wumblers” Maker Signs International Distribution Deal

The Giddy Gander Company has teamed with Skywriter Media and Entertainment Group to distribute The Wumblers internationally across broadcast, digital, and new media platforms. The Giddy Gander Company’s preschool television series in produced in 2-D, and aimed at kids ages 2 to 6. The 25 x 11-minute series is currently available in English and Spanish.

The Wumblers feature Bertrum, a 5-year-old Wumbler, and his best pal Raimundo, a Spanish-speaking snail, as they grow and learn how to make the world a better place for everyone. The Wumblers is also available as an educational DVD series.

Skywriter will also work closely with The Giddy Gander Company in building its merchandising portfolio as the show builds awareness globally.

Report: April Retail Sales Increase 4.6 Percent in 2010

According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), April retail industry sales (excluding automobiles, gas stations, and restaurants) increased 0.5 percent seasonally adjusted over March and 4.6 percent unadjusted year-over-year. Sales for March and April, the typical months for Easter purchases, increased 5.6 percent unadjusted over last year.

April statistics released by the U.S. Commerce Department show total retail sales (including non-general merchandise categories such as autos, gasoline stations, and restaurants) increased 0.4 percent seasonally adjusted over March and 9.3 percent unadjusted year-over-year.

Report: Retail Container Traffic to Increase 10 Percent in May

According to the latest monthly Global Port Tracker report, released by the National Retail Federation (NRF) and Hackett Associates, import cargo volume at the nation’s major retail container ports is expected to be up 10 percent in May, and double-digit increases are expected moving into the fall.

In March, the latest month for which actual numbers are available, U.S. ports handled 1.07 million Twenty-foot Equivalent Units (TEU), a 7-percent increase compared to February, and a 12-percent increase compared to March 2009. One TEU is one 20-foot cargo container or its equivalent. March was also the fourth month in a row to show a year-over-year improvement.

Report: UK First Quarter Toy Sales Rise 11 Percent

According to The NPD Group, traditional toy sales in the UK were up 11 percent in the first quarter of 2010 (January to March), totaling £241.5 million compared to the £218.3 million generated during the same time period in 2009.

While an increase in price points can be attributed to the growth, The NPD Group reported that UK consumers were also buying more traditional toys in the first quarter of this year than they were last year.

January, February, and March all experienced positive revenue growth, with respective increases of 3 percent, 14 percent and 13 percent. Unit sales decreased 5 percent in January, but increased 3 percent and 7 percent, respectively, in February and March. For the whole period, unit sales increased 2 percent to 42.8 million units.

Prestige to Produce Garanimals Infant Soft Toys

Prestige Toy Corp. has been picked to develop a line of infant soft toys for the Garanimals brand. The new soft toy line will feature the same Garanimals characters, and will coordinate with Garanimals newborn and infant apparel, allowing gift givers to purchase an array of merchandise.

The new line by Prestige will include 30 different items that are geared towards boys and girls, with a selection of the toys to be gender neutral. The line will launch at retail later this year.

Disney Store to Premiere New Shop Design This Summer

Disney Store will unveil a brand new store design this summer, in major markets across the United States and Europe. The new design will premiere in June at The Shops at Montebello in Montebello, Calif. (just outside Los Angeles). The European premiere will follow in July at La Vaguada in Madrid.

The new design was developed from a child’s perspective and features the latest technology and special features such as the Disney Princess castle with magic mirror and the Disney Store Theater.

More than 20 new and remodeled Disney Store locations are slated to open this year throughout North America and Europe, including Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City, NY; Santa Monica Place in Santa Monica, Calif.; NorteShopping in Oporto, Portugal; Orio Center in Bergamo, Italy; and more.

With each new store opening this year, Disney Store will designate a day for 10 percent of the sales to be donated to the Make-A-Wish Foundation in the U.S., Spain, Italy and Portugal, and to Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity in the UK.

Mickey Mouse Is the Gentleman Caller

Pook-A-Looz is a new line of plush, apparel, and accessories from Disney Consumer Products (DCP). Inspired by the urban vinyl toy culture, Pook-A-Looz were designed to capture the personalities of iconic Disney characters in an edgy, offbeat way. The new line of plush features more than 30 wide-ranging characters from Buzz Lightyear and Cheshire Cat to Muppets and Jack Skellington. Pook-A-Looz are available now at Toys “R” Us, Disney Store, DisneyStore.com, Disneyland Resort, and Walt Disney World stores.

The unique interpretations of these classic characters was inspired by the urban vinyl toy culture, which began in Asia a decade ago and features uniquely original and highly collectible designs.

Mickey Mouse is the gentleman caller in the video above.