Mattel Kicks Off Thomas & Friends Global Brand Campaign

ThomasAndFriendsThomas & Friends, from Mattel Inc., kicked off its first global brand campaign with a year-long marketing program, Set Friendship in Motion.

The campaign aims to help preschoolers strengthen friendship skills, such as collaboration, communication, sharing, manners, kindness, and the abilities to express and understand feelings and emotions. Set Friendship in Motion will include ways for families to interact with kids including content, digital activations, and live events to bring the campaign to life.

The campaign will launch with the first of three videos created and produced in partnership with Driver Digital Studios, the creators of the Thomas Creator Collective. The content celebrates first friends and highlights key friendship skills.

This campaign comes as Thomas & Friends continues to expand globally, especially in Asia, where Thomas & Friends’ theatrical debut reached more than 5,000 cinemas in China. The film marked the first time a Mattel-owned brand was released theatrically in the country, and was one of the few non-native children’s movies of the year to be released in cinemas.

In the U.S. and the UK, The Friendship Tour will feature friendship-themed integration. Day Out with Thomas attendees will be able to participate in events that encourage and celebrate friendship including photo opportunities, crafts, and additional activities.

The Set Friendship in Motion social media campaign will take place throughout the year, including a parent-targeted global Facebook campaign, videos, arts and crafts, and Snapchat initiatives.

Thomas & Friends will release Extraordinary Engines, season 21 of the TV series, and the new film Thomas & Friends: Journey Beyond Sodor, the 12th full-length film to date. The new content will embody themes of friendship in the storylines as Thomas teams up with his friends to tackle new challenges.

About the author

Maddie Michalik

Maddie Michalik

Maddie Michalik was the Editor-in-Chief of The Toy Book from 2020-2022. She was also a Senior Editor at The Toy Insider and The Pop Insider.

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