Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit media and educational organization, and Cut Media’s HiHo Kids, the viral YouTube channel announced another partnership to create two new episodes of a fan-favorite HiHo series, Kids Meet. The popular series provides kids with the questioning power through one-on-one interviews with a variety of interesting people.
The Pokémon Company International unveiled the new Pokémon Lazy Summer collection, available starting now at Pokémon Center — the premier online destination for official Pokémon merchandise in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. Trainers can enjoy the warm weather in style with apparel and picnic accessories featuring summer-themed illustrations by artist James Turner, who designed a number of Pokémon for the franchise and has contributed to various Pokémon video games since 2002.
Bicycle Playing Cards, the bestselling and most widely used playing card brand for over 135 years, is proud to announce its official Brand Ambassador partnership with star magician Anna DeGuzman. Hailed by GQ as ‘a master magician of the digital age’ and The New York Times as ‘one of the few’ women shaping the future of magic, Anna DeGuzman is leading a new generation of performers. At just 25, she is one of the world’s premier female masters of ‘cardistry’—and a viral star whose talent and charm have brought her to the global stage.
Clean up in Aisle 800 takes on a whole new meaning at this year’s Astra Marketplace. Retailers searching for something truly special to fill their 4th quarter shelves will be dazzled (again) as they fill up their order books with Fun In Motion Toys. Look for them on both sides of the aisle at Booths 804 and 809 and get your hands on the brand new Nockles, the acclaimed TECTI, the beautiful, newly packaged HyperTiles and Wandini Glow.0 and the latest styles of Shashibo. It’s true! No one can sit still when playing with Fun In Motion Toy’s range of playthings so be ready to move and groove at Marketplace. In fact, they’ve coined a whole new toy category within Construction Toys called Confluxion. Confluxion is an evolution of construction toys in that there’s a building element to them, but they also move or flex.
Aniplex of America, Inc has unveiled an extensive expansion of the Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba franchise in 2024, introducing a wide array of new products and forging multiple new licensing and promotional partnerships, including direct-to-retail collaborations, as well as toy, apparel, gift accessories and gaming products. These launches and new agreements coincide with the season four debut of the acclaimed anime sensation on May 12, exclusively on Crunchyroll in the U.S. The announcement was made by Yosuke Kodaka, President, Aniplex of America, Inc.
Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out 2 returns to the mind of newly minted teenager Riley just as headquarters is undergoing a sudden demolition to make room for something entirely unexpected: new Emotions! Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust, who’ve long been running a successful operation by all accounts, aren’t sure how to feel when Anxiety shows up. And she’s not alone: Embarrassment, Envy and Ennui are there too. Movie release date: June 14, 2024. Just Play’s line of toys and plush are wonderfully detailed and are sure to help kids – and even adults – understand complicated feelings in new ways.
Zigazoo, the world’s largest social network for kids and the market leader in safe social media, is launching Social Media Wellness Month. Alongside National Mental Health Awareness month in May, this initiative aims to challenge mainstream social media companies to “do better” and to educate kids, parents, and lawmakers on how to build towards a healthier social media future. Zigazoo’s app, which is known for its approach to safety and privacy, has been hailed by Common Sense Media as the “example of how to offer a social yet safe place to be online.” Social Media Wellness month will feature a range of activities, including content created by Zigazoo’s’ Gen Alpha Superstars, conversations with experts, and toolkits for families.
Leading premium children’s apparel brand, Hanna Andersson, announced that Grace Wong, a former marketing executive for Apple’s Beats by Dr. Dre and the Gap, has joined the company as Chief Brand Officer. Wong will oversee the brand marketing strategy, grounded in its deep heritage and core values including quality, sustainability, and unparalleled comfort. Reporting to CEO Aimée Lapic, Grace Wong brings over 20 years of strategic brand building experience to Hanna Andersson’s marketing team. In her new role leading brand marketing, she will develop strategies that scale the brand and the business. Wong will lead creative development of all brand and product assets producing impactful storytelling across the brand’s ecosystem from strategic ideation to content creation for key initiatives in support of the brand vision.
Licensing International, the leading trade association for the global brand licensing industry, has announced the 2024 Hall of Fame inductees. The Hall of Fame and Rising Star Awards honor executives’ legacies, bodies of work, and unique contributions to the global brand licensing community. This year’s inductees are Joseph Kaminkow, Chief Innovation Officer, Pixie Dust at Aristocrat; Maca Rotter, President & CEO at La Panadería Licensing & Marketing; and Stu Seltzer, President at The Seltzer Licensing Group.