TRU Unveils Christmas Book
Toys “R” Us’ The Great Big Christmas Book is expected to arrive in homes and newspapers nationwide this weekend. Featuring 80 pages of numerous toy categories, the book will also highlight items available exclusively at TRU.
The book will offer more than $5,600 in savings—more than any other year, according to TRU—and more than 50 free gifts-with-purchase. Throughout the season, customers will receive e-mailed bonus pages of holiday-themed deals and discounts, which are not available in the book.
The Great Big Christmas Book also will be available in digital formats, including an iPad App, as well as through an exclusive sneak preview, which is available now, on TRU’s Facebook fan page, www.facebook.com/toysrus. Customers can also experience a digital version of The Great Big Christmas Book online at www.toysrus.com/ChristmasBook beginning this Sunday, October 31.
Li & Fung Purchases Piece of Sanrio
Business Week reported earlier this month that Li & Fung acquired a 1.03 percent stake in Sanrio Co., owners of the Hello Kitty brand.
“Li & Fung Group and Sanrio are seeking to develop new products for the global market and cut logistics costs,” Sanrio said in a statement to Business Week.
Sanrio, which consigns 10 percent of its character-goods production to Li & Fung Group, plans to raise the ratio to about 30 percent in three years, Nikkei English News reported, without citing a source, according to Business Week.
Mattel’s Ken a Reality Show Star
Mattel in partnership with Hudsun Media, announced Genuine Ken: The Search for the Great American Boyfriend, a digital competition reality series. In eight, 22-minute episodes, eight guys ages 21–30 will compete for the title of The Great American Boyfriend—a Genuine Ken. The series will premiere on Hulu beginning January 18, 2011, and will be featured on the homepage’s main carousel.
The original series will put contestants through a series of elimination challenges to determine if they, like Ken, have the qualities of the “ultimate boyfriend for every occasion,” says Mattel. The episodes will be shot in Los Angeles and New York and judged by a line-up of various celebrity guest judges, which have yet to be named.
In addition to Hulu, the series will be distributed through the Barbie brand’s social media channels, including Facebook, YouTube, and additional female-targeted digital sites.
Now through November 1, visit www.genuineken.com to nominate and vote for contestants.