London/New York, 18 October 2010: Leading family entertainment producer and consumer products licensor Chorion is embarking on three major promotions this autumn for its hit global fashion and novelty brand Mr. Men and Little Miss.
In Australia and New Zealand an all new Mr. Men character, Mr. Mo, has been created to support the national and global men’s healthy charity initiative, Movember. He is set to make his introduction as the ambassador for Movember 2010. Easily recognisable thanks to his giant, bushy moustache, complimented by a distinguished red top hat and bright blue nose, Mr. Mo is a confident and quirky guy. He’s modern, enjoys socialising and is particularly keen to express his personality via his moustache which he is very proud of!
The Movember Foundation is a not-for-profit, charitable organisation which supports the men’s health initiative, Movember. Each year, they are responsible for the appearance of moustaches on thousands of men’s faces across the globe in November with the aim of raising vital funds and awareness for men’s health, specifically for prostate cancer and depression in men.
The Mr. Mo promotion is exclusive to all 283 Target stories across Australia which will sell four unique Mr. Mo t-shirts in store from 15th October. With every t-shirt sold, 25% of the proceeds will be donated to Movember’s nominated charities.
Movember Founder Member, Travis Garone says: “The Movember Foundation is incredibly proud to have a Mr. Men character in support of the cause. It’s an iconic brand and one which resonates with our target audience, many of whom grew up reading the Mr. Men books. The Mr. Mo character will be a valuable asset to Movember in terms of raising further awareness for men’s health.”
Melissa Tinker, SVP, Licensing Asia at Chorion adds: “What a wonderful collaboration. Chorion is absolutely delighted to come together with Target and our agent Haven Licensing to support such a worthwhile cause with Mr. Mo as our Ambassador.”
In a separate promotional deal, UK based eyewear retailer, Specsavers, has enlisted the help of the Mr. Men to mount its latest multi million pound nationwide cross-media promotional campaign featuring Mr. Happy who “should have gone to Specsavers”.
The comic campaign is launching with heavy TV advertising from mid October and print, in-store and online advertising running throughout the rest of 2010. The opticians’ high street outlets have also received a Mr. Men makeover, with the iconic and colourful characters taking centre stage in Specsavers stores up and down the country.
Specsavers and the Mr. Men will take over the homepage of www.uk.msn.com for a day on Friday 15 October, when web visitors will be able to take an optical tour of Happy Land. They can watch the full TV commercial and view all related offers.
The Mr. Men were specially selected to front the campaign, which includes six separate free offers¹ running until 1 January 2011. Richard Holmes, Specsavers’ Marketing Director explains: “The Mr. Men’s ageless appeal suits the campaign’s broad target audience and is well-suited to presenting several free offers together, in a coherent and memorable campaign. I think people are going to enjoy it.”
Bettina Koeckler, SVP Licensing, EMEA at Chorion adds: ‘We’re very excited to be working with Specsavers on this high-profile campaign which highlights the evergreen appeal of the Mr. Men brand. Teaming with a leading household name will bring continued exposure for some of Britain’s favourite characters across all media in the UK.”
In the US, Arby’s, a national quick service restaurant, is gearing up for their Mr. Men and Little Miss promotion which runs October 2010 through January 2011. All 3,500 participating stores will feature six unique character figurines including Little Miss Sunshine, Mr. Tickle, Little Miss Daredevil, Mr. Happy, Mr. Strong and Little Miss Helpful. Over 2.5 million premiums and branded meal bags will be distributed. The promotion will be supported with in-store marketing such as signage, counter cards and window-clings along with a robust consumer marketing campaign through Facebook, twitter, online advertising, and a splash page on arby’s.com.
Steve Cipolla, EVP, Global Licensing and Sales says: “We are thrilled to introduce our new promotional partnerships in Australia, UK and US. Each promotion embraces the spirit of Mr. Men and Little Miss and speaks to our fans everywhere in a fun and engaging way to continue to support this evergreen brand.”
¹ The offer features a different character for each of the six strands: Mr. Greedy = Free second pair; Mr. Clever = Free varifocal lenses; Mr. Small = Free contact lenses; Mr. Perfect = Free anti-reflection treatment; Little Miss Sunshine = Free Reactions; Mr. Cool = Free sunglasses treatment.
About Chorion
Chorion is a leading provider of quality family entertainment for the global marketplace. Chorion brings a combination of brand management savvy and creative vision to the development of literary copyrights across all media. Chorion’s portfolio includes classic children’s brands such as Mr. Men and Little Miss, Beatrix Potter, Paddington, Noddy, OLIVIA, and The World of Eric Carle as well as art and lifestyle brands. Chorion also owns and manages the literary works of Agatha Christie, Raymond Chandler and Georges Simenon, among others. Chorion’s animated television productions include OLIVIA, The Mr. Men Show, Famous Five: On the Case and Noddy and Noddy in Toyland. New productions for 2010 include The Octonauts and Gaspard and Lisa. Chorion has offices in London, New York and Sydney. For more information, please visit www.chorion.co.uk
Mr. Men and Little Miss
With over 100 million copies sold worldwide, Mr. Men and Little Miss books have become a publishing phenomenon. Truly a property everyone can relate to, the brand has inspired a comprehensive consumer products program with over 280 licensees worldwide. Whether it is through the animated sketch comedy series – The Mr. Men Show—or its award winning Website, Mr. Men and Little Miss gets consumers laughing about the range of personalities we encounter in life.
For more information about Mr. Men, visit www.ilovemrmen.com and www.mrmen.com
For further information contact Blueprint PR:
Janet Balmforth Tel: +44 (0) 8868 0511 or Email: janet@blueprintpr.co.uk