Simon malls reprises its Book Blast! kids’ promotion and Super Chefs Live! tour this month, while rival Mills malls partner with Minute Maid Co. and Bally Total Fitness for a family health push.
Simon Property Group will run Book Blast! events at 100 malls this month as part of its Kidgits Club program. Activities this year spotlight Simon’s self-published book Adventures in the Park, starring the Kidgits characters.
Local celebs will read Adventures and other kids’ books at each mall; each Kidgits Club member gets a copy of the book. Book Blast events also have costumed characters and drawings for free books, DVDs and toys from promotional partners HarperCollins, Lionsgate Films, Fisher-Price and Nelvana. Simon also will collect used and new books for local kids’ organizations.
Meanwhile, Indianapolis-based Simon cut a deal with Nestlé for Wonka-branded photo ops this month to tout new Wonka Egg Hunt seasonal candies. Kids who visit the Easter Bunny at Simon malls through April 15 will see videos and signs for Wonka Egg Hunt, and get samples of Nestlé Sweetarts, Nerds and Laffy Taffy.
Simon also has begun its five-month Super Chefs Live! tour, now in its third year. Chefs Martin Yan, Sara Moulton, Mary Ann Esposito, and John and Caprial Pence headline the tour, with daylong demo and sampling events at 26 malls.
Sponsors include Coca-Cola’s Dasani water, Jacob’s Creek wine, Bertolli frozen dinners, Uncle Ben’s, Waldenbooks, B. Dalton Bookseller, Barnes & Noble and Borders Express. Each appears in a sponsor pavilion; food and beverage brands sample, and bookstores host cookbook-signing sessions with the chefs.
Each tour stop includes a cook-off that pairs an audience member or local celeb with a featured chef for an on-stage competition.
Kidgits Club members can decorate cookies or pretzels, or make their own chef’s hat or apron, in some malls. Simon’s marketing division, Simon Brand Ventures, handles Super Chefs Live, which runs through mid-August.
Simon’s net income rose nearly 39% to $476 million for 2005.
Meanwhile, The Mills Corp. is beefing up its own kids program, Muggsy’s Meadow, through a joint venture with Coca-Cola’s Minute Maid Co. and Bally Total Fitness. Mills will host Minute Maid Days presented by Bally Total Fitness in 26 malls nationally.
Bally reps lead fitness demos and offer nutrition tips; Minute Maid will sample its new Just 10 fruit juice and other products. This is Bally’s first tie-in with a mall management firm, and part of its efforts to target families.
Muggsy’s Meadow has 180,000 members (aged 12 and up) across 38 Mills malls.
Last month, Arlington, VA-based Mills cut 77 jobs and began mulling the sale of all or part of the company as it scaled back on construction projects after terminating 14 officers in January. Its net operating income fell 1.3% to $236 million for the nine months ended Sept. 30, 2005. Mills has said it will restate its 2000-04 financials and has delayed its fiscal 2005 report.
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