Strawberry Shortcake is back and is sweeter than ever, touting a new sweepstakes and meet and greet tour for young consumers.
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| Strawberry Shortcake and company tout new Seaberry Beach line |
DIC Entertainment and American Greeting Corp. are celebrating Strawberry Shortcake with a new line, Strawberry Shortcake at Seaberry Beach. The new line gives Strawberry Shortcake an updated look with a beach theme, said Jedd Gold, VP-marketing for DIC.
“Part of the allure of Strawberry Shortcake is she has fun friends,” Gold said. “Strawberry Shortcake has been positioned to be just like a real girl, so [consumers] are able to relate to her. They are able to escape into this fun, fantasy world where everything is all about candy and sweets and hanging out with friends.”
As part of a special two-month meet and greet tour, fans can take photos with Strawberry Shortcake in nine markets at Westfield Shoppingtown malls nationwide. The tour kicks off Mar. 11 and 13 in Paramus, NJ, and West Covina, CA, and makes stops in Connecticut, North Carolina, Washington, Florida, Missouri, Ohio and Illinois.
In addition, DIC Entertainment is offering consumers a chance to enter a sweepstakes offering one grand-prize winner a trip for a four to a five-day, four-night trip to an all-inclusive Beaches Resort in Jamaica.
Consumers 18 and older can enter the Strawberry Shortcake Seaberry Beach National Sweepstakes by filling out an entry form online at
Strawberryshortcake.com or at select meet and greet locations.
Ten first-prize winners will receive a prize pack of Seaberry beach merchandise, including Strawberry Shortcake sunglasses, a beach towel and a
Seaberry Beach Party music CD. Five second-place winners will receive the
Seaberry Beach Party DVD.
The sweepstakes runs through May 31. A random drawing will take place on June 15. Internet materials and print ads support. Members of the Strawberry Shortcake Friendship Club—some 270,000 fans strong—will receive e-mail blasts announcing the sweepstakes, Gold said.
DIC Entertainment, the brand’s worldwide licensor, is sponsoring the sweepstakes.
Since it’s re-launch in January 2003, the two-year retail gross for the Strawberry Shortcake brand is more than $700 million in worldwide sales, Gold said. Bandai America is the brand’s master toy licensee.
“Bandai America’s Strawberry Shortcake toy line continues to be a success … because we’ve kept the brand fresh with themes that resonate with today’s little girls,” said Michael Riley, VP-marketing for Bandai America, Inc. “Our spring lineup features a dynamic beach theme, complete with an assortment of scented dolls, playsets and plush, all with a tropical flair.”
To further entice consumers, Bandai is offering an in-pack promotion for girls to collect colorful leis that can be worn as a bracelet, anklet or necklace, Riley said. In addition, Bandai is offering a mail-in promotion for a Strawberry Shortcake beach towel.
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