NEW YORK, NY, September 5, 2007 HIT Entertainment, one of the world’s leading independent children’s entertainment producers and rights owners, announced today that it has entered into a strategic partnership with TTB Marketplace, a leading provider of custom e-commerce strategy and services for the licensing industry, to expand and grow its e-commerce strategy for its portfolio of properties, including Barney & Friends, Bob the Builder, Angelina Ballerina, Thomas & Friends and many others.
As part of this partnership, TTB Marketplace will assume full operations and assist in the expansion of HIT’s current online store (www.hitshopusa.com) with more product categories and exclusive product. In addition, TTB Marketplace will work with HIT in developing and executing a fully-integrated e-commerce strategy.
TTB Marketplace understands that creating a brand-centric and brand-immersive online shopping experience is key to appealing to the fans of our properties and driving sales, said Rob Weisstuch, Senior Vice President, HIT Entertainment. TTB Marketplace is a leader in their field and will provide HIT with a complete retail solution that includes everything from the technology platform, product development, purchasing and merchandising to logistics, customer care and search marketing. We are excited to work with them to expand our e-tail presence.
HIT Entertainment has one of the strongest property portfolios in the licensing industry and we are very excited to partner with them in developing and executing an e-commerce strategy that helps launch and nurture new brands while continuing to build upon its existing ones, said Ty Simpson, president and founder of TTB Marketplace. The strength of brands like Thomas & Friends, Bob the Builder and Barney & Friends, plus HIT’s forward-looking vision and our ability to execute that vision in the e-commerce environment, will create a user-friendly shopping experience that appeals to the fans of these brands. The new HIT Shop will provide consumers with a one-stop shopping destination, including exclusives and hard-to-find products for HIT`s properties, and will serve as a retail launching pad for new HIT brands.
About HIT Entertainment
HIT Entertainment, owned by private equity investment group Apax Partners, is one of the world`s leading independent children`s entertainment producers and rights-owners. HIT`s portfolio includes properties, such as Barney, Bob the Builder, Thomas & Friends, Pingu, Fireman Sam, Angelina Ballerina and Rainbow Magic. HIT represents Fifi and the Flowertots in North America and Japan and acts as a worldwide representative for The Jim Henson Company’s library of classic family brands and as representative for The Wiggles in the UK. HIT also owns the Guinness World Records publishing and television property. Launched in 1989, HIT’s lines of business span television and video production (including studios in the US and the UK), publishing, consumer products licensing and live events. With a catalogue of more than 1,000 hours of young children`s programming, HIT sells its shows to more than 240 countries worldwide, in more than 40 different languages and has operations in the UK, US, Canada, Hong Kong and Japan. In 2005, the Company joined Comcast Corporation, PBS and Sesame Workshop to launch PBS KIDS SproutSM, a 24-hour digital cable channel and VOD service for preschoolers. For more information, visit www.hitentertainment.com.
About TTB Marketplace
TTB Marketplace (www.ttbmarketplace.com) provides custom e-commerce strategy, solutions and services specifically for the licensing industry. Among the services it offers licensors and licensees are multi-channel online retail distribution, closed-end online stores, data reporting and analytics, search engine marketing and optimization, product manufacturing, purchasing management, logistics and warehousing, customer service, drop shipping and wholesale product distribution. In addition to operating the official online store for HIT Entertainment (www.hitshopusa.com), the Company also operates the official online stores for Ty’s Toy Box (www.tystoybox.com), Ty’s Toy Box on Amazon (www.amazon.com), VIZ Media (www.viz.com), Naruto (www.naruto.com) and Domo (www.domonation.com).