BBC Worldwide has appointed Chicco as its key toy partner for Italy. The deal will enable Chicco to manufacture and distribute Hey Duggee product to its 150 plus stores and distribute to other retail stores in Italy. The Hey Duggee collection will include plush and new talking plush toys featuring dubbed Italian voices from the localised version of the TV series, figurines and playsets, as well as Golden Bear’s toy range. The product line is slated to hit the stores this autumn. “Duggee and his friends are much loved by little ones; with the inspiring and cheerful atmosphere the series exudes, it immediately captures the imagination of children," said Raffaele D’Angelo, marketing & product engineering director Toys at Chicco. "We are very much looking forward to having Hey Duggee toys in our stores and will dedicate great visibility in-store to the range.” Rikesh Desai, licensing director for merchandise & gaming, consumer products - BBC Worldwide asserted, “We are delighted to add Chicco to our global licensing portfolio for Hey Duggee. Italy is an important and growing market for us, so we are looking forward to working with them on extending Hey Duggee’s product paw-print .” Chicco joins a range of licensing partners for the pre-school brand including Golden Bear for plush toys, Jazwares for Master Toy in the US and Jasnor, who distribute both Golden Bear’s plush toy range and Jazware’s figurines and playsets in Australia.
