The international lifestyle brand, Deer Little Forest, is heading into the Asian market with five indoor theme parks in Thailand, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore.
The first Deer Little Forest park is currently under construction in Bangkok, and is set to open in June next year.
The deal has been brokered by the Tokyo-based Honmoku File. It has been headed up by Nobutaka Nagai, a former agent for Disney’s park attractions in Japan.
The indoor parks will be targeted at children and their families. They will feature educational, entertainment and sports activities.
The Deer Little Forest characters, designed by Jo Rose, will be the mascots of the parks. They will be featured on visual branding and merchandise in all of the stores.
After the first park opens, a further four parks are set for Japan, Northern Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore between 2020 and 2022. The brand will expand into China thereafter.
“Refreshingly original and unique”
Nobutaka nagai, president of Honmoku File, said: “It is a real breakthrough for Deer Little Forest to be chosen to brand a theme park since typically these projects go to much more established and commercial properties who financially sponsor the parks.
“In this case, Deer Little Forest has been selected because of its potential to bring a fresh sense of fun and fantasy to the work experience theme park, thanks to the elegant and intelligent qualities of the brand.
“The result of this atypical choice of branding will result in a refreshingly original, unique and long-lasting identity to these parks – and a very promising platform for Deer Little Forest in Asia. We look forward to working together with Koko Rose Media to make it a great success.”
Lisa Hryniewicz, managing director of Koko Rose Media, said: “We are beyond thrilled with the opportunities that a DLF-branded theme park offers to reach fans in Asia. Not only will the park provide a solid platform from which to launch the property, but the fun, family-oriented educational environment provides the exact right value for the Deer Little Forest brand.
“From the start we have known that the art style of Jo’s work would have a special place in key Asian markets and we’re very lucky to start working with Honmoku File in Japan, who had both that vision and the experience in the market to follow through.
‘This first fascinating and massive deal was negotiated by Mr Nagai before a single t-shirt, toy or book has ever been in seen in Asia. This is a tremendous testament to the power of Deer Little Forest’s universal appeal and magnetic design.”
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