HIT Entertainment Digital Newsroom

HIT Entertainment and Gilt Groupe on Track for Thomas & Friends™ Exclusive Product Sale

Thomas & Friends Merchandise Featured Exclusively on Gilt App for Limited Time

NEW YORK, NY

HIT Entertainment, one of the world's leading providers of high-quality children's entertainment, announced today that it has partnered with online retailer Gilt Groupe on a special Thomas & Friends™ retail promotion. The Thomas & Friends sale launches on Gilt Children as a three-day exclusive through the Gilt mobile app on Friday, August 26th through Sunday, August 28th, followed by a retail event on Gilt.com from Sunday, August 28th, at 9 pm ET through Friday, September 2nd.

During the sale, consumers will be able to find Thomas & Friends products that were expertly curated by Gilt's buyers and offered at a discounted price. Sale offerings include Thomas & Friends apparel, footwear, toys, books, and home furnishings. The five-day sale will be promoted via the Thomas & Friends website in banner ads, home page promotions, and through newsletters. Gilt will also feature the sale in their daily newsletter on Sunday, August 28th. In addition, both companies will promote the Thomas & Friends sale through their social media channels.

"Thomas & Friends is the type of classic, iconic brand that appeals to our consumers and we are glad that we had the opportunity to work with HIT Entertainment on this very special promotion," said Rachel Jarrett, General Manager, Gilt Children.

"Gilt Groupe is recognized for their selection of high quality offerings and incredible customer service, making it easy for us to offer fans the Thomas & Friends products that they love and enjoy," said E.J. Minor, Vice President, Marketing, HIT Entertainment.

Thomas the Tank Engine™ remains as popular as ever. For the 10th consecutive year, Thomas & Friends™ was the number one license in the preschool toys category in the United States, according to The NPD Group, Inc. Thomas & Friends also holds the #1 spot for top preschool property and it was a top 10 property in the entire toy industry for 2010, according to NPD¹.

About Gilt Groupe, Inc.
Gilt Groupe, www.gilt.com, is an innovative online shopping destination offering its members special access to the most inspiring merchandise, culinary offerings, and experiences every day, many at insider prices. Gilt continually searches the world for the most coveted brands and products, including fashion for women, men, and children; home décor; artisanal ingredients; hotels and travel experiences on every continent; and unique activities in a growing list of cities and destinations. We believe that every day is an opportunity to inspire and be inspired.

About HIT Entertainment
HIT Entertainment is one of the world's leading independent children's entertainment producers and rights-owners. HIT's portfolio includes properties, such as Thomas & Friends™, Barney™, Bob the Builder™, Fireman Sam™, Angelina Ballerina™, Mike the Knight™, Pingu™ and Rainbow Magic™. HIT represents Chapman Entertainment's Fifi and the Flowertots™ and Roary the Racing Car™ in North America, as well as Wallace & Gromit™, Shaun the Sheep™, Timmy Time™ and Aardman Classics from Aardman Animations. HIT also acts as representative for The Wiggles® in the UK. Launched in 1989, HIT's lines of business span television and video production, content distribution, publishing, consumer products licensing and live events and has operations in the UK, US, Canada, Hong Kong and Japan. HIT is a part-owner of US-based preschool channel, Sprout®. For more information, visit www.hitentertainment.com.

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¹Source: The NPD Group / Consumer Tracking Service