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The Dodo, the #1 global digital publisher for pet and animal content, today announced it’s launching its first children’s toy. Called “Dodo Loveables” and inspired by The Dodo’s popular “Little But Fierce” series, the collection will feature six collectible plush characters in blind box packaging, including Spud the Dog, Dandelion the Cat, Connie the Koala, Tuff the Turtle, Hank the Hedgehog, and the rarest of them all – a dodo inspired by The Dodo’s logo. The collection is being produced in partnership with Bonkers Toy Co., which makes quality, award-winning toys like the bestselling Ryan’s World Giant Mystery Egg. It will be available in select Walmart stores starting today and at Walmart.com on January 1st. It will also be available at Target in spring 2023. The collection is the latest expansion into retail from The Dodo, which this past summer announced a collaboration with Walmart’s pet department that brought Dodo-branded pet products to the retailer, as well as Fetch by The Dodo pet insurance and a monthly “Pet Lovers” box.
“This is an exciting first for The Dodo, which created these unique and original characters with our real-world love of animals in mind,” says David Glauber, head of The Dodo’s kids / family programming. “Whether it’s Spud the Dog’s inspiring story about overcoming his shyness or Hank the Hedgehog’s adventures through the wild, we’re thrilled to bring The Dodo’s sensibility to life with stories our audience of animal-lovers will get to take home.”
The Dodo has built a massive community of engaged families, pet owners, and animal lovers, reaching a loyal and diverse audience of 60 million users monthly, and over 115M followers across social media platforms including TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. Dodo Loveables represents an ongoing investment in families and kids from The Dodo, which launched Dodo Kids in 2019, and has continued to program bespoke content for children of all ages ever since. Despite being a relatively new addition to the platform, Dodo Kids has grown rapidly on YouTube, recently crossing 1 million subscribers. It has also seen success in the streaming space as producers of “Izzy Bee’s Koala World” on Netflix and “Roman to the Rescue” on Hulu and Disney XD. Additionally, The Dodo has partnered with children’s book publisher Scholastic on nonfiction books for kids, releasing six titles since 2019, with over 750,000 copies in print.
About The Dodo
The Dodo is the #1 most-viewed and most-engaged with animal brand globally [source: Tubular Labs, September 2021]. We tell positive, authentic, entertaining stories about animals that make people laugh, cry happy tears, feel ALL the feels, and fall in love with animals. The Dodo is part of Vox Media, the leading modern media company.
About Bonkers Toys
Bonkers Toys has become known in the toy industry as the leader in YouTube, New Media and influencer inspired toys. Bonkers was the first licensee for Ryan’s World, and continues to lead the way with digital entertainment brands including Aphmau, LankyBox, Addison Rae and FGTeeV. Bonkers Toys’ lineup of award-winning toys have been featured on the TODAY Show, GMA, Parents, Good Housekeeping & NBC Nightly News.
