By Allison Watkinson
TLL Reporter
Born to License has brokered a licensing partnership between Unisnacks and Cloudco Entertainment for a Care Bears-inspired Kato beverage collection in the UK.
The Kato beverage collection will include seven fruit-flavored drinks that are designed to match with different characters from the Care Bears brand.
The flavors featured in the licensed product range will include strawberry, lychee, orange, mango, melon, peach and watermelon.
Additional flavors for the Care Bears beverage collection are currently in development and will be announced at a later date.
“Since the launch of Unisnacks, we have provided our customers with global brands which created excitement and market disruption,” said Unisnacks CEO, Hyder Haniffa. “We are delighted that this is the first beverage launch of Care Bears which was made possible by great partnerships. The Care Bears Kato range is well crafted to tickle the taste buds of our audience and will be a must-have for all Care Bears fans.”
Based in Thailand, the Kato fruit drink brand is known for providing refreshing beverages that combine different tropical fruit flavors with the chewy texture of nata de coco.
The Kata x Care Bears beverage line initially debuted at the BBC Good Food Show Winter in Birmingham earlier this month.
The licensed Kato collection will officially launch at UK retailers beginning in January 2025.
The licensing partnership between the the two companies was managed by the Born to License agency on behalf of Unisnacks.
Born to License was responsible for identifying the potential license, negotiating the terms of the partnership, managing the approval process, and more.
“We’re thrilled to see the exciting Care Bears Kato range come together, which will no doubt be well received across the UK,” said Born to License CEO, David Born.
Founded in 2007, Unisnacks is a global food and drink distribution company that provides retailers, wholesale traders and professional food services across the UK with snack foods, ingredients and beverages from around the world.
The licensing rights to the Care Bears entertainment franchise and lifestyle brand is owned by Cloudco Entertainment.
Cloudco is a family-friendly entertainment company that creates, develops and produces multi-platform entertainment franchises, consumer merchandising programs and immersive experiences.