In celebration of the 50h anniversary of The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle, The World of Eric Carle™ has announced a major collaboration for summer 2019 with the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) – the world’s leading gardening charity.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar themed events will be running through the charity’s four gardens and four of its Flower Shows beginning July 2019. The four RHS Gardens attract over two million visitors a year, with more than 400,000 during the summer months. The RHS Flower Shows at Cardiff, Chatsworth, Hampton Court Palace and Tatton Park attract over 260,000 visitors combined.
At the RHS Flower Shows, a trail will guide families around each Show, starting with a giant walk-through sculpture of The Very Hungry Caterpillar, created using willow. Other activities will include storytelling sessions, have-a-go gardening projects and creative workshops. The RHS Schools competitions at each of the Shows will also take on a Very Hungry Caterpillar theme, with students asked to design and create ideas for sensory planters, wildlife habits and gardens inspired by insects.
In May 2019, the four RHS Gardens – Wisley (Surrey), Harlow Carr (North Yorkshire), Hyde Hall (Essex) and Rosemoor (Devon) – will take part in the Giant Wiggle, the World of Eric Carle’s fundraising partnership with Action for Children, to launch The Very Hungry Caterpillar’s 50th birthday celebrations ahead of a summer of family fun. Throughout the summer holidays, themed activities at the Gardens are expected to include discovery maps and trails, themed picnics, craft activities, face painting, butterfly counts and costume character appearances. In addition, butterfly-friendly planting areas will demonstrate links between elements of the Very Hungry Caterpillar story and real garden wildlife.
At all the participating RHS Flower Shows and Gardens, table-top displays and hanging banners will point to a wide range of Very Hungry Caterpillar merchandise for sale in the visitor shops. These will include an exclusive bespoke range of Very Hungry Caterpillar products, including a children’s gardening range by Robert Frederick and a backpack by William Lamb, only available from the RHS Shops and online at www.RHSShop.co.uk.
This collaboration will be supported by an extensive print and online marketing campaign.
This will be the biggest-ever brand collaboration for the RHS and one of the highlights of The Very Hungry Caterpillar’s fiftieth anniversary year, for which many exciting marketing, promotional and celebratory activities are planned. License Global and Licensing.biz both shared the news of this exciting new brand partnership.