The Very Hungry Caterpillar Cooks Up Licensing Deal with Ella’s Kitchen

Ella’s Kitchen, a UK-based organic baby and toddler food company, has created a range of snacks based on Eric Carle’s iconic The Very Hungry Caterpillar that launched this fall. The two brands have a strong synergy and are both loved, trusted and instantly recognized by parents and little ones alike.

Inspired by the different foods that the famous caterpillar eats throughout his metamorphosis journey, the new line of products includes Butterfly Pops and Oaty Biccies, both of which are available in sweet and savory flavors. As another nod to the beloved story, some of the flavors include cheese and pickle as well as tomato and nice green leaf, while the biscuits come in shapes and designs inspired by butterflies and caterpillars.

The mission for Ella’s Kitchen’s first ever brand licensing partnership is using the famous Hungry Caterpillar to engage little ones in their food through imagination and storytelling. The shapes, flavors and packaging will all be inspired by the caterpillar’s journey to become a beautiful butterfly.

The new range is being supported with an extensive marketing campaign including shopper media, sampling, social media promotion, as well as direct marketing to the Ella’s Kitchen Friends database, which has over one million members.

“We are super excited to be launching this range of The Very Hungry Caterpillar snacks,” commented Zoe Batt, who makes Friendly Stuff at Ella’s Kitchen. “When parents are choosing snacks for their little one it is so important that they love them, and we know that our partnership is going to appeal so much to little ones by delivering play and fun using such a well-known character. There is so much affinity between the brands’ missions and it’s been great to develop products that really encourage a foodie adventure for little ones inspired by the caterpillar’s journey to becoming a beautiful butterfly.”

As the licensing representative for The World of Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar in the UK, Rocket Licensing brokered this brand extension in partnership with JLG, the global brand licensing agency for The World of Eric Carle.