Crawford Productions and Protocol Entertainment have appointed Marathon Media as the European Merchandising & Licensing Agent and Brand Manager for The Saddle Club. The Paris based children’s entertainment organization will manage all European licensing opportunities for The Saddle Club, the fastest-growing horse brand in France.

Based on the books written by Bonnie Bryant, the Australian/Canadian live-action series follows the adventures of three young friends who formed the Saddle Club at Pine Hollow Stables. Prancer, Belle and Starlight are the equine stars and confidants of Lisa, Stevie and Carole, three best friends who always find fun and adventure amid the every-day chores at Pine Hollow Stables. As they face the challenges of riding and growing up, they remain true to each other and the one thing that brought them together, their love of horses.

After 3 years of excellent ratings, GULLI, the French digital free-to-air channel has just launched very successfully the 3rd season of The Saddle Club! The series is currently sold into more than 50 territories amongst which USA (PBS), Canada (TVO), Australia (9/WIN Network), Italy (RAI-Disney Channel), Sweden (Barnkanalen) Norway (NRK Super), Spain & Portugal (Disney Channel) ….

Nick McMahon CEO Crawford Productions says: “It’s great to have Marathon working with us in Europe. They have done a fantastic job building our Saddle Club brand in France and given the popularity in that territory we are confident that it will continue to grow.”

Horse riding is one of the favorite sports of girls aged 8-12. Riding on the French licensing success of the series, Marathon Media will appoint European agents for the key territories during the Las Vegas Licensing Show – booth 1808. Marathon Media will develop local licensing programs with a wide range of product categories including publishing with magazines, comic books, and partworks, audio CDs, stationary and BTS, apparel, riding accessories, gift, toys, plush and promotions …

Patricia de Wilde, Director of Licensing at Marathon Media says: “We are thrilled to be working with Saddle Club in Europe. The series has shown such an amazing potential. Horse riding has emerged in the last 3 years as the best untapped licensing niche. We are confident that we can extend this universal concept throughout Europe in the coming years.”

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