Target Entertainment Group has secured a plush license for the pre-school animation series Fluffy Gardens with toy company MV Sports and Leisure Ltd. The deal will see MV Sports and Leisure develop a core plush range aimed at toddlers. This will include standard and feature plush toys, plush playsets with sound and light, miniature collectible plush, bean toys, plush key rings and bag clippers. The plan is for the first products to hit retail in Spring 2010. There are also plans for MV Sport and Leisure to develop a soft/nursery plush range for the second stage of the Fluffy Gardens roll-out plan. Target recently sold Fluffy Gardens to GMTV/CiTV in the UK, where it will air as part of the Fluffy Club block. Turner Broadcasting’s pre-school channel Cartoonito, which currently has the rights to air Fluffy Gardens in the UK, will share a window with GMTV/CiTV.

Helen Howells, global brand director at Target Entertainment Group said: "We are thrilled to have such an innovative company as MV on board for Fluffy Gardens. Not only do they appreciate the appeal of the characters and their settings but they also share our long term vision for the brand.”

Phil Ratcliffe, sales and marketing director at MV Sports and Leisure added: “MV is very excited to be working with Fluffy Gardens. This property is absolutely tailor made for soft toys and will benefit from extensive TV exposure across two broadcast platforms. We have enjoyed recent successes with other collectable plush concepts such as C’Mons, Goochicoo and Gogo’s Crazy Bones and the characters in Fluffy Gardens are similar in that they have a look and appeal which is unique and unmistakeable. With 40 characters to collect the scope for development and innovation is very compelling.”

Fluffy Gardens is a 80x7’ 2D digital cell animation series aimed at pre-schoolers and specifically children old enough for their first bedtime story. Each episode contains a gently paced story featuring one of the eccentric mix of animal characters who inhabit Fluffy Gardens. The menagerie includes: Floella the Fruitbat, Paolo the Cat, Wee Reg the Puppy, Mr Johnson the Panda and many more.

The series was created, written and directed by Jason Tammemagi from Dublin-based Monster Animation & Design.