CARE BEARS™ COUNTDOWN, 4-3-2-1! NELVANA AND CLOUDCO ENTERTAINMENT ANNOUNCE NUMEROUS RETAIL AND EXPERIENTIAL PARTNERSHIPS TO CELEBRATE MILESTONE 40TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CARE BEARS

Canadian Companies Commemorating the Beloved Brand Include iHalo Krunch, Bunners Bakeshop, Eva's Original Chimneys, SQUISH Candies, Peace Collective, Retrokid™ and Pride Toronto

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 TORONTO, May 31, 2022 /CNW/ - The lovable, huggable Care Bears from the whimsical land of Care-a-Lot are celebrating their 40th anniversary this year! To celebrate, Corus Entertainment's Nelvana, a world-leading international producer, distributor, and licensor of children's animated and live-action content, and Cloudco Entertainment, owner of the Care Bears™ entertainment brand, are bringing the iconic Care Bears brand to life through food, apparel, and experiential event collaborations with companies across Canada.

"We're honoured to pay homage to 40 incredible years of the Care Bears, and to provide opportunities for the devoted fan base in Canada to join in on celebrating this landmark anniversary," said Mellany Masterson, Head of Nelvana Enterprises. "The enthusiasm and excitement from so many well-known Canadian companies to develop unique Care Bears-themed products and experiences speaks to the power of the nostalgic franchise and how much the brand's values of sharing, caring and togetherness resonates with fans both young and old."

With anniversary collaborations set to launch this summer and fall, food and apparel retail partners include:

• iHalo Krunch – Known for Asian-inspired soft-serve ice cream served in activated charcoal house-made cones, all retail locations in Toronto will offer limited-edition Care Bears inspired twists and milkshakes.
• Bunners Bakeshop – Toronto's premier vegan and gluten-free bakery will offer limited-edition rainbow Care Bears sugar cookies, rainbow s'mores squares, mini rainbow birthday cake doughnuts, mini rainbow chocolate chip creamies, and rainbow mini heart cookies with birthday frosting dunking kits at all storefront locations.
• Eva's Original Chimneys – Chimneys are delicious and unique, bread-like freshly baked Hungarian pastries – which Eva's famously serves in a cone shape filled with ice cream. Eva's Bloor Street, Port Credit, Square One, Newfoundland, and Nova Scotia locations will offer limited-edition Care Bears-inspired Chimney Cones®.
• SQUISH Candies – Canadian female owned gourmet gummy shop with real fruit pieces, no sugar added options, and vegan delights in juicy flavours will offer limited-edition Care Bears-themed candy and packaging, available through their website for delivery across Canada.
• Peace Collective (PC) – PC produces quality apparel that looks good and does good, and in turn makes you feel good. Every garment sold gives back to the communities that need it most. A limited-edition Care Bears clothing collection will feature the characters in unique ways and celebrate sharing, caring, and pride. Available in-store and online.
• Retrokid – Retrokid celebrates your fondest childhood memories growing up as a kid through timeless design, authentic collaborations, and quality apparel. A limited-edition collection of Care Bears tees, hoodies, and sweats is available online now. 

This summer, Nelvana will also be delivering one-on-one time with the Care Bears themselves through experiential activations across Ontario, including a Peace Collective x Care Bears event in Toronto's Distillery District on June 25 to celebrate the collection launch and an event at Pride Toronto on June 26 at Church Street Junior Public School. Events will include meet and greets, photo opportunities, and unforgettable memories for everyone in the family. More events and details will be announced soon.

"The Care Bears have always felt at home in Canada, and we are thrilled to have so many exciting collaborations lined up as we celebrate our 40^th anniversary this year," said Cristina Villegas, Vice President of Licensing for North America, Cloudco Entertainment. "The opportunity to bring sharing and caring to our fans in real life, as well, is always a treat and we look forward to seeing these partnerships come to life."

First introduced in 1982 through a line of greeting cards, the Care Bears have amassed fans of all ages over the last 40 years, and are now featured everywhere from consumer products and plush toys to animated television shows and feature films. Known all over the world for spreading sharing, caring, and togetherness, and with a reach of over 1 million on social media around the globe, the Care Bears look forward to embarking on new adventures with their fans for years to come.  

About Nelvana

Entertaining kids for over 50 years, Nelvana is a world-leading international producer and distributor of children's animated and live-action content. Nelvana produces a stable of award-winning and globally renowned brands that focus on comedies, preschool and action series, and ancillary consumer products programs. Nelvana's content airs on Corus Entertainment's kids channels in Canada and in over 180 countries around the world. The Nelvana library has over 4,800 episodes of programming and has received over 70 major international program awards including Emmys® and Canadian Screen Awards. Visit the Nelvana website at nelvana.com.

Follow Nelvana Enterprises on Twitter @NelvanaEnt

About Corus Entertainment Inc.

Corus Entertainment Inc. (TSX: CJR.B) is a leading media and content company that develops and delivers high quality brands and content across platforms for audiences around the world.  Engaging audiences since 1999, the company's portfolio of multimedia offerings encompass 33 specialty television services, 39 radio stations, 15 conventional television stations, a suite of digital and streaming assets, animation software, technology and media services. Corus is an internationally-renowned content creator and distributor through Nelvana, a world class animation studio expert in all formats and Corus Studios, a globally recognized producer of hit scripted and unscripted content. The company also owns innovative full-service social digital agency so.da, lifestyle entertainment company Kin Canada, leading 2D animation software supplier Toon Boom and children's book publishing house, Kids Can Press. Corus' roster of premium brands includes Global Television, W Network, HGTV Canada, Food Network Canada, Magnolia Network Canada, The HISTORY® Channel, Showcase, Adult Swim, National Geographic, Disney Channel Canada, YTV, Global News, Globalnews.ca, Q107, Country 105, and CFOX, along with broadly distributed Canadian streaming platforms STACKTV, Nick+, the Global TV App and Curiouscast. For more information visit www.corusent.com.

About Cloudco Entertainment

Cloudco Entertainment (formerly American Greetings Entertainment) is a children's entertainment company and the owner of iconic entertainment brands such as Care Bears™, Holly Hobbie™, Madballs™, Boy Girl Dog Cat Mouse Cheese™, Twisted Whiskers™, Buddy Thunderstruck™, Tinpo™ and its newest IP, Overlord & The Underwoods™. Cloudco Entertainment develops multi-platform entertainment franchises across all media channels and creates a wide-range of consumer merchandising programs and experiences that immerse children and adults in the brands they love. 

About Care Bears™

Introduced in 1982 through consumer products, greeting cards, and later a series of animated television shows and feature films, Care Bears is one of the most popular and endearing children's properties in the world. Fans of all ages are drawn to the lovable, huggable bears from Care-a-Lot who inspire all to have fun, share, and care. The Care Bears first appeared in their own television specials in 1983 and 1984, followed by a long-running animated TV series and the leap to the big screen in 1985-87 with The Care Bears Movie trilogy. Care Bears & Cousins, a Netflix original CGI-animated series, launched in fall 2015. In 2019, a brand-new look and mission for the Care Bears was introduced in Care Bears: Unlock the Magic, a 48 episode, 2D animated series currently airing in the US on Cartoon Network, Boomerang, and HBO Max via its Cartoonito preschool block. In 2022, the Care Bears are celebrating 40 years of sharing and caring through the launch of new consumer products with key retail partners and a range of new toys with Basic Fun. 

Website: CareBears.com  
YouTube: YouTube.com/CareBears 
Facebook: Facebook.com/CareBears 
Twitter: Twitter.com/CareBears 
Instagram: Instagram.com/CareBears 
TikTok: Tiktok.com/@carebearsofficial 

SOURCE Corus Entertainment Inc.

For media inquiries, please contact: Kelsey MacLeod, Corus Entertainment, Associate Publicist, [phone], [email protected]; Stacey Grimshaw, Corus Entertainment, Sr. Publicity Manager, [phone], [email protected]