Mondo TV, the third-party licensor for The Gruffalo in Italy, Spain, and Portugal, has detailed a new Italian licensee for the popular children’s publishing brand.

Pon Pon Edizioni has been licensed to launch a range of products including activity and colouring packs and sets. The range is aimed at children aged from three to five.

The deal covers Italy, along with San Marino, Canton Ticino and Vatican City. The range will be available at kiosks and bookstores across all of these territories before the end of the year.

The range uses illustrations and designs from the classic book illustrated by Axel Scheffler and written by Julia Donaldson. The story is a delightful tale of how a tiny mouse outwits a number of animals intent on eating him: a fox, an owl, a snake and finally a big, scary creature called The Gruffalo.

The Gruffalo was initially published in 1999 and has gone on to sell over 24 million copies across multiple formats in 99 languages. It has also inspired a growing global licensing campaign. Global licensor Magic Light appointed Mondo to develop a licensing programme for The Gruffalo in Italy, Spain and Portugal in late 2019.

A love of books brought together Gianni Bono and Marilla Pascale, who launched Pon Pon Edizioni in 2013. Today Pon Pon Edizioni has a portfolio that ranges from first reading and classic fairy tale books to magic pens, sticker albums and much more, with a strong profile in partnerships with licensed brands.

Valentina La Macchia, Mondo TV Licensing director, said: “This is a brand famous for its illustrations as well as its wonderful storyline and Pon Pon Edizioni is the ideal partner to bring those illustrations to the market in the form of activity and colouring packs.

“We are expecting to appoint further high-quality licensees very soon in Italy, Spain and Portugal, where sales of The Gruffalo book are very strong.”