The award-winning studio honors National Black Cat Day with an assortment of ‘Coraline’ cat items, including a ‘Cat’ plush doll and signature apparel and products sourced from the studio’s hometown of Portland; start your holiday shopping on Halloween!
It’s Halloween, and what could be more apropos than sharing LAIKA’s launch of its new online shop experience, which opened its virtual doors on October 27 to celebrate National Black Cat Day. In honor of this festive feline occasion, the store’s new offerings feature an assortment of Coraline “Cat” (voiced by the magnificent Keith David) character items from the studio’s iconic 2009 film. International shipping is offered for the first time, making the studio’s themed products available to fans worldwide.
The multi-award-winning studio is world-renowned for its storytellers, artists, and craftspeople dedicated to creating original and entertaining films — merging puppets, handcrafted sets, and traditional stop-motion techniques with industry-leading innovations in 3D printing, model fabrication, and VFX. LAIKA’s popular animated features include ParaNorman, The Boxtrolls, Kubo and the Two Strings, and Missing Link.
Shop releases include a new, studio-exclusive pressing of the Coraline Soundtrack vinyl record, a Cat plush doll with poseable neck and tail for creative display, a line of apparel featuring the distinctive outline of LAIKA’s logo, and many products sourced from Portland-based small businesses, including paint-by-number kits, candles, and jewelry. Fans will also find items represented by all five of the studio’s films.
LAIKA studio-exclusive merchandise has been available to fans at the studio’s LIVE events/experiences, including exhibits at the Museum of Pop Culture in Seattle (ongoing), Museum of the Moving Image (just concluded) in New York; LAIKA LIVE at Comic Con (2017-18), the Portland Art Museum (2017), and Universal Studios Hollywood (2016).
In addition to new product offerings and returning fan favorites, the shop includes behind-the-scenes facts about LAIKA’s films, cleverly hidden behind interactive “buttons” (a nod to both Coraline and the handcrafted nature of LAIKA’s films and products), giving fans the unique opportunity to learn more about LAIKA while they shop!
While it's been 14 years since her debut, Coraline Jones is still loved by LAIKA fans. According to the studio, the #Coraline hashtag on TikTok has amassed 10 billion total views, with over 500,000 posts. In addition, Coraline’s August 2023 theatrical return was the highest-grossing Fathom Events re-release of all time at $7.4 million. On all four days, Coraline delivered the highest per-screen average of any film, surpassing Barbie and Oppenheimer.
"Bringing an exclusive and expanded merchandise collection deeply rooted in craftsmanship and inspired storytelling is a central focus for LAIKA,” commented David Burke, LAIKA’s Chief Marketing and Operations Officer. "This expansion is a seamless extension of our licensing efforts and a direct response to demand from LAIKA’s devoted fandom."
“We’ve taken a fresh look at both our product lineup and the site experience,” said Lauren Delgado, Digital Marketing Manager. “Our hope with the new LAIKA Shop is to provide fans with beautiful, quality, and iconic LAIKA merchandise and a site that offers a deeper brand experience while enriching the stories of the films they love.”
In addition to collections from companies such as Moleskine, Pendleton, and Mondo, LAIKA is partnering with Portland, Oregon-based small businesses that share the studio’s appreciation of artistry and craftsmanship. Vendors include (Portland-based companies are designated by *):
- All Burn Wax*
- Amy Wing Designs*
- Birch Robo
- Blue Kazoo
- Elle Crée*
- Grafletics*
- Little Shop of Pins*
- Moleskine
- Mondo
- Oregon Screen Impressions*
- Pendleton*
- SNAP Creative
- Sock it to Me*
Halloween is the perfect day to start your holiday shopping. Visit the LAIKA shop here.
Source: LAIKA
Debbie Diamond Sarto is news editor at Animation World Network.
