Simba acquires majority stake in Swedish company as it aims to keep ahead of the fusion between toys and entertainment. 

L-R: Werner Lenzner, licensing and strategic development manager Simba Dickie Group; Felix Stork, managing director Kid-E-Media and corporate marketing director Simba Dickie Group; Pelle Ferner, managing director Kid-E-Media; Erik Foberg, business developer Kid-E-Media.

The Simba Dickie Group has acquired a majority stake in the Swedish entertainment company Ruta ett Entertainment AB, in a move intended to keep the company abreast of the increasing fusion between the toy and entertainment sectors.

Ruta ett Entertainment, based in Falun near Stockholm, was founded in 2004. The eight-strong creative team comprises animators, app developers, musicians and writers, who collaborate with entertainment industry professionals across the globe to develop quality children’s entertainment programmes. The company’s animated pre-school series, Heroes of the City, has achieved success among its target audience, and is now streamed to more than 70 countries via 19 of its own YouTube channels, with over 3m subscribers and 2b YouTube views worldwide.

Dickie Toys, as master toy licensee, has been a major partner of the Swedish company since 2017, successfully producing toy vehicles and soft toys based on characters from the animated series.

Under the umbrella of the Simba Dickie Group, Ruta Ett now trades under the name Kid E Media AB.

Kid E Media managing director Felix Stork, who is also corporate marketing director at Simba, commented: “With this step, we have made our plan to become involved in the entertainment sector and to produce our own content and apps a reality. The philosophy and vision of this friendly creative team, which brings a wealth of expertise with it, is an excellent fit for us.”