House of Brussels Hails "Major Success" of its Sonic the Hedgehog Chocolates

It looks like Sonic the Hedgehog chocolates are a hit! Who knew? Certainly not House of Brussels it seems, which appears so surprised at the sheer success of its branded products that it launched a press release to celebrate a wave of renewed business interest.

The candy company attended the 2003 All Candy Expo in Chicago to promote the launch of the Sonic the Hedgehog chocolate bars and treats, and announced that it "was inundated by retailers both large and small", "received several hundred leads, with more than 30 coming from major chain retailers" and was "registering the Sonic line with several regional and nationwide food distributors" - all as a result of its partnership with SEGA.

House of Brussels MD, Grant Petersen, said, "In the 20-year history of Brussels Chocolates, we have never had a more exciting product to present to buyers and anticipate high buyer and retail acceptance."

Read the full press release below.

Quote

House of Brussels Chocolates Provides Follow-Up to Introduction of Sonic The Hedgehog Line at
All Candy Expo
Friday June 6, 9:13 am ET

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- (BUSINESS WIRE) -- June 6, 2003 -- House of Brussels Chocolates ("HBSL") is pleased to announce that the official launch of Sonic The Hedgehog® chocolate treats at the 2003 All Candy Expo in Chicago as announced on May 13th appears to be a major success. Thanks to the strong marketing support of our partners, SEGA® of America and Prima Games, coupled with a highly recognizable brand name, our sales and marketing team at the show was inundated by retailers both large and small to get a "taste" of our new Sonic the Hedgehog chocolate line. Over three days, HBSL received several hundred leads, with more than 30 coming from major chain retailers. At the request of several retailers, we are currently registering the Sonic line with several regional and nationwide food distributors, which is a necessary step to initiate our product roll out. HBSL anticipates the signing of several significant contracts in the near future and will release this information to the public as appropriate. "In the 20-year history of Brussels Chocolates, we have never had a more exciting product to present to buyers and anticipate high buyer and retail acceptance," said Grant Petersen, Managing Director of Brussels.

About House of Brussels Chocolates, Inc. ():
Since 1983, House of Brussels Chocolates has been an established manufacturer of gourmet quality chocolate products distributing gourmet Belgian chocolates through its licensed retail outlets and through a wholesale network in Canada, the United States and overseas. House of Brussels Chocolate's signature product is its "hedgehog" chocolate -- a molded chocolate design that blends the aesthetics of the traditional Belgian symbol of good luck with taste for a strong customer appeal. House of Brussels Chocolates also offers an assortment of fine truffles, maple chocolates made with genuine Canadian maple syrup, ice wine truffles made with Canadian ice wine as well as fine quality chocolate bars made in several distinct flavors. Most recently, Brussels developed a new hedgehog treat - the Sonic The Hedgehog(TM) chocolate bar -- that is just being released to the marketplace.

About SEGA:
SEGA® of America, Inc. is the American arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA Corporation, a $3.5 billion corporation by market capitalization, recognized as a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home. The company develops, publishes and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.