New Zealand Post Promotes Movie Merchandise for "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies"

"The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" set to hit theaters at the end of the month, New Zealand Post helps Chinese fans fulfill their "Middle-earth longing."

Wellington, New Zealand, January 20, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- On January 23, the highly anticipated fantasy blockbuster "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies," directed by renowned Hollywood filmmaker Peter Jackson, will be released in China. As the grand finale of the "Hobbit" series, how this 17-year epic journey through Middle-earth will conclude has become the most fervent expectation among fans. Yet, from "The Lord of the Rings" to "The Hobbit," as audiences have fallen deeply in love with the stories,,they have also developed a deep "Middle-earth connection" with New Zealand, known as the "last pure land on earth."

New Zealand Post has maintained a strong collaborative relationship with director Peter Jackson and Warner Bros. Since 2001, for all six films in the "Middle-earth" series, New Zealand Post has designed and issued official stamps and commemorative coins in the year of their release, available for global fans to collect, with collectors spanning 68 countries and regions.

This time, in the design of the "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" commemorative philatelic products,,New Zealand Post has gone all out with bold innovation, creating special stamps and coins embedded with materials from the Party Tree in Hobbiton, making Middle-earth a tangible memory for fans. In particular, the limited-edition Bag End sterling silver coin, with its exquisite craftsmanship and unique authorized serial-number certificate for each coin, has been highly sought after by global collectors since its launch.

Official "The Hobbit" Commemorative Stamp Set 1-3

To coincide with the Chinese premiere of "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies," New Zealand Post, through its Tmall Global-based direct-from-New-Zealand store "New Zealand Basket Flagship Store"(which means "a gift basket from Middle-earth"), is actively promoting movie merchandise themed around "Middle-earth concepts." Among them, original classic costumes used in the film, such as Gandalf’s scarf and hat, have sold nearly half of their inventory even without large-scale promotion.

Dr. Sohail Choudhry, General Manager of E-commerce and Strategy at New Zealand Post, said that since the "New Zealand Basket Flagship Store" launched at the end of September, it took just three months to send out "packages from Middle-earth with Hobbit postcards" to nearly a thousand customers, and the store’s customer ratings have far exceeded the industry average. During the release of "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies," New Zealand Post will also collaborate with "Middle-earth enterprises," including Air New Zealand—which has been named the World’s Best Airline for two consecutive years—to launch a series of Hobbit-themed activities on Tmall Global, offering chances to win Middle-earth gifts and bringing fans an immersive "Middle-earth experience" beyond the films.

Recently, the official Weibo account of New Zealand Post, together with multiple social media platforms (including Sina Movies, Tencent Hollywood Cinema, Tourism New Zealand, and the "The Hobbit Trilogy" accounts), will launch a Middle-earth-themed movie merchandise giveaway campaign, aiming to leave the most beautiful memories for fans who have been following the 17-year Middle-earth journey.

According to statistics, the recently launched Middle-earth "Cosplay Event" theme activity by New Zealand Post received an overwhelmingly positive response on social media, with nearly 60,000 reads. To participate, many fans dressed up as classic characters and images from the films using various props, sharing photos and videos of their creations. New Zealand businesses also joined in, sending Christmas and New Year greetings from Middle-earth to fans, receiving widespread praise.

The enthusiasm shown by the Chinese market for "Middle-earth" products has given New Zealand Post great confidence in further developing the Chinese market. Dr. Sohail Choudhry said: "Since the flagship store officially went live on September 26 last year, with strong support from Tmall Global, our products have gained recognition in the Chinese market. Starting with 'Middle-earth,' we aim to further broaden our product range by introducing more representative New Zealand products (such as Manuka honey), health supplements, and skincare brands, strengthening cooperation with leading local businesses, and building a trusted 'Middle-earth' exclusive shopping platform for consumers. This will be our goal for the future."