Target is raising the curtain on a new pet collection that includes more than 180 items inspired by six social media "fur-fluencers" with items starting at $3.
The assortment, now available online and rolling into stores on September 21 includes matching accessories for dogs, cats, and humans, along with plush toys, treats, and home decorative items.
"We know shoppers turn to Target to help them care for their families, and for millions of people — including 70% of Target guests — pets are family," said Jill Sando, executive vice president and chief merchandising officer of Apparel & Accessories, Home and Hardlines. "The Cuddle Collab is all about celebrating our pets, and it's a fun way to extend our design expertise to the entire family — pets and the people who love them."
The new collection that will be available temporarily includes apparel and accessories such as sweatshirts, hats, and charms. Home products include pet beds, modern cat houses and condos, pet figurine bookends, and exclusive Stanley items, such as bowls and tumblers. An assortment of innovative toys and games for pets, plus treats in new seasonal flavors and foodie favorite donuts and cookies are also a part of the assortment.
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According to Target, The Cuddle Collab is one of Target's most unique design partnerships to date — inspired by six dogs and five cats who live in the spotlight as "fur-fluencers" on social media. Partners include therapy pups Ellie and Emma; modern cats Zelda, Titus, and Brave; foodie dog Popeye; pup fashionistas Ghost and Wren; self-care loving Maple Cat; and dog and cat best friends Baloo and Pan, who together boast more than six million followers on Instagram alone.
Every product in the collection is infused with their stories, personalities, and favorite activities — from hiking adventures to playing with sneakers — with each "fur-fluencer" collaborating to create their own themed capsule collection of products within the assortment. Learn more about the fur-fluencers and The Cuddle Collab.
The Cuddle Collab will also extend to Target's first reality-style social series, "The Pets of Tarjay," which invites audiences to see the world completely from the pets' points of view with humorous, universal truths every pet lover can relate to. Throughout the five-part series, pets, outfits, and products spotlight The Cuddle Collab with opportunities for viewers to engage with the assortment while the storyline unfolds.
In The Cuddle Collab's national advertising campaign, Bullseye and other furry friends take over a Target for one night of joy and shopping entirely from their perspective. In the campaign, the pets make a mad dash for their favorite items from the assortment, taking advantage of the unsupervised play time to excitedly sniff out and play with a wide array of products while roaming the Target store.
This story originally appeared on sister publication Store Brands.