HIT Entertainment’s first Little Big Club attraction will open in 2012 at the prestigious Puteri Harbour development in Nusajaya, Malaysia.
HIT, one of the world’s leading children’s entertainment producers and rights owners, has licensed the Little Big Club brand to Themed Attractions and Resorts (TAR), a wholly owned subsidiary of Khazanah Nasional Berhad.
The two parties signed a deal on November 7 and plan to develop a 60,000 square feet facility featuring HIT properties including Thomas & Friends, Barney, Pingu, Bob the Builder and Angelina Ballerina. Spread across three floors will be five themed zones and a large retail space.
Children and their parents will be able to enjoy rides, play structures, role play, games, parties and events, including education and performing arts-based activities. Features will include an Angelina Ballerina dance studio and Pingu-themed educational curriculum.
“Asia represents more than 60% of the world’s population and given the strength of our brands in the region it is an important focus for HIT’s strategic growth in attractions,” notes Teri Ruffley, HIT Entertainment’s vice-president of events and attractions. “The project design will be led by Forrec and the attraction will be an innovative and unique offering for young families. We are delighted to be working with TAR on this world-class attraction.”
“I am confident that the presence of The Little Big Club in our family indoor theme park will draw visitors, not just from Malaysia but also other countries in the region,” states TAR CEO, Tunku Ahmad Burhanuddin.
Construction on the indoor attraction is expected to commence in early 2010. The Little Big Club will be one of the three themed attractions within a larger development at Puteri Harbour, which will also include a 300-room Traders hotel, approximately 100,000 sq ft. of retail space and a themed restaurant by the Malaysian cartoonist Lat. Nusajaya is part of Iskandar, the southern Malaysian special economic zone that will also be home to Asia’s first Legoland attraction.
HIT Entertainment already boasts two full-scale Thomas Land outlets, in England and Japan, four smaller Thomas Town areas at Six Flags parks in the United States, plus the new Thomas Town family entertainment centre in Shinmisato, Japan. The latter format will eventually be rolled out to 15 Japanese shopping malls. The original Little Big Club was planned for Dubai, but this project has now been shelved.
