Countdown to STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS Merchandise - Force Friday and Beyond

George Lucas was innovative in how he used toys and merchandise to promote and keep fans connected to Star Wars, but that’s nothing compared to the plans for STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS merchandise.  Friday, September 4th has been dubbed FORCE FRIDAY, and is the date for the unveiling of the STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS merchandise in a global live toy unboxing event.  Unfolding over 18 hours in 15 cities and 12 countries on “Force Friday” eve, fans will see highlights from the wide-range of STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS merchandise.  Continue reading for more details on the global Force Friday event as well as the official promotional partners creating STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS merchandise.  Click here for more images, trailers, and news for STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS.

From Lucasfilm Ltd.’s Press Release

“Star Wars toys have always played an important role in how our fans interact with the Saga,” says Lucasfilm President Kathleen Kennedy. “They’ve inspired multiple generations to relive the experience of the movies and to create new adventures all their own. These spectacular Star Wars: The Force Awakens products will continue that tradition.”

Kicking off in Sydney, Australia on the morning of September 3, and continuing through Asia, Europe, Canada, and North & South America, selections from the new toy line will debut to global fanfare leading up to retailers around the globe opening their doors at midnight.

STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS
The Star Wars YouTube channel will host the live stream, which kicks off with the first unboxing in Sydney, Australia at 7:45 a.m. local time on Thursday, Sept. 3 (5:45 p.m. EDT on Wednesday, Sept. 2), with the grand finale at Lucasfilm in San Francisco at 8 a.m. PDT (11 a.m. EDT) on Thursday, Sept. 3. Each of the 15 locations will reveal a new product from the Star Wars: The Force Awakens merchandise line.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

In addition, Lucasfilm announced they are collaborating with seven of the world’s most well-known brands— COVERGIRL & Max Factor, Duracell, FCA US, General Mills, HP, Subway and Verizon—for the launch of an expansive, historic promotional campaign in support of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” opening December 18.

The seven best-in-class global partners were chosen to complement the tempo and tone of the film’s overall marketing campaign.

COVERGIRL & MAX FACTOR

Easy, breezy, beautiful from the start, COVERGIRL now holds an iconic position in the world of beauty and pop culture: the brand that has been empowering women to rock their beautiful for more than 50 years. Throughout its history – and still today –

COVERGIRL has been known as a cosmetics category leader and innovator, with first-to-market technologies, famous faces, and on-trend marketing campaigns. Whether how to get the look, or how to get behind-the-scenes access to the hottest celebrity event, COVERGIRL has got it covered. Recently, the brand committed $5MM over five years to enable women and girls to break boundaries at school, at work, and in entrepreneurial endeavors via its #GirlsCan initiative.

Star Wars Covergirl

Max Factor is the make-up of make-up artists. The story begins from the founding days of Mr. Max Factor, a true make-up artistry icon and pioneer, who created a world full of glamour. The make-up products and techniques he created for the movie industry and his Hollywood clients, Marilyn Monroe being just one of his many famous clients, earned him an Academy Award, but his guiding philosophy was that any woman could be glamourous given the right tools and make-up artistry skills. From mascara to foundation, eye shadow to lip gloss – Max Factor put the transformative tools for make-up artistry into the hands of every woman, enabling her to create her own personal glamour statement every day. Today, the Max Factor brand continues to empower women to look and feel glamorous via its talented Network of Make-up Artists, headed by the make-up visionary Pat McGrath (Max Factor and COVERGIRL Global Creative Design Director), sophisticated diagnostic tools and artistry, and an ever expanding range of tools and tips.

DURACELL

Duracell is the world’s leading manufacturer and marketer of high performance alkaline batteries. As the leader in the personal power category, Duracell has a rich history of innovation continuously introducing batteries that are more compact, more powerful and longer lasting than competitor brands. Since 1973, the Duracell Bunny has been at the heart of the brand demonstrating Duracell’s longer lasting power. Today Bunny is one of the most recognized brand icons in the world. Duracell batteries power many devices across the globe, including toys such as the Hasbro Lightsaber. In addition to its alkaline batteries, the company sells primary lithium, zinc air, and rechargeable nickel-metal hydride batteries as well as a line of flashlights.

Duracell

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles

FCA US LLC is a North American automaker with a new name and a long history. Headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, FCA US is a member of the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. (FCA) family of companies. FCA US designs, engineers, manufactures and sells vehicles under the Chrysler, Jeep, Dodge, Ram and FIAT brands as well as the SRT performance vehicle designation. The company also distributes the Alfa Romeo 4C model and Mopar products. FCA US is building upon the historic foundations of Chrysler, the innovative American automaker first established by Walter P. Chrysler in 1925; and Fiat, founded in Italy in 1899 by pioneering entrepreneurs, including Giovanni Agnelli.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

©Lucasfilm 2015

GENERAL MILLS

General Mills is one of the world’s leading food companies, operating in more than 100 countries around the world. Its brands include Cheerios, Fiber One, Häagen-Dazs, Nature Valley, Yoplait, Betty Crocker, Pillsbury, Green Giant, Old El Paso, Wanchai Ferry, Yoki and more. Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn., USA, General Mills had fiscal 2015 worldwide sales of US $18.8 billion.

Big G Star Wars Cereal Wars

HP

HP creates new possibilities for technology to have a meaningful impact on people, businesses, governments and society. With the broadest technology portfolio spanning printing, personal systems, software, services and IT infrastructure, HP delivers solutions for customers’ most complex challenges in every region of the world.

Star Wars Art Awakens

SUBWAY

Customers in 110 countries have easy access to a fresh line-up of vegetables for their made-to-order sandwiches and salads at any of the more than 44,000 franchised locations. The company, founded 50-years-ago by then-17-year-old Fred DeLuca and family-friend Dr. Peter Buck, is still a family-owned business with thousands of dedicated franchisees/entrepreneurs in neighborhoods around the world, providing easy access to vegetables, detailed nutrition, dietary, and healthy lifestyle information.

Subway Star Wars

VERIZON

Verizon Communications Inc., headquartered in New York, is one of the largest communication technology companies in the world. Verizon operates America’s largest, most reliable 4G LTE wireless network with 109.5 million retail connections nationwide. Verizon also provides converged communications, information and entertainment services over America’s most advanced fiber-optic network, and delivers integrated business solutions to customers worldwide.

Star Wars Celebration Live Verizon

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About Dave Parfitt

Married, father of two girls, and living in the heart of the Finger Lakes. I'm a runner with a PhD in neuroscience and a passion for travel.