Playmobil will mark its 40th anniversary in 2014 with new toys of every size, and heavy investment in advertising.

In January, the brand will roll out limited-edition Anniversary Compact Sets (rsp: £12.99) that come with a free add-on set.The Fire Brigade Operation set comes with a free quad bike pack, for example, while the Knight’s Tournament set is packaged with a free horse-drawn cannon wagon. Other sets in the line-up include a Pony Pasture and Princess Island.

The following month, Playmobil will launch the sixth series of its pocket-money blind-pack Mystery Bags (rsp: £1.99), which feature 24 figures - 12 aimed at boys and 12 for girls.

Playmobil is extending its line-up of boxed Specials Plus characters (rsp: £2.99)with additions including a magician and an architect.

Marketing for 2014 will include TV and press ads alongside social media and PR through the year.

TV advertising will kick off with a push targeting the half-term market from 3 to 23 February. This will promote the brand’s leisure-themed products such as a Family Caravan (rsp: £29.99) and Family SUV (rsp: £19.99), as well as a Playmobil’s new Game Boxes lines (rsp: £18.99).

These are additions to the Take Along line-up of portable playsets and will be available in four themes: Horse Stable, Princess Castle, Dragon’s Lair and Police Station.

Further TV advertising will run from 14 April to 4 May to target the Easter market and will again support the leisure theme as well as the Police SWAT range.

Playmobil was launched in 1974 by German designer Hans Beck. It is estimated that 2.6 billion Playmobil figures have been produced, and around 30 different themes are distributed in more than 80 countries worldwide. Playmobil was first marketed as Play People in the UK when it was introduced in the late 1970s.

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