Ready for a Chia PREDATOR? While we don’t know if that will be a thing, a surprising announcement arrived just before the start of New York Toy Fair this weekend – National Entertainment Collectibles Association (NECA) has acquired the company behind Chia Pet and The Clapper. NECA has taken control of both Joseph Enterprises, Inc. (JEI) and Joseph Pedott Advertising and Marketing, Inc. (JPAM), which join the NECA family of specialty entertainment companies. NECA promises that these are “poised for cross-company collaboration.”
Joseph Pedott, founder of both companies and the man responsible for the decades-long success of Chia Pet (which debuted in 1982) and The Clapper (first sold in 1985), will remain involved for the transition to help oversee the businesses as they are integrated into the NECA family.
“The legacy built by Joseph Pedott will always be in the DNA of the company. I am honored to continue his legacy,” said Joel Weinshanker, COO of NECA. “Thanks to him, more people in America have seen a commercial for the Chia Pet or The Clapper than watched the past nine Super Bowls combined. The average person on the street can sing one of the jingles. They’ve appeared in countless movies and TV shows; they’re even housed in the Smithsonian. That’s a cultural resonance most products can only dream of.”
