First officially-licensed ‘Black Panther’, Princess Tiana car seat make their debut

Guests were invited to the KidsEmbrace headquarters in Los Angeles, Calif. to celebrate the launch of the first officially-licensed Black Panther-themed combination booster car seat, available now exclusively through Amazon.

By Melanie Gable

KidsEmbrace fulfills their mission of “Making Safety Fun” by working closely with some of the world’s largest brands, including Warner Bros., Disney, and Nickelodeon, to create car seats, strollers, booster seats, baby carriers, high chairs, and more featuring popular characters that kids love.

Families can choose from gear that features the likenesses of superheroes, princesses and cartoon characters, and have peace of mind knowing that KidsEmbrace routinely evaluates their products to ensure they are up-to-date with the latest safety regulations and certifications.

The family-friendly festivities at the launch party included character meet-and-greets, face painting, a themed photo booth, sweet treats, and raffles for fun prizes from Bixbee, Goliath Games, Bumkins, Pressman Toy, and more.

Guests in attendance included local families, social media influencers, and cast members from Marvel Studios’ “Black Panther” – most notably Denzel Whitaker, who plays James/Young Zuri in the film.

When asked about his reaction to “Black Panther,” Whitaker said that it was more than a superhero film, as the story elements explored “what it means to be human, what it means to be different, what it means to be of a different race, of a different culture, to celebrate your heritage.”

At the event, KidsEmbrace revealed the newest car seat to be added to their line: Princess Tiana from Disney’s “The Princess and the Frog,” which was developed as a result of a heartwarming story of Annett Leeks and her 3-year-old daughter, Jada.

Leeks won a KidsEmbrace car seat in a giveaway, and was disappointed to see that the company didn’t offer a car seat featuring a character of color. She ordered a Cinderella car seat and, while her daughter was in school, colored Cinderella’s skin and eyes brown and her hair black so the princess looked more like her daughter, Jada.

Jada was delighted with the results, so Leeks wrote to KidsEmbrace and expressed a desire for more representation in their future product offerings. Vincent Mastrangelo, COO of KidsEmbrace, was touched by Leeks’ email shared her story with Disney. As a result, KidsEmbrace was given the contract to begin developing a Princess Tiana car seat, which will be released in 2019.