Launched under its parent company – Picture Case – The Cuties and Pals range features seven different animal-style pull along suitcases, each with a matching backpack.

The award-winning consultancy will be responsible for raising The Cuties and Pals’ profile across national, consumer and trade press, as well as managing the brand’s social media presence. Using a combination of product placement, creative campaigns and viral videos, Peppermint will help build awareness of the luggage brand among consumers and retailers.

Picture Case is the brainchild of Husband and wife duo Gavin and Suzanne Naismith, who appeared on Dragons’ Den with the brand in its early days. Gavin and Suzanne subsequently followed the advice given to them by the dragons and concentrated their efforts on developing Picture Case’s children’s luggage range – The Cuties and Pals.

The Cuties and Pals range has since broken into major UK retail stores, including John Lewis and House of Fraser. In addition to acting as a wholesaler, Picture Case also sells The Cuties and Pals directly to the public via its online shop, cutiesandpals.co.uk, as well as exporting the range worldwide.

Gavin Naismith, managing director of Picture Case, said: “We want The Cuties and Pals to become an established name in kids’ luggage. Peppermint’s successful track record with consumer accounts persuaded us to get them involved, and we’re already seeing outstanding results.”

The account win marks the end of Peppermint’s most successful year to date, with the agency chalking up a total of 26 account wins so far in 2011. The Cuties and Pals will join the consultancy’s impressive consumer portfolio, which includes Home Bargains, Transformulas, The Farjo Medical Centre and Sound Asleep.

Jean-Philippe Glaskie, joint managing director of Peppermint PR, commented: “Everyone here at Peppermint is delighted to be promoting such a dynamic brand. Our mission is to position The Cuties and Pals as a household name in luggage, and to have some fun with them along the way.”

Hundreds of guests from the region’s PR community attended the glittering ceremony at the Hilton in Manchester last night to honour the winners of the annual awards, which recognise excellence in the industry. Peppermint walked away with the silver gong, topping off an award-winning year for the agency.

In March this year, it was the winner in the ‘Consultancy Team’, ‘Freshest Consumer Campaign’ and the ‘Freshest Low Budget PR Campaign’ categories at the Fresh PR awards.

Jean-Philippe Glaskie, joint managing director at Peppermint PR, was “thrilled to have gained this recognition from the Chartered Institute of Public Relations for the second year in a row.”

He said: “We’re immensely proud of our entire team and hugely excited about the future at Peppermint. We’re now set to grow our team in the coming months as we gear up for even greater growth.”

The CIPR PRide Awards is the only awards scheme which showcases the best PR work being carried out across each of the UK regions.