Earth Buddy novelty products is branching out from specialty stores and into department store chains Zellers, K Mart, and Wal-Mart at the end of August, to reach a larger market during the Christmas buying season.

A 15-second tv spot will support the move, featuring a tag-line for Zellers and K Mart.

Wal Mart, in an effort to maintain full control over its marketing, does not allow advertisers to mention the Wal-Mart name in product advertising, says Bruce West, president of Wal-Mart in Canada.

Seiger Marketing, the Toronto-based company that markets Earth Buddy, handled the creative.

Earth Buddy, the head-shaped nylon bag which grows real grass for hair, is one of several novelties using tv spots to demonstrate and sell unfamiliar products.

This summer, Scarborough, Ont.-based Milestone Marketing has used a direct-response tv spot to sell more than 2,000 Vegiheads – plastic moulds that fit over vegetables and force them to grow into the shapes of human faces – according to Milestone President Mark Bowden.