Hasbro
Hasbro () is an
American toy and
game company. It is one of the largest toy makers in the world, second only to the toy giant
Mattel. Hasbro is also the publisher of the world's most popular
board game,
Monopoly. The corporate headquarters is located in
Pawtucket,
Rhode Island, United States.
Hasbro originated with the
Mr. Potato Head toy. Mr. Potato Head was the invention of
George Lerner in the late
1940s. The idea was originally sold to a
breakfast cereal manufacturer so that the separate parts could be distributed as cereal package premiums. This was not successful and Lerner bought back the rights to textile manufacturers Henry and Merrill Hassenfeld, who did business as the Hassenfeld Brothers, later to be shortened to Hasbro. The toy was a smash success, which led to their development of other toys and games.
Hasbro, Inc. is now the parent company of several
subsidiaries. The toys and games produced by these companies retain their
brand identity, which is an important advertising consideration. Many of Hasbro's games have been around so long that they have entered into the
popular culture.
Some of the Hasbro-owned subsidiaries are:
*
Avalon Hill*
Coleco*
Galoob*
Kenner*
Maisto*
Milton Bradley*
Parker Brothers*
Playskool*
Selchow and Righter*
Tiger Electronics*
Tonka*
Wizards of the Coast*
WrebbitThe largest subsidiary of Hasbro was probably
Kenner (in
Cincinnati, Ohio). Kenner was the toy company that was behind the success of the
Star Wars,
Play-Doh,
Super Powers,
M.A.S.K.,
Strawberry Shortcake and
Care Bears toy lines. When
Tonka and then later Hasbro acquired
Kenner, the Kenner location became the foremost producer for Hasbro "boys toys", leading production on the high-profile lines of
G.I. Joe,
Transformers,
Batman and
Star Wars toys. However, after sales declined in
2000 after the
Star Wars toy market saturation implosion, Hasbro faced a difficult decision in cutting back its spending in order to continue to cater to their primary buyers. They decided to close the entire Cincinnati plant, relocating about 100 employees and laying off over 400. This decision, while good for Hasbro, created a ripple effect on the Cincinnati job market which continued to push businesses out of Cincinnati, which, with
Procter & Gamble and Hasbro, had managed to be the
midwest city for corporate
advertising and
graphic design.
In the early
21st century, Hasbro allowed for the use of Mr. Potato Head in a community art project similar to those with cows in
Chicago and pigs in Cincinnati. Painted and reoutfitted versions of Mr. Potato Head by various artists sprouted up all over
Rhode Island and were welcome additions in front of businesses and buildings (including a
New England staple,
Dunkin Donuts) for the duration of the project.
Hasbro would be the largest toy and game publisher in the world if it were not for Mattel's
Barbie franchise.
Hasbro has several brands of toys aimed at different demographics. Some of its more well known brands are:
*
Action Man*
Battle Beasts*
Beyblade*
Cabbage Patch Kids (
1989-
1994)
*
C.O.P.S. 'n Crooks*
Easy-Bake Oven*
G.I. Joe*
Jurassic Park with the 2005 toyline being the most recent one
*
Lincoln Logs*
Lite-Brite*
Marvel (Starting 2007)
*
Mr. Potato Head*
My Little Pony*
Play-Doh*
Pokémon*
Spirograph*
Star Wars*
Tinkertoys
*
Transformers*
World Wrestling Federation (
1990-
1994)
Hasbro is the largest producer of
board games in the world as a result of its component brands, such as
Parker Brothers,
Milton Bradley,
Wizards of the Coast, and
Avalon Hill (all acquisitions since the 1980s). As a result it has well known and top selling games such as:
*
Axis and Allies*
Battleship*
Candy Land*
Clue (Cluedo)*
Dungeons and Dragons (Roleplaying Game)
*
Life*
Magic: The Gathering (Hasbro's top-selling brand)
*
Monopoly (best selling board game ever according to the
Guinness Book of World Records)
*
Pictionary*
Risk*
Rummikub*
Scrabble*
Trivial PursuitHasbro also produces many variations of most of their games. For example, in addition to original
Scrabble, the game is also available as "Scrabble Deluxe Edition", "Scrabble Deluxe Travel Edition", and "Scrabble Junior".
Hasbro also offers
games of physical skill such as:
*
Bop It*
JengaHasbro began a short-lived
computer and video game development and
publishing venture called
Hasbro Interactive in the
1990s, but disbanded it in late
1999. Now Hasbro develops video games based on its brands through
third-party developers and licensing strategies.
On
February 25 2005, Hasbro announced that it would be introducing a musical
toothbrush to the market. The
Tooth Tunes would transmit music from the
jawbone to the
ear when the bristles touch the teeth.
*
Board game*
German-style board game*
Hasbro's official website*
History of Hasbro
