Hasbro Inc., one of the world’s largest toy companies, announced Monday that it will move its headquarters to Boston from its long-time home of Rhode Island.
The company will occupy seven floors across 265,000 square feet at 400 Summer St. in the Seaport District, it said in a news release.
[More on this story from Boston Business Journal.]
“We are thrilled that Hasbro has chosen Massachusetts as the home of its new headquarters, and we’re ready to support the hundreds of jobs they will create here,” Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey said. “We’re proud to welcome this iconic company to Team Massachusetts — where we are number one for education, health care and innovation, and ranked the best state to live in, to raise a family, to be a woman and to be a working parent.”
“I’m delighted to welcome Hasbro to its new home in Boston,” Mayor Michelle Wu added. “The creativity and wonder at the heart of Hasbro’s work are also at the heart of our mission to make Boston a home for everyone—the safest major city in the country and the best place to raise a family, with opportunities for all to Connect(4) and Play(-Doh). We look forward to supporting Hasbro’s transition to Boston and partnership with the city.”
The toy giant Hasbro Inc. is considering moving its headquarters to Boston from Rhode Island, according to several real estate sources, a move that would bolster a still-recovering downtown Boston while dealing a blow to the Ocean State business community.
The decision ends a relocation search that began last year, when Hasbro and Massachusetts government leaders met over dinner and started discussing a move.
Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee on Monday thanked the company for the contributions it’s made to the state, while maintaining in a statement “that Rhode Island is the best place for Hasbro to call home, and many more companies agree with that sentiment.” He touted adding over 36,000 jobs in the private sector during his time in office.
Hasbro’s move is the latest company that Boston’s been able to draw from across the region.
Just last month, Keurig Dr Pepper announced they are acquiring JDE Peet’s and basing the global headquarters for their Global Coffee Co in Burlington. Earlier this year, Lego opened its new U.S. headquarters in Boston, supporting 800 jobs. And Biogen is planning a new global headquarters and innovation hub in Kendall Square.
Hasbro’s search led last year to tours of office buildings in Boston including two downtown on Summer Street. In 400 Summer in the Seaport, the company chose what may have seemed an unlikely destination at the outset of the search: a lab-and-office building.
WS Development leased the 580,000-square-foot property to Foundation Medicine in 2019, and the building opened last year. But Foundation had put a large chunk of the property on the sublease market, where it sat amid a broader slump in lab demand.
Hasbro said in a news release that though it will be establishing a new home in Boston, its ties to Rhode Island remain strong.
In 2024 alone, Hasbro said it contributed over $1 million in product and in-kind donations to local Rhode Island organizations, including long-standing partners like Hasbro Children’s Hospital and the Rhode Island Special Olympics. The company plans to continue to support Hasbro Children’s Hospital with annual donations and will keep recruiting from Rhode Island’s colleges and universities.
In addition to its East Coast facility, Hasbro has an office in Renton, Washington, which serves as the headquarters for its gaming and digital businesses.
“Boston’s thriving business community, deep academic partnerships and cultural vibrancy, together with our Seattle team’s leadership in technology, creativity, and innovation, give Hasbro an unparalleled foundation for growth,” Hasbro CEO Chris Cocks said. “Together, these offices will fuel the next chapter of Hasbro.”
