Toy giant Hasbro accelerates Boston move, begins hiring for new office – The Boston Globe

The company — whose iconic brands include Monopoly, Scrabble, My Little Pony, Nerf, and Potato Head — had long been headquartered in Pawtucket, and will soon relocate operations to 400 Summer St. in Boston’s Seaport District, a 630,000 square-foot, 16-story laboratory building.

The new space will be home to at least 700 full-time employees, who are expected to fully transition from Rhode Island to Boston by the end of 2026.

A hiring push for the Boston office began in September, just after the toy maker announced it would leave its Pawtucket offices at 1027 Newport Ave. Some of the Boston postings were tagged as “company priority,” signaling urgency to fill those roles.

Hasbro’s relocation underscores the powerful allure of Boston’s vast talent pool and healthy corporate ecosystem. While Hasbro’s relocation will force Rhode Island to grapple with losing tax revenue, Pawtucket has long struggled to reinvent its downtown, which has plenty of vacant buildings, homelessness, and underperforming schools. Hasbro still owns its aging offices on Newport Avenue, and it’s unclear whether the company plans to lease or sell them, and when.

Andrea Snyder and Bertie Thomson, two spokespeople for Hasbro, could not be reached for comment. The company has not responded to state or city officials either.

“The State and City Commerce departments, in partnership with Governor [Dan] McKee’s office and Mayor [Don] Grebien’s office, have reached out to Hasbro numerous times – all calls, emails, and letters have gone unanswered,” said Grebien spokesperson Jennifer Almeida, in a statement to the Globe. “While we recognize that Hasbro is a private company and made the decision to leave, the lack of communication is frustrating.”

“We hope that Hasbro will work with us to ensure their employees are taken care of and that the property remains viable for future development,” Almeida said.

Hasbro has been located in Rhode Island since its founding in 1923 by the Hassenfeld family. One of the few publicly traded companies based in Rhode Island, it employs roughly 5,500 people worldwide.

Alexa Gagosz can be reached at alexa.gagosz@globe.com. Follow her @alexagagosz and on Instagram @AlexaGagosz.