Hasbro has announced plans to lay off 1,100 employees, citing rough sales performance persisting through the whole of 2023. This swath of layoffs will encompass a fifth of Hasbro’s workforce. CEO Chris Cocks said: “This is a lever we must pull to keep Hasbro healthy, as challenges which the company faced in the first three quarters of 2023 continued into the fourth. Market headwinds have proven to be stronger and more persistent than planned. While we’re confident in the future of Hasbro, the current environment demands that we do more, even if these choices are some of the hardest we have to make,” he wrote in an email to staff. “I know this news is especially difficult during the holiday season. We anticipated the first three quarters to be challenging, particularly in toys, where the market is coming off historic, pandemic-driven highs. While we have made some important progress across our organization, the headwinds we saw through the first nine months of the year have continued into holiday and are likely to persist into 2024.”

ZURU continues its long-term growth plans with the opening of a new flagship campus in LA county’s El Segundo, California. The expansion comes following a year of milestones and successful US launches including XSHOT Insanity, Rainbocorns Mermaidcorn Surprise, Snackles, and Foodie Mini Brands series 2.  Officially opened by ZURU’s Global Brand Director, Aneisha Vieira, the three twostory buildings on the company’s campus house key departments including ZURU Toy, Edge and Tech with a 13,500 Sq. Ft state-of-the-art showroom complete with 267 screens to provide visitors with an immersive experience. The screens are controlled by a custom-designed app developed exclusively for the showroom, allowing presenters to choose the supporting information they require on demand.

Mattel has announced a multi-year licensing deal with Amazon MGM Studios to create and sell co-branded dolls and collector sets inspired by MGM Television’s Wednesday. In 2024, Mattel will release co-branded Wednesday dolls and collector sets through its Monster High and Little People Collector properties, respectively, fusing the iconic characters with Mattel’s cherished toys.

Forming a new, more unified community of educators from across the organization, Sesame Workshop, the global impact nonprofit behind Sesame Street, has realigned its education functions into the new Research, Education, Data, & Impact (REDI) group. Sesame Workshop’s REDI will report to Dr. Alison Bryant, Chief Research, Education, Data, & Impact Officer. “We’re committed to having a more focused and aligned organization to have greater impact and better scale our knowledge and expertise,” said Steve Youngwood, Sesame Workshop CEO. “The creation of REDI reinforces the central role that education plays in everything we do. The team’s insights will help fuel strategic priorities, promote continued innovation, and maximize the organization’s global reach and impact educating and supporting children and families everywhere.”

Licensing International, the leading trade association for the $340+ billion global brand licensing industry, and the Licensing International Foundation, which supports the education of future licensing leaders, has celebrated the induction of Pam Kaufman, Cindy Levitt, and Carole Postal to the Licensing International Hall of Fame. Held at Gotham Hall in New York City and hosted by CBS Saturday Morning co-host Dana Jacobson, the 2023 Hall of Fame Induction and Rising Star Awards event also honored the future of brand licensing, recognizing Rising Stars in the licensing business and celebrating the 2023 Licensing International Foundation scholarship recipients.

In celebration of Hasbro’s 100th anniversary, the leading toy and game company announced that Alan Hassenfeld and The Hassenfeld Family Foundation would donate $1 million to four purposeful charities aligned with Hasbro’s philanthropic strategy through its Centennial Fan Choice Campaign on HasbroPulse.com. From September 22 to November 30, Hasbro’s passionate fan base was given the opportunity to choose how the $1M was allotted through voting online for each purchase they made on HasbroPulse.com. Hasbro is excited to announce the results of the fan vote, revealing that Toys for Tots has won first place with a donation of $400K, while Hasbro Children’s Hospital takes 2nd place to receive $300K, One Tree Planted snags 3rd for $200K and Games for Change came in 4th place with $100K.

ABetter Design Company has announced that its Bank-A-Ball Indoor Mini Basketball Hoop is getting a big “assist” from the TikTok trickshot challenges among teens, tweens, and Gen -Zers. Bank-A-Ball, the all-new indoor mini basketball structure, is considered to be the World’s Most Advanced Trickshot Basketball Set because of its multi-adjustable backboard angles and rim.