Wrebbit, Inc was a
puzzle
A puzzle is a game, Problem solving, problem, or toy that tests a person's ingenuity or knowledge. In a puzzle, the solver is expected to put pieces together (Disentanglement puzzle, or take them apart) in a logical way, in order to arrive at th ...
-making company best known for its ''
Puzz-3D
''Puzz 3D'' is the brand name of three-dimensional jigsaw puzzles, manufactured by Hasbro and formerly by Wrebbit, Inc. Unlike traditional puzzles which are composed of series of flat pieces that when put together, create a single unified image, ...
''
puzzles
A puzzle is a game, problem, or toy that tests a person's ingenuity or knowledge. In a puzzle, the solver is expected to put pieces together ( or take them apart) in a logical way, in order to arrive at the correct or fun solution of the puzzle ...
. The company was founded in
Montreal
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...
,
Quebec
Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...
, by
Paul Gallant
Paul-Émile Gallant (July 17, 1944 – September 13, 2011) was a Canadian entrepreneur who developed Puzz-3D three-dimensional jigsaw puzzles. He is also credited with inventing both the Wrebbit Puzzle Machine, which is now known as the Puzzle Sh ...
, and marketed itself as "The Puzzle Innovators". Its namesake appears to stem from the fact that the company's
mascot
A mascot is any human, animal, or object thought to bring luck, or anything used to represent a group with a common public identity, such as a school, professional sports team, society, military unit, or brand name. Mascots are also used as fi ...
is a green
frog
A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-f ...
, and "Wrebbit" is either an alternative spelling or possibly a play on words of the word ''ribbit''.
In the late 1990s, 3-dimensional puzzles were a successful fad, leading to a rapid growth in the company. In 2001, the business was bought by
Irwin Toy
Irwin Toy Limited was a Canadian distributor and manufacturer of toys. It was Canada's oldest toy company and remained independent and family owned until 2001.
History
The company began in 1926 as an importer and distributor of dry goods and c ...
. When Irwin Toy filed for bankruptcy a year later, Gallant bought back the business and relaunched it in a much reduced state. In 2005, the business was bought by
Hasbro
Hasbro, Inc. (; a syllabic abbreviation of its original name, Hassenfeld Brothers) is an American multinational conglomerate holding company incorporated and headquartered in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Hasbro owns the trademarks and products of ...
, which moved the manufacture of Wrebbit's puzzles to its facility in
East Longmeadow, Massachusetts
East Longmeadow is a town in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States situated in the Pioneer Valley region of Western Massachusetts. It had a population of 16,430 at the 2020 census. East Longmeadow is southeast of downtown Springfield, pa ...
, in 2006.
Gallant died on September 13, 2011.
In 2012, Gallant's son and a partner who worked for Wrebbit revived the Wrebbit name and founded Wrebbit Puzzles, producing the same type of puzzle as ''Puzz-3D''.
References
External links
Wrebbit 3D
Former Hasbro subsidiaries
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