By VINAYA SAKSENA

PROVIDENCE  — An internationally known Pawtucket-based manufacturer has opened up new — and rather small — headquarters in a city small enough to fit into second story of a college building easily.

On Friday, Providence Mayor David Cicilline, Rhode Island General Treasurer Frank Caprio and representatives of Hasbro, Inc. were on hand for a ribbon-cutting ceremony on the Harborside Campus of Johnson and Wales University, unveiling the new Hasbro Global Toy Shop.
The shop, recently revamped with the creative and financial assistance of Hasbro, is part of Exchange City, a miniature “city” housed on the second floor of the campus’ Friedman Building, in which children learn about the operation of businesses and municipalities by running the city and business offices in the facility.
The mini-municipality is an educational tool run by Education in Action, whose executive director, State. Rep. Edwin Pacheco, was also on hand for Friday’s grand opening. Pacheco thanked Hasbro for its contribution to Exchange City, which he said offered a unique opportunity for interactive learning to students, including those from Providence’s Nathanael Greene Middle School who were running the city that day. Pacheco credited the idea for the tiny toy factory to Karen Davis, Hasbro’s Vice President of Community Relations, who apparently got the idea during a previous visit to Exchange City.
“We happened to have the City of Pawtucket come through the same day,” Pacheco said. “We didn’t know what it was going to turn into, but we’re thankful that it (happened).”
Several volunteers from Hasbro donated over 50 hours of time to make the project happen, noting that employees are allowed to take four hours of paid time away from work every month to engage in “child-focused volunteer activities.” Pacheco noted that the Hasbro Global Toy Shop was so named in part because of a desire to foster students’ awareness of the worldwide economy they will be participating in as they grow up, something he said would be reinforced by having an internationally-known toy company’s name on the colorful new storefront.
Indeed, varied and vibrant colors are a prominent feature of the Hasbro Global Toy Shop, which is a revamped version of what Pacheco said was previously a similar but much plainer part of Exchange City. The revamping was an exciting endeavor, according to Jared Wade, Design Director for Hasbro’s popular “Transformers” toy line, who participated in the project.
The shop features a wall decorated with a painting of Mr. Potato Head, a pole decorated with Monopoly money and a table decorated with images from various board games. A television plays Hasbro toy commercials and clips of other related programming, and Transformers, G.I. Joe action figures and other toys decorate shelves on the shop’s walls. According to Wade, this is not mere product placement for its own sake, but a reflection of the environment that he and many of his colleagues actually work in.
“It’s more for decorating the space, to make them feel a part of the Hasbro experience,” Wade said. “It’s very similar to the work spaces you’d see at Hasbro. Maybe a little tidier.”