Topics : BUSINESS : Original Headquarters of Wham-O Will Be Closed

Mattel Inc. has announced that it will shut down the original San Gabriel headquarters of Wham-O, the company that brought Hula Hoops, Frisbees and dozens of other toys to the world.

Mattel is the new owner of Wham-O, which was founded in 1948 by Rich Knerr, who grew up in South Pasadena, and Arthur (Spud) Melin, who grew up in Pasadena. On May 31, Mattel closed a deal to buy Wham-O’s parent company, Kransco, for an undisclosed amount. Mattel is the country’s largest toy maker.

Details of the Mattel takeover are still being worked out, Mattel spokesman Glenn Bozarthsaid. But Mattel does not plan to keep Wham-O’s 171,000-square-foot complex, which Kransco has been trying to sell for more than a year, he said.

Most of Wham-O’s eight buildings have been empty since 1982, when Knerr and Melin sold the company to Kransco, a San Francisco-based toy and sporting goods manufacturer. Within five years, Kransco had shifted most of Wham-O’s production to Mexico and laid off all but a few of the 300 full-time employees. Since then, Wham-O’s San Gabriel warehouse has served mostly as a distribution center for its three products--Hula Hoops, Frisbees and Hacky Sacks--that are made elsewhere.

In the next few weeks, a majority of Wham-O’s remaining 20 employees will be offered positions at Mattel’s El Segundo headquarters or at its distribution center in the City of Industry, Bozarth said. He did not rule out the possibility of layoffs.

The transition signals an end of an era, said Danny McInnis, Wham-O’s project coordinator and a 10-year employee. During the Hula Hoop’s heyday, more than 1,000 people worked for the company, which Knerr and Melin started out of a garage.

“The mood here is kind of an end-of-an-era thing,” McInnis said. “It’s kind of a piece of Americana. . .that’s closing out.”

San Gabriel City Administrator P. Michael Paules said he is sorry to see Wham-O go, but he looks forward to a new business in its place. Last December, the Wham-O property was rezoned as a general commercial area, which would allow for retail stores and other businesses that generate sales tax. The Wham-O property is part of a redevelopment plan for the area.