Toy maker Spin Master creates $100-million venture capital fund

Logo Credit: CNW Group/Spin Master

Toy maker Spin Master Corp. is investing $100 million to create Spin Master Ventures (SMV) to help fund early-stage companies.

In an Oct. 19 news release, the Toronto-based company said SMV’s focus is to accelerate growth in each of Spin Master’s three creative centres – comprising toys, entertainment, and digital games – through strategic minority investments. “SMV’s investment mandate will be centred on medium and long-term trends including emerging technologies, pioneering services and other areas where Spin Master’s offering can be strengthened,” company officials said.

Ronnen Harary, Spin Master’s co-founder and board chair, says Spin Master Ventures will help establish the company as the partner of choice for entrepreneurs and complement its acquisition strategy as well as bolster its product development pipeline. “The pace of innovation within the toys, entertainment and digital games industries is accelerating rapidly and by investing with a long-term view in leading ventures with promising ideas, we can increase our access to potentially game-changing thinking and concepts,” he said.

To launch the fund, SMV has made minority investments in two companies: Nordlight, a mobile game development company based in Stockholm; and Hoot Reading, an online tutoring service.