American Girl corporate offices to remain in Middleton

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - American Girl’s corporate offices will remain in Middleton. Earlier this year, the company announced that it would be relocating and consolidating the location.

In January, a company spokesperson stated that the office would be moving to a new space in Dane County. The company, known for its beloved dolls that teach young girls about history, also said it would also be combining its warehouse operations with its DeForest Distribution Center and two other Mattel facilities by June.

American Girl spokesperson Julie Parks confirmed Thursday night that the company will now be leasing back a portion of the existing space from the new buyers instead of relocating its corporate employees.

SARA, a local real estate investment company, and American Girl closed on the sale of its Middleton property recently. Parks explained that as part of their agreement, American Girl will lease back around 40,000 square feet of space for its corporate office to meet what it needs to be a hybrid office.

Park also confirmed that the combination of the Middleton warehouse operations with its DeForest facility and across the toy company’s network did happen.

At the time of the previous announcement, 55 employees at the Middleton warehouse and operations unit were impacted due to the change. Parks noted Thursday that nothing has changed and no other areas were affected due to the warehouse consoldation. All of these employees were eligible to reapply for 40 positions added at the DeForest site or look for opportunities throughout the company. There are several positions still open in DeForest, Parks said.

Parks also added that severance was available for eligible employees who did not seek to apply to other positions within the company.

Madison philanthropist Pleasant Rowland founded the Pleasant Company in 1986, which later became known as American Girl once it was purchased by Mattel less than a decade later.