The next stop on our tour is a look at 2940 Highland Avenue, one of Kenner’s most important locations in Cincinnati. If this is your first time seeing the tour, it starts here!
In October of 1969 Kenner began working on one of the company’s largest expansions to date. An expansion that would cement Kenner’s place as one of the largest and most influential industrial companies in Cincinnati. It’s important to remember that General Mills had purchased Kenner in 1967, and this expansion was a result of General Mills pumping capital into Kenner to take their new toy company to the next level. The first step in their 1969 expansion was to build a 250,000 square feet, modern, automated distribution center located at the northwest corner of Highland Avenue and Lester Road in Cincinnati.
In 1973 a $2.5 million expansion added an additional 250,000 square feet to the Highland Avenue shipping plant, doubling the size of the building. The addition included five rail car loading doors, six truck dock doors, and a 5000 pound pallet lift. The scheduled completion day was July of 1974.
Here is a picture of the architectural proposal for the 1973 expansion:
At the time of the 1973 expansion to the building, Kenner had approximately 3000 employees in Cincinnati. Fewer than 100 worked at the Highland Avenue location.
In the early 1980’s, one of the critical functions performed at the Highland locations was Quality Auditing. The Quality Auditing group was responsible for checking the quality of the toys prior to being shipped out, examining returned toys to find out why they failed, and for visiting Kenner retail customers to give refunds on defective toys. The group would inspect toys produced both domestically and overseas, prior to shipping them to stores. At least three toys of every product item produced daily were completely tested.
Today, collectors can find the 2940 Highland Avenue address on things like Kenner shipping boxes:
and printed materials like this We Really Do Care certificate:
Ever have to return a broken toy, or request a replacement for a missing part? The Highland Avenue location is where you sent your letter or defective toy! The Package Returns Clerk processed all of those incoming toy returns and requests, and also tracked how long it would take to respond to the customer. In 1982, the longest a consumer had to wait for a replacement part averaged eighteen days.
Highland Avenue also served as one of the locations for the Kenner Employee Store. Kenner employees were able to buy toys at a discount. During the early 1980’s, typical hours were 3-4 p.m. on Mondays, and 7-8 a.m. on Fridays. During the Christmas season, hours would expand to 3-4 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 9-1 p.m on Saturday.
Here is the warehouse location on Google Maps, and a recent overhead view:
Here are some recent shots of the warehouse:
If you have any additional images, stories, or information about the Highland Avenue location, we would love to add them!