Toy Company Moving HQ from Miami to Jacksonville

August 3, 2020 (Courtesy of the Jacksonville Financial News & Daily Record)

Miami Lakes-based Safari Programs Inc., which is a manufacturer and distributor of educational toys, will move its headquarters and operations to Westside Industrial Park by the end of August.

“Jacksonville is a growing city and we want to be part of that growth. There are more opportunities for staff and warehouse space as we grow our business as well,” said President Christina Pariente by email July 20.

Safari Programs, which does business as Safari Ltd., intends to occupy a 130,746-square-foot warehouse, with some office space, at 8010 Westside Industrial Drive.

A certificate of use application shows that Safari Programs will use the building for storage and distribution. Job listings indicate it is an e-commerce center.

Pariente said there is almost 5,000 square feet of office space.

She said Safari Programs will increase its building space, now 108,000 square feet. She said the Jacksonville warehouse space offers a higher ratio of distribution space.Toy figurines sold by Safari Programs include the Guardian Dragon ($20.99), Lion ($15.74) and Grizzly Bear ($20.99)

“This will allow us to expand our distribution business quite a bit. We are a family owned and operated company and we feel Jacksonville is more in line with our business and family goals,” said Pariente, whose husband, Alexandre, is the grandson of the founders.

Christina Pariente said the company is moving to Jacksonville for growth opportunities with labor and warehouse space.

She said the distribution center is not open to the public. It is a distribution company and retail sales are online.

Pariente said the company has 45 employees. Some will continue to work remotely and some are moving with the company, so Safari Ltd. intends to hire about 10 employees to start.

Job listings show the company is hiring for customer care representatives and warehouse associates.

The position of customer care specialist says it is a bridge between its sales team and incoming inquiries and order fulfillment.