How Judd Zebersky Built Jazwares Into a Global Toy Brand

When Judd Zebersky left his law practice in the late 1990s to enter the toy business, colleagues likely thought the move was a gamble. Nearly 30 years later, the company he founded ships products to more than 100 countries and employs close to 1,400 people. The name most associated with Jazwares today is Squishmallows, the plush toy line that became one of the most talked-about consumer products of the last decade.

Judd Zebersky’s path to the toy industry was unconventional by any measure. He earned his law degree from the University of Miami School of Law and ran his own firm before deciding to pursue something entirely different. “I looked at my wife, and I said, ‘I want to make toys,'” he recalled. “She said, ‘Follow your dreams,’ and that’s what I did.”

Learning the Business from the Inside Out

What followed was a deep, hands-on education in manufacturing. Judd Zebersky traveled to remote areas of southern China in 1997 and spent months inside factories learning how products were built from scratch. He picked up knowledge of injection molding, blow molding, rotocasting, and the engineering specifications that determine quality and cost. That grounding shaped how Jazwares grew its internal operations for years afterward.

The company built early credibility through licensed products tied to popular entertainment properties, then expanded its reach through well-timed acquisitions. Wicked Cool Toys joined the portfolio in 2019, followed by Kellytoy in 2020, which brought Squishmallows under the Jazwares umbrella. The brand’s popularity exploded on TikTok, with individual plush toys priced between $5 and $30 selling in volumes that exceeded 100 million units in a single year.

Alleghany Capital Corporation first invested in Jazwares in 2014 and took a majority stake two years later. Berkshire Hathaway inherited the relationship through its acquisition of Alleghany in late 2022. Throughout those ownership changes, Judd Zebersky retained control over day-to-day operations until his departure in March 2026. Read this article for additional information.

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