Who We Are

Outset Media is a privately held wholesale supplier of toys, games, and puzzles based out of Victoria, BC and founded by its president, David Manga, in 1996. Since then, Outset Media has produced high quality games and puzzles that promote learning, fun, and family time.

What We Do

Outset Media designs, distributes and manufactures board games, card games, toys and puzzles. In addition to its own games and line of Cobble Hill and Jack Pine puzzles, Outset Media also distributes the products of other companies, including MindWare Games, Fat Brain Toys, Blue Orange Games, Popular Playthings, Be Amazing Toys, Late for the Sky, Madd Capp, PlayMonster, Craft Buddy and Royal & Langnickel.  We are a wholesale supplier who sells to your local neigbhourhood toy stores.  In Canada, we distribute a large line of toys, games, and puzzles for our US and European partners.  In the United States, we wholesale all Outset Media manufactured games and puzzles, Late for the Sky, and Craft Buddy kits.

How We Do It

Outset Media employs approximately 55 people in total, with 20 people at its Victoria office, as well as some inside sales reps in Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal.  We also have a team of outside sales reps across the United States and Canada.  The product development and creative design is managed in-house at the Victoria location.  We have our own 70,000 square foot warehouse in Brampton, Ontario from which products are shrink-wrapped and shipped all across North America.  Without our wonderful warehouse team, we would not be able to provide the fast and efficient service that our retailers depend on.  As well, we have an amazing permanent showroom that we opened in August 2016 for retailers to shop all of our products.

Where We Do It

We outsource the manufacturing of our games to companies in Canada, USA and China. Though, David Manga's commitment to environmental stewardship has Outset Media manufacturing more games in North America.  In 2012, American Trivia, one of Outset Media's best-selling games was wholly manufactured in the United States. The Professor Noggin's card games, one of our oldest and best-selling card games has always been manufactured in Canada. The entire line of big box Cobble Hill puzzles is manufactured in the United States as well.

Why We Do It

Because games matter. In an age of the Internet and video games, David Manga believes traditional games encourage family interaction and communication.  But, we also recognize a need for peers to be able to enjoy social interaction time together, which is why we have games made just for adults, as well as games and puzzles made for kids.

David Manga grew up in Ottawa, Canada. He was just 23 when he founded Outset Media in 1996. He was still a student completing his BCom at the University of Ottawa, from which he graduated in 1996. He launched his first game, All Canadian Trivia, while still at university. After playing another well-known trivia game and realizing he knew more about the United States than his own country, he wanted to play a trivia game with a Canadian focus. When he couldn’t find one, he created All Canadian Trivia. That game went on to become a Canadian best-seller (more than 100,000 copies sold) and spawned Junior, French and Millennium editions, a Supplemental Question set, and the 10th Anniversary Edition.

In 2002, Manga created the first games in the Professor Noggin’s card game series.

This popular series reached 39 card games at its peak.  Many of the Professor Noggin's card games have won major awards, receiving honors from the likes of the Parent’s Choice Foundation, the National Association for Gifted Children and Scholastic Instructor Magazine.  In 2013, Professor Noggin's released its first limited Special Edition card game, "Fifty States", featuring double the content.  In 2015, Professor Noggin's started its revamp of the series, discontinuing a few titles in order to focus on extending the brand and reaching new markets.

In 2005, Outset Media introduced the Cobble Hill Puzzle Company. Each and every puzzle from the Cobble Hill Puzzle Company is meticulously crafted to exacting quality standards, using the finest inks and varnishes for a crisp and vivid image. The random shaped pieces have become a signature part of the Cobble Hill brand. Fans enjoy the quirky shapes that create an arbitrary pattern when the puzzle is assembled, as opposed to the standard grid cut where pieces line up in columns and rows. You can check out our International Distributors to see the many countries that are stocking Cobble Hill puzzles.

Following the success of the Cobble Hill puzzle brand, Outset saw a need for puzzles that were of great quality, but designed more for the mass market. Thus, in 2010, Jack Pine Puzzle Company was established. The success of the pallet program has opened doors into grocery stores with other verticals soon to be added.

Outside of the licensed brand, Mind Trap, Outset has generally been a creator and designer of its own games. But, in 2017, following the successful launch of its first licensed property - a Goosebumps board game - Outset Media published Smurfs and Archie games and puzzles. 

Outset Media is known for its excellence in customer service and in the manufacturing of quality products. The company has been honoured with such awards as:

• 2002:  Vancouver Island Business Excellence Award for Manufacturer of the Year.
• 2003:  Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce named David Manga 'Young Entrepreneur of the Year'.
• 2003-2005: Profit Magazine ranked Outset Media as one of Canada’s Fastest-Growing Companies for three straight years.
• 2004-2007, 2010:  Outset Media has been the Neighbourhood Toy Stores of Canada (NETS) 'Supplier of the Year' five times. '
• 2013: Canadian Gift Association (formerly CGTA) 'Supplier of the Year' Medium Category
• 2013, 2014: Neighbourhood Toy Stores of Canada (NETS) 'Supplier of the Year'

Thank you for learning more about us!  If you have any questions or comments, please contact us, we'd love to hear from you!

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