Toronto, Canada-based toy and entertainment company Spin Master is expanding its game division with the acquisition of the Perplexus toy brand. Spin Master acquired global rights to the puzzle brand on November 30 at a purchase price of just over US$9 million, plus annual performance-based payouts over the next five years.

Perplexus’ lines of spherical, puzzle-like toys are manufactured by US-based Busy Life, and have been distributed by Spin Master since 2013. The brand was co-invented in 2001 by teacher and artist Michael McGinnis, along with the Klitsner Industrial Design Group of San Francisco (KID Group).

The Perplexus deal is the most recent in a number of agreements for Spin Master, including the acquisition of Chicago-based brain game retailer Marbles in May and the 2015 buyout of New York’s Cardinal Games.

This most recent deal also comes just months after Spin Master announced it would expand its games and puzzle-related inventor relations team. In 2016, Spin Master’s Activities, Games & Puzzles category saw sales rise by 46% to US$337.8 million. And, more recently, the segment increased by 2.5% to US$128.2 million in Q3 2017. To capitalize on the segment’s growth, the expansion of the inventor relations team saw former Hasbro exec Ben Rathbone join the team as VP of games design along with Scott Brown, serving as VP of Marbles.