Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes

From Hpwiki

Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes is a joke shop in Diagon Alley, founded and owned by Fred and George Weasley.

It was strictly an owl-order house at first, but Harry Potter provided the money--his winnings in the Triwizard Tournament--that made a bricks-and-mortar operation possible. Harry gave them his winnings because he could not happily do anything else with the money, and because he thought that everyone, himself included, would soon be needing as much laughter as could be manufactured. However, the Twins refer to the money as a loan.

The owl-order aspect of the business remains strong and has taken on a stealth aspect. On the whole, the business is so profitable that the Twins are considering expanding. The only clear competitor in canon is Zonko's Joke Shop.

The Twins announce the opening of the bricks-and-mortar store -- located at Number Ninety-Three, Diagon Alley -- during their final defiance of Dolores Umbridge. They continue in the same Gryffindor spirit when WWW is the only business in Diagon Alley to decline to post notices warning of the dangers of Lord Voldemort; instead they post an ad poking fun at Voldemort, the Ministry, and all those who choose to live in fear.