Toys ‘R’ US Closes Its 2 Remaining Stores Just 1 Year After Opening
It looks like the Toys ‘R’ Us comeback is officially over. 😢
The two Toys ‘R’ Us locations that opened as part of a small U.S. comeback attempt have now been closed. The stores at the Galleria mall in Houston and the Garden State Plaza in Paramus, New Jersey both closed their doors for good in January according to a report from Bloomberg News.
The brick and mortar toy stores initially opened in late 2019 and were operated by Tru Kids Inc., the entity that acquired Toys ‘R’ Us and Babies ‘R’ Us in 2018. Each location was about 6,500 square feet – roughly one-seventh of the size of the old Toys ‘R’ Us stores. The stores focused on offering hands-on experiences for kids, which quickly fell out of favor due to concerns regarding COVID-19 and social distancing restrictions.
Tru Kids delivered the following statement:
“As a result of Covid, we made the strategic decision to pivot our store strategy to new locations and platforms that have better traffic. Consumer demand in the toy category and for Toys “R” Us remains strong, and we will continue to invest in the channels where the customer wants to experience our brand.”
Tru Kids is still operating a website where shoppers can view toys and then purchase them on Amazon.com. The company hasn’t ruled out getting back into the brick and mortar business at some point in the future.
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Thanks, Benjamin!
Well that was anticlimactic 😬
Number of people surprised-0. It’s really too bad. I would have loved to see it make a comeback.
bad timing
Amazon will be the death of us….just wait.
I said that some time ago & that’s why I myself don’t shop there. I do all so can to support Brick n mortar (even as a high risk person). Unless more stores adjust to the times, there will sadly be more closures. 😢
They plan to open more locations later in areas with better foot traffic, so we will see.
Amazon and walmart are the biggest business killers… the orcas of the oceans.