Toys "R" Us/Babies "R" Us/Kids "R" Us

[esw01407]

Ollie's has opened in the former Pennsdale PA location. Didn't even refinish the floors, very ugly looking.

Ocean State Job Lot has opened in the former Wilkes-Barre location. Did a very nice job on the interior, very professional work. Store was VERY busy.

[Retail Regents]

Ollie's has opened in the former Pennsdale PA location. Didn't even refinish the floors, very ugly looking.

Ocean State Job Lot has opened in the former Wilkes-Barre location. Did a very nice job on the interior, very professional work. Store was VERY busy.

Does that Wilkes-Barre location still resemble its former self? Also, what kind of carts does it carry? I know some locations use the pale blue 2007-era Rehrig carts, and don't scratch the cyrillic-R off of them.

[esw01407]

Ollie's has opened in the former Pennsdale PA location. Didn't even refinish the floors, very ugly looking.

Ocean State Job Lot has opened in the former Wilkes-Barre location. Did a very nice job on the interior, very professional work. Store was VERY busy.

Does that Wilkes-Barre location still resemble its former self? Also, what kind of carts does it carry? I know some locations use the pale blue 2007-era Rehrig carts, and don't scratch the cyrillic-R off of them.

Externally yes, internally OSJL redid the floors, painted the place, and did layout changes. TRU you entered left and moved though the store, this store you enter though the right side. Carts that I could see are all old TRU cars, blue/dark blush ish. I would have liked to get a few pictures, store is WAYYYY too busy right now.

[Retail Regents]

Ollie's has opened in the former Pennsdale PA location. Didn't even refinish the floors, very ugly looking.

Ocean State Job Lot has opened in the former Wilkes-Barre location. Did a very nice job on the interior, very professional work. Store was VERY busy.

Does that Wilkes-Barre location still resemble its former self? Also, what kind of carts does it carry? I know some locations use the pale blue 2007-era Rehrig carts, and don't scratch the cyrillic-R off of them.

Externally yes, internally OSJL redid the floors, painted the place, and did layout changes. TRU you entered left and moved though the store, this store you enter though the right side. Carts that I could see are all old TRU cars, blue/dark blush ish. I would have liked to get a few pictures, store is WAYYYY too busy right now.

I also take it the lighting was replaced with single-tube LED strips? They do it to both new openings and existing locations.

[BillyGr]

I also take it the lighting was replaced with single-tube LED strips? They do it to both new openings and existing locations.

Would make sense to do that with new locations since they have been redoing the older ones (ours was done a month or two ago now - it's nice except for a couple spots where the ceiling changes heights where they seemed to miss one row, leaving an aisle kind of dark).

[danfifepsu]

Ok here is more details on Toys r us Come Back: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/07/18/toys-r-us-plots-comeback-with-smaller-stores-in-partnership-with-b8ta.html  and 2 stores at least in 2019 Holiday Season in HOuston Galleria and Paramus Garden State Mall, top notch malls. I feel that will bring life to some malls as I Feel malls are just more and more clothing stores which is prob stale to many people. Will the stores carry all the same stuff the original Toys r us did? It had said their stores got to be too large for this day in age. and 10 stores in 2020. I hope they come back to all the cities they were in. We cant have markets without a toy only store.
Why did they survive in Canada? I went to one in Hamilton ON last week.

Opening in malls is like them opening new stores in China.

what made some stores look the same as they did since the Mid 1990s and before, I feel walking into those ones was like stepping into a Kmart. Those ones the aisles were not even rearranged and didnt have the Movie HQ aisle at the front of the store and had a poor selection feeling. Even the left over old school ones at the very end were that way

[Retail Fan+ (Justin Hill)]

Just announced at their official website:


Tru Kids Brands(TM) Bringing Toys“R”Us® Stores Back to the United States

Tru Kids partnering with b8ta to bring reimagined Toys“R”Us stores to U.S. kids and families; will apply b8ta’s experiential retail model to create a playful in-store experience

Parsippany, NJ & San Francisco, CA â€" July 18, 2019 â€" Tru Kids Brands TM (“Tru Kids”), the proud parent of the Toys“R”Us® brand will bring Toys“R”Us stores back to the United States this holiday season. Tru Kids and b8ta, the software-powered experiential retailer have entered into a joint venture to launch a new store experience that will deliver the hottest toy products and brands, carefully curated and showcased in highly immersive smaller-format spaces.

The first two new Toys“R”Us stores will open this holiday season, located in The Galleria in Houston, Texas, a Simon Mall, and in Westfield Garden State Plaza in Paramus, New Jersey. Brand partners and experiences will be announced in the coming weeks.

“With a 70 year heritage, the Toys“R”Us brand is beloved by kids and families around the world, and continues to play a leading role in the hearts and minds of today’s consumers,” said Richard Barry, CEO of Tru Kids and Interim co-CEO of the new Toys“R”Us joint venture. “We have an incredible opportunity to entirely reimagine the Toys“R”Us brand in the U.S. and are thrilled to partner with b8ta and key toy vendors to create a new, highly-engaging retail experience designed for kids, families and to better fit within today’s retail environment.”

The new Toys“R”Us stores will serve as must-visit destinations for kids to learn, play, and fall in love with the latest and most popular toys, and for parents to have fun with their children and ignite their own childlike sense of play. The stores will be highly interactive with new events and activities every day, from seeing toys displayed out of the box to test before making a purchase, to visiting different brand stations to driving learning through play embracing STEAM, or just having fun with Geoffrey ® the Giraffe in the open playspace.

“As a kid, my memory of Toys“R”Us was running up and down the aisles kicking balls and playing with the coolest toys,” said Phillip Raub, co-founder and president of b8ta and Interim co-CEO of the Toys“R”Us joint venture. “As the retail landscape changes, so do consumer shopping habits. But what hasn’t changed is that kids want to touch everything and simply play. In partnership with Richard and his team, we are excited to bring back Toys“R”Us in an immersive way, focused on creating a fun and engaging experience for kidsâ€"and adults, too.”

Using b8ta’s innovative experiential retail model, brands will showcase their products in an interactive, playground-like environment, creating an entirely new retail experience centered around product discovery and engagement. Brands also will have the opportunity to design custom experiences and branded shops to help them create memorable experiences for parents and children. This experiential retail environment will leverage b8ta's Retail as a Service (RaaS) platform, which enables brands to actively manage their in-store experiences and measure how offline experiences translate into online sales.

“We launched b8ta to change the fundamental infrastructure of retail, from the business model to the customer experience. b8ta is proud to bring Toys“R”Us stores back to the U.S. alongside our partner, Tru Kids, and with our Retail as a Service platform as its engine,” said Vibhu Norby, CEO of b8ta. “The new Toys“R”Us stores will be the most progressive and advanced stores in its category in the world, and we hope to surprise and delight kids for generations to come.”

The companies plan to open additional locations in prime, high-traffic retail markets within the U.S. over the course of 2020. To learn more about Toys“R”Us, and stay in the know about new store openings and offers, visit www.toysrus.com.

About Tru Kids Brands

Tru KidsTM is the parent of beloved brands, including Toys“R”Us ®, Babies“R”Us®, Geoffrey® the Giraffe, Journey Girls®, Fastlane®, True Heroes®, You & Me®, Imaginarium®, and Just Like Home ®. Established in January 2019, Tru Kids is focused on growing its family of brands through innovative partnerships that deliver kid-and-parent-focused experiences that expand beyond traditional retail concepts in the physical and digital spaces.

The company delivers a wealth of services to our valued license partners around the world, in addition to design and development of over 20 additional established consumer brands. Tru Kids’ license partners currently operate over 700 Toys“R”Us and Babies“R”Us branded stores and ecommerce sites in more than 25 countries across Asia-Pacific, Europe, Africa and the Middle East, with over US$3 billion of retail sales attributable to the brands in these regions in 2018. The company has offices in New Jersey, USA, Hong Kong & Shenzhen, China.

Tru Kids is a new company celebrating over 70 years of heritage with an expert team focused on families, kids, and play. Learn more at www.trukidsbrands.com.

About b8ta

Founded in 2015, with offices in San Francisco and New York, b8ta is a software-powered retailer designed to make physical retail accessible for product makers and exciting for consumers. b8ta operates 17 branded flagship stores throughout the U.S. with the mission of helping customers discover, try, buy and learn about new products in real life.

Additionally, b8ta works with hundreds of other brands and retailers to power their physical retail experience using the company’s proprietary Retail as a Service (RaaS) platform.

To learn more about b8ta, visit www.b8ta.com, or find a b8ta store near you at www.b8ta.com/locations.

[Crazybangles]

this is definitely interesting news! It will be interesting to see how this all goes in the end.

[Retail Fan+ (Justin Hill)]

this is definitely interesting news! It will be interesting to see how this all goes in the end.

We might have to move this back to "current retail" when the time comes.

[TheFugitive]

UPMC has announced plans to build an outpatient and ambulatory care center on the site of the
former Toys R. Us store next to Century III Mall.

The article goes on to say (from the local Business Times, online version is behind a paywall)
that UPMC did in fact want to build a full-sized hospital on the Century III site, but that
Moonbeam Capital had declined to sell.

It goes on to say that they are still actively seeking to build a full sized hospital in the area.
An earlier attempt to build one down the road in Jefferson Borough was stymied by fierce
local opposition.

[Retail Fan+ (Justin Hill)]

Three more months, and Toys "R" Us rises from the ashes like the mythological Phoenix bird in the United States with a new owner and new high-tech 21st century look with two small stores in two very different shopping malls, one in Houston, Texas, and one in Paramus, New Jersey.


The brand new Paramus, New Jersey Toys "R" Us location at Garden State Plaza.

[Amesguy2000]

Is there any activity at that mall that is hinting to there being work done for the new TRU (Ex: abandoned storefronts that is under construction, etc)

[BillyGr]

Is there any activity at that mall that is hinting to there being work done for the new TRU (Ex: abandoned storefronts that is under construction, etc)

One might suspect it's the space behind the sign in the photo they are working on for the store.

[Retail Fan+ (Justin Hill)]

It's almost time to move this page back to other current retail...

[Retail Fan+ (Justin Hill)]

Here's a Toys "R" Us fan site: https://www.toysrushub.com/

(This will put a smile on Dan Fife's face!)

[danfifepsu]

Here's a Toys "R" Us fan site: https://www.toysrushub.com/

(This will put a smile on Dan Fife's face!)

I knew about this hours ago! and it will. YOu saying this reminds me of some of my Facebook friends, as the community that knows me knew how upset I was when Toys r us closed. Will Toys ru s still carry the fan vault stuff?

soon they reopen in Newark and Houston.

[JimSawhill]

I'd love to see a few more stores coming back from the dead.  Ames, Jamesway, Caldor and Bradlees amongst others... (G. Fox)

[danfifepsu]

I'd love to see a few more stores coming back from the dead.  Ames, Jamesway, Caldor and Bradlees amongst others... (G. Fox)

that wont happen. Well Walmart has grown so powerful and they were regional chains.

[Retail Fan+ (Justin Hill)]

I'd love to see a few more stores coming back from the dead.  Ames, Jamesway, Caldor and Bradlees amongst others... (G. Fox)

that wont happen. Well Walmart has grown so powerful and they were regional chains.

...and also because Target got so huge by buying up many regional chains, such as Ayr-Way, Gold Circle, Richway, FedMart and Fedco.

[TRU7536]

While I been doing some research on former Toys R Us stores, I discovered this store in Colonial Heights VA. When it closed last year, it still had the Kids R Us sign on it and with the old star logo around the R. Looks like this store never got a rebuild.

[JimSawhill]

I'd love to see a few more stores coming back from the dead.  Ames, Jamesway, Caldor and Bradlees amongst others... (G. Fox)

that wont happen. Well Walmart has grown so powerful and they were regional chains.

I know it won't happen, but it would be nice!!

[TRU7536]

Found another Toys R Us with Kids R Us signage still on it. This location in Monaca Penn. It was also one of those older locations that use to have the rainbow stripes.

[TRU7536]

Found another Toys R Us in Johnstown Penn that looks like it has never been remodeled (store front wise). Looks like a store that opened in the early 1990's, with the color tiles around it entrance with the big Geoffrey face.   

Also, next door is a empty Circuit City that still sits vacant. Doing a Google image search, its a sad little plaza.

[Retail Fan+ (Justin Hill)]

There was a former Gold Circle store with rooftop parking that was converted to a Toys "R" Us with a tiled facade...I forgot where it was located...

[standa]

I noticed that the lease plan for North Haven Commons lists the former Toys R Us/Babies R Us as "lease out". The former Ulta is listed in the same way. What does lease out mean?

https://chartweb.com/wp-content/uploads/North-Haven-Commons-102819..pdf

[Brammy]

I noticed that the lease plan for North Haven Commons lists the former Toys R Us/Babies R Us as "lease out". The former Ulta is listed in the same way. What does lease out mean?

https://chartweb.com/wp-content/uploads/North-Haven-Commons-102819..pdf

Typically that means they have a new tenant, but for whatever reason they aren't ready to name the new tenant publically.

[Retail Fan+ (Justin Hill)]

It's time to move this topic back to "Other Current Retail."

Toys "R" Us has returned to the United States!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUPHLMIEdyo

[Retail Fan+ (Justin Hill)]

Proof that Toys "R" Us is back:

Garden State Plaza, Paramus, New Jersey


Houston Galleria, Houston, Texas

[deerwrecker2017]

The way that I see it is it is real good that someone is attempting to make a real effort to make sure that Toys "R" Us lives on for years to come. But personally I truly think the so called "Leveraged Buyout" of Toys "R" Us Babies "R" Us and Kids "R" Us should never have been permitted unless that such any buyers are required against their will to take full responsibility for every last bit of debt of the company they are purchasing as well as all debt that is generated as a result of the purchase in question and forcibly require the buyer to forcibly pay all creditors in full in the event that any company they purchase in any Leveraged Buyout is declared Bankrupt.

If you have any opinions on what I think feel free to reply but keep it real professional and be considerate of everyone on this forum.

Edited to add - This should be moved to Current Retail in the event that the planned revival of Toys "R" Us that is being carried out as we speak does achieve any true success in the long term.

[Bdubs]

They are demolishing the Waterford CT former location. It’s a stand alone building along I95 and has been empty since the closing of Toys R Us. I can’t find any info on what’s going on there once the building is razed, but it really surprises me they are taking it down. The building is in good shape and has been maintained even after it was closed. The sign is even still on the building.