Toys 'R' Us is set to open 120 new stores, marking its largest expansion in nearly a decade, according to a company announcement made on Thursday. This expansion is driven by a surge in demand from adult customers, with toy sales in the US increasing by 17% in the first half of the year, the highest growth in six years, as reported by Circana, a consumer data tracking firm. Adults now represent 55% of all toy sales, with a notable interest in trading cards and collectibles.
The new store locations include Woodbury Commons and the Westchester in White Plains, NY, and the Mall at Short Hills in Millburn, NJ. Former Toys 'R' Us CEO Gerald Storch noted that mall operators prefer having toy stores to keep shoppers from leaving the mall for larger retailers like Walmart or Target.
The new stores will feature popular brands such as LEGO, Barbie, Hot Wheels, Pokémon, and KPop Demon Hunters, with some locations also including cafes and candy shops. Toys 'R' Us, which is owned by WHP Global, is collaborating with Go! Retail Group to lead this expansion, which began last year with the opening of 3,500- to 7,500-square-foot stores.
Currently, there are approximately 40 Toys 'R' Us stores, including flagship locations in the American Dream mall in East Rutherford, NJ, and at the Mall of America in Minnesota. The total number of stores is expected to reach 160 in the coming weeks, a significant reduction from the 750 outlets the company had prior to its bankruptcy in 2017. The Times Square store, which featured a ferris wheel and a 20-foot-tall animatronic T-Rex, generated annual sales of $75 to $100 million before its closure in 2015.
Toys 'R' Us was founded by Charles Lazarus in 1948 and originally started as a baby furniture store. The company faced bankruptcy due to a $5 billion debt burden, following a leveraged buyout by private equity firms Bain Capital, KKR, and Vornado in 2005. The bankruptcy had a significant impact on the toy industry, which relied on Toys 'R' Us for sales and product launches. Since then, retailers like Walmart, Amazon, and Target have filled the gap left by the company's closure. Jamie Uitdenhowen, a former Toys 'R' Us executive now with WHP Global, stated that the toy industry remains strong, with a growing consumer base that includes adults, referred to as 'kidults.' WHP Global holds the global license for Toys 'R' Us, which includes 1,680 stores across 37 countries and generates approximately $2 billion in annual sales.