A sad sign of the times
We’ve known for a while that the toy store, Toys“R”Us, has been in financial dire straits for some time now. Filing for bankruptcy last year, the company assured everyone that this was just a step to attempt to course correct the decline in sales. However, would seem that the situation is worse off than it was made to be. This morning, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the company, Dave Brandon, sent out an update on what’s happening.
The letter provides some insight into what’s happening. Some good, while there is some bad news that comes along with it. He does mention that multiple Toys“R”Us and Babies“R”Us stores will be merging. They will be instituting a price match program that will help them gain some traction when it comes to competing with other outlets. Honestly, this should have happened long ago – just my two cents. An improved loyalty program and better communication via social media rounds out the list of changes announced so far.
However, he also goes on to state that multiple Toys“R”Us and Babies“R”Us stores will be closing down. The full list of which stores can be found here, with 180 stores in total being closed. And due to these closings and change-ups, there will be “store closing sales that will start early February 2018. The majority of store closings will start mid-April 2018.
This news is definitely depressing. I grew up while Toys“R”Us and other stores (remember KayBee Toys?) were thriving. Of course, over the course of several decades, I’ve seen the landscape of toys changing. With more gaming consoles and electronic toys becoming the normal and more desirable than those my generation and my parents’ generations grew up with. Sadly, those other stores closed due to not changing to embrace those changes. Now Toys“R”Us is crumbling to the very same thing that claimed the others. And I would have thought that as one of the last bastions that they would be scanning the toy industry and looking at what other stores have done. Look at what Thinkgeek.com did. They sold to Gamestop and now you can’t go into any Gamestop without half of the store being flooded by toys of every shape and size. This ensured that store would continue to thrive by being closely tied to what children of today. Children, as well as teens and adults.
I applaud Toys“R”Us for at least seeing that times have changed and it’s time to change with them. But it was a forced change, one that will cost people their jobs. One that could perhaps tarnish their reputation, while not really ensuring that they will be able to survive the transition.
The Full list of the stores that will be closing:
ALABAMA
- Tuscaloosa 2600 McFarland Blvd. East AL
- Birmingham 335 Summit Boulevard, AL
ARIZONA
- Yuma 801 W. 32nd Street AZ
- Paradise Valley 12801 North Tatum Blvd. AZ
- Scottsdale 9139 Indian Bend Rd. AZ
- Tucson 4619 N. Oracle Rd AZ
- Scottsdale 7000 E. Mayo Blvd AZ
- Mesa US 60 and Signal Butte Rd AZ
ARKANSAS
- Little Rock 2616 S. Shackleford Rd AR
CALIFORNIA
- Indio 42500 Jackson St. CA
- Simi Valley 1189 Simi Town Ctr Way CA
- Santa Clarita 26573 Carl Boyer Dr. CA
- Covina 960 Lakes Drive CA
- Puente Hills 1600 S. Azusa Ave. CA
- Brea 2575 E. Imperial Highway CA
- Westminster 530 Westminster Mall CA
- Torrance 20120 Hawthorne Blvd. CA
- Riverside 2550 Canyon Springs Pkwy S. CA
- Yuba City 700 “A” Onstott Rd. CA
- Folsom 2785 E. Bidwell St. CA
- Pinole 1330 Fitzgerald CA
- Pittsburg 4505 Century Blvd. CA
- San Rafael 600 Francisco Blvd. CA
- Brentwood 5461 Lone Tree Way CA
- Fairfield 1400 Gateway Blvd CA
- Emeryville 3938 Horton CA
- E. San Jose 2179 Monterey Hwy CA
- San Jose / Almade865 Blossom Hill Road CA
- Fresno 3520 W. Shaw Ave. CA
- Union City 31250 Court House Drive CA
- Stockton 10640 Trinity Pkwy CA
- Santa Ana 3900 Bristol Street CA
- Corona 3665 Grand Oaks CA
- Mission Bay 1240 W. Morena Blvd. CA
- Mira Mesa 8181 Mira Mesa Blvd. CA
- Vista 1990 University Drive CA
COLORADO
- Aurora 1150 S. Ironton CO
CONNECTICUT
- North Haven 376 North Universal Drive CT
- Waterbury 275 Union St. CT
- Newington 3491 Berlin Turnpike CT
- Manchester 169 Hale Road CT
DELAWARE
- Dover 1061 N. Dupont Highway DE
FLORIDA
- Tallahassee 1625 Apalachee Pkwy. FL
- St. Petersburg 1900 Tyrone Blvd. FL
- Tampa 3908 West Hillsborough Avenue FL
- Orange Park 6001 Argyle Forest Blvd FL
- Altamonte Spring 708 West State Rd 436 FL
- Boca Raton 21697 State Road # 7 FL
- Port St. Lucie 10732 SW Village Pkwy FL
- Royal Palm Beach450 South SR 7 FL
- Kissimmee 2601 W.Osceola Parkway FL
- Coral Springs 6001 West Sample Road FL
- Kissimmee 3214 N John Young Pkwy. FL
GEORGIA
- Albany 2601 Dawson Rd. GA
- Smyrna 2955 Cobb Parkway GA
- Alpharetta 6380 No. Point Parkway GA
- Dunwoody 1155 Mt. Vernon Hwy GA
- Douglasville 6875 Douglas Boulevard GA
- Conyers 8160 Mall Parkway GA
- Newnan 221 Newnan Crossing Bypass GA
- Fayetteville 132 Pavilion Parkway GA
INDIANA
- Indianapolis 3928 E 82nd Street IN
- Greenwood 8800 US 31 South IN
IOWA
- S. Des Moines 1211 E. Army Post Rd. IA
- Des Moines 8801 University Ave IA
ILLINOIS
- Highland Park 1610 Deerfield Rd. IL
- Schaumburg 16 East Golf Road IL
- Vernon Hills 295 Center Drive IL
- Matteson 5001 Lincoln Highway IL
- Bricktown 6420 W. Fullerton IL
- Burbank 7750 South Cicero Avenue IL
- Niles 5660 Touhy Avenue IL
KANSAS
- Wichita 4646 W. Kellogg KS
- Overland Park 8500 W 135th ST KS
KENTUCKY
- St. Mathews 4900 Shelbyville Rd KY
- Simpsonville 1155 Buck Creek Rd. KY
- Lexington 1965 Star Shoot Parkway KY
LOUISIANA
- Slidell 137 Northshore Blvd. LA
MICHIGAN
- Muskegon 5363 Harvey Street MI
- Traverse City 2620 Crossing Circle MI
- Lansing 5900 W. Saginaw Highway MI
- Grand Rapids 4923 28th Street South East MI
- Ann Arbor 3725 Carpenter Road MI
- Ann Arbor 3725 Washtenaw MI
MINNESOTA
- Minnetonka 14100 Wayzata Blvd. MN
- Blaine 170 89th Ave. MN
- Woodbury 8236 Tamarack Village MN
- Richfield 900 West 78th Street South MN
MISSISSIPPI
- Meridian 1003 Bonita Lakes Circle
- Bass Pro Dr. MS
MISSOURI
- Columbia 1901 Bernadette MO
- Cape Girardeau 201 Silver Springs Rd. MO
- Bridgeton 5590 St. Louis Mills Blvd MO
- Chesterfield 220 THF Blvd MO
NEBRASKA
- Omaha 3505 S. 140th Plaza NE
NEVADA
- Las Vegas 2150 North Rainbow Blvd. NV
- Spring Valley 7020 Arroyo Crossing Parkway NV
NEW MEXICO
- Albuquerque 45 Hotel Circle NM
NORTH CAROLINA
- Asheville 801 Fairview Road NC
- Durham 7001 Fayetteville Road NC
- Durham 3300 Westgate Drive NC
MAINE
- Bangor 6 Bangor Mall Blvd. ME
- Portland 200 Running Hill Road ME
MARYLAND
- Clinton 8401 Mike Shapiro Drive MD
MASSACHUSETTS
- Dedham 302 Providence MA
- Millbury 70 Worcester Providence Tpk/Rt 146 MA
- Holyoke 50 Holyoke Street MA
- Bellingham 217 Hartford Ave. MA
- Northborough 6110 Shops Way MA
- Framingham Shoppers World Plaza,1 Worcester Ro MA
NEW HAMPSHIRE
- Nashua 29 Gusabel Avenue NH
NEW JERSEY
- Phillipsburg 1280 Rt. 22 & St. James Ave. NJ
- Eatontown 137 Route 35 NJ
- Bridgewater 100 Promenade Blvd. NJ
- Union 2700 Route 22 East. NJ
- North Brunswick 909 US Hwy 1 South. NJ
- Burlington Rt. 541 & Cadillac Road NJ
- Cherry Hill 2135 Route 38 NJ
- Wayne 7 Wayne Hills Mall NJ
- Paramus 545 Route 17 South NJ
- East Hanover 98 Route 10 West. NJ
- Elizabeth-KidsWo 900 Center Drive NJ
- Mt. Olive 50 International Drive South. NJ
NEW YORK
- College Point 139-19 20th Ave NY
- Union Square 24-30 Union Square E NY
- Sayville 5181 Sunrise Hwy NY
- Massapequa 5214 Sunrise Hwy NY
- Henrietta 2335 Marketplace Drive NY
- Amherst 1569 Niagara Falls Blvd NY
- Kingston 401 Frank Sottile Boulevard NY
- Glens Falls 708 Upper Glen St. NY
- Latham 221 Wade Road Extension NY
- Yonkers 2700 Central Park Ave NY
- Middle Village 66 Metropolitan Ave. NY
- Westbury 1350 Corporate Drive. NY
- Commack 108 Veterans Memorial Highway NY
- Williamsport 461 Lycoming Mall Cir
- Greece 1530 Ridge Rd. West NY
OHIO
- Western Hills 6251 Glenway Ave. OH
- Dayton 2661 Miamisburg-Centerville Rd. OH
- Mentor 7841 Mentor Ave OH
- Dublin 3610 West Dublin-Granville Rd. OH
OKLAHOMA
- Oklahoma City 1119 SE 66th St. OK
- Fort Smith 5609-E Rogers Ave OK
- Norman 560 Ed Noble Pkwy. OK
PENNSYLVANIA
- Horsham 100 Welsh Road PA
- Erie 6680 Peach St. PA
- Monroeville 3700 William Penn Highway PA
- Exton 104 Bartlett Ave. PA
- Ross Park Mall 2003 Cheryl Dr. PA
- Washington 301 Oakspring Road PA
- Beaver Valley Route 18/Valley View Dr. PA
RHODE ISLAND
- Warwick 300 Quaker Lane
SOUTH CAROLINA
- Columbia 254 Harbison Boulevard SC
SOUTH DAKOTA
- Rapid City 450 E. Disk Drive SD
TENNESSEE
- Memphis 7676 Polo Ground Blvd. TN
- Nashville 5731 Nolensville Rd TN
TEXAS
- West El Paso 801 Mesa Hills Dr. TX
- Katy 9730 Katy Freeway TX
- Allen 170 E. Stacy Road TX
- Irving 7730 N. MacArthur Blvd TX
- Lewisville 420 E. Round Grove Rd TX
- Dallas Galleria 13710 Dallas Parkway TX
- Hurst 1309 W. Pipeline Rd TX
- Hulen 5800 Overton Ridge Blvd TX
UTAH
- Ogden 4042 Riverdale Rd. UT
- Midvale 1122 Fort Union Boulevard UT
VIRGINIA
- Potomac Mills 14173 Crossing Place VA
- Newport News 12153 Jefferson Ave. VA
WASHINGTON
- Silverdale 3567 N.W. Randall Way WA
- Everett 1325A S.E. Everett Mall Parkway WA
- Spokane 6104 N. Division Street WA
WISCONSIN
- Brookfield 18550 W. Bluemound Rd. WI
- Madison 2161 Zeier Road WI
