Toys R Us Coming to Mall of America

Wednesday, November 15th, 2023 -- 8:00 AM

(CNN) Just a few years ago, Toys R Us was on its way to the retail graveyard after going out of business.

Now, it’s coming to America’s biggest mall, just in time for the countdown to Christmas. The iconic toy retailer, whose history dates back to the late 1940s, went out of business in 2018, in tandem with its Babies R Us division.

Toys R Us at one point was the leading toy chain in the United States and globally. As it expanded its dominance in toys retailing, it came at the expense of smaller neighborhood toy stores which just couldn’t compete with its size and low prizes and were forced to shut down.

But Toys R Us’ size, both in global store fleet and massive inventory, eventually contributed to its downfall as the company buckled under billions of dollars of debt.

WHP Global, a brand acquisition and management company that bought Toys R Us and its Babies R Us division in 2021 from Tru Kids after they went out of business, said on Monday that the newest mall-based Toys R Us store will open just before Thanksgiving at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota.

The company said the 11,000 square foot store, opened in partnership with Go! Retail Group, will carry an assortment of toys, videogames, as well as an in-house cafe and ice cream parlor to be added in the New Year.

It’s the second standalone Toys R Us store to open after WHP Global marked the toy retailer’s comeback with the opening of its 20,000 square foot flagship location in December 2021 at the American Dream Mall in New Jersey.

Since then, Toys R Us has been on an expansion frenzy as it attempts to reintroduce the toy store company to more online-savvy Millennial and Gen Z shoppers. As part of that strategy, WHP, through a partnership with Macy’s, has also rolled out more than 452 mini Toys R Us shops across all Macy’s stores nationwide, including in the Macy’s location at the Mall of America, and on Macy’s website.

Not to be forgotten, Babies R Us experienced its own re-birth over the summer with a 10,000-square-foot store than opened in July at the American Dream Mall.

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