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Toys 'Я' Us, 140 Columbiana Drive: Spring 2018   13 comments

Posted at 11:41 pm in closing

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So fare there are no signs advertising big closings savings at the Toys 'R' US Columbiana Mall outparcel site in Harbison, but it's just a matter of time as the firm officially threw in the towel last week and says it will not emerge from bankruptcy.

I missed the golden age of Toys 'R' Us, and in fact don't think I've ever been into a store. For us, the big thing was the Sears Christmas Wishbook with wonders on every page, here's an appreciation from someone who was not too old for the golden age, along with some reminders that Toys 'R' Us has been in and out of trouble for a long time.

The funny thing is that while TRU doesn't sell as many toys as it used to, it still sells a *lot* of toys, and you have to wonder how bad the debts must be if you have bankruptcy protection and can't come up with a viable plan for the way forward while you are still selling lots of toys.

A few links:

According to CNN, the timing of closing sales and the final closing have yet to be determined.

A trademark collector may be bringing KB Toys back as popup stores due to the TRU bankruptcy.

Amazon may buy some of the stores though I wouldn't hold my breath for the Columbia area.

I have to say this store does not look appealing to me. It looks a bit run down, boxy and not 'fun'. I realize there are limits to what you can do with stodgy Columbia codes, but to me something like *this* says TOY STORE!

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And finally, thanks, guys, for that whole backwards 'Я' thing. Not.

Written by ted on March 19th, 2018

Tagged with , , , ,

13 Responses to 'Toys 'Я' Us, 140 Columbiana Drive: Spring 2018'

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  1. I recently read an article in Bloomberg that said many big box retailors could be following Toys R Us into bankruptcy because of the high amount of debt that they are carrying. To make matters worse for them, they have acquired new debt to refinance the old debt creating a vicious cycle that they might not be able to get out of. Also Amazon has replaced Wal-Mart as the new "bad guy" in retail.
    On a different note, I feel sorry for all the parents who are going to have to deal with upset children now that Toys R Us is going away.

    Tom

    20 Mar 18 at 3:21 pm

  2. I feel like I can count on one hand the number of times I set foot in this Toys R Us but I've read a bunch of comments in different spots of people that will greatly miss them.

    Andrew

    20 Mar 18 at 11:46 pm

  3. Liquidation at this Toys R Us begins on Thursday, March 22, 2018 according to the signs inside the store.

    I was never a "Toys R Us kid," and I did not like their business model that allowed them to get the hottest toys before anyone else, but there is something sad about Toys R Us being the last (or one of the last) remaining "toy stores". I remember Children's Palace (not sure if they had one here in Columbia) when they went out of business in the late 1980s or early 1990s, then it was KB Toys. I mean these stores carried a lot of toys that you can't get a Wal-mart or Target and I feel like there is still room for a store that specializes in just carry toys of all sorts.

    James R

    22 Mar 18 at 1:08 am

  4. kB toys is supposedly coming back in some form.

    The toy companies sell a lot of toys through toys r us. Surprised they didn’t form some company and take over toys r us.

    Robert

    22 Mar 18 at 5:35 pm

  5. WIS is reporting that the liquidaiton sale has been postponed...

    Andrew

    22 Mar 18 at 5:49 pm

  6. Andrew

    22 Mar 18 at 6:00 pm

  7. Yep. My mother in law was there this morning to find the liquidation was postponed. Apparently there was a big crowd, and a lot of people were not happy...

    Heath

    22 Mar 18 at 10:34 pm

  8. That store was never crowded except on the holidays and Black friday.

    Matthew Benjamin

    24 Mar 18 at 5:04 pm

  9. We were there this past weekend. The sale is 'up to 40% off', but a number of things are only 5% off. There was a good bit of inventory still there and very few people (and maybe 1 or 2 employees that I could see?)

    I grew up wishing we'd have a Toys R Us in the area and was so thrilled when we finally got one, but even when it was new we rarely went there. (I'll admit -- we have kids now, and we'd sometimes take them to Toys R Us, find some things they liked, and buy them elsewhere for cheaper.)

    Hate to see it go, though.

    Ricky D

    24 Apr 18 at 11:29 am

  10. From The Wall Street Journal "Hasbro Inc. on Monday blamed a 16% decline in first-quarter sales on the liquidation of Toys “R” Us Inc. and said it has sped up an overhaul of its sales organization for a world where more toys are sold online. Toys “R” Us is closing stores in the U.S. and other markets, causing big drops in sales for Hasbro toys like Transformer action figures and My Little Pony dolls. The retailer, which filed for bankruptcy in September, was done in by a lofty debt load and difficulty competing amid the rise of Amazon.com Inc. and online shopping."

    Hasbro's stock has taken over a $30 per share hit in the past few months.

    Joe Shlabotnik

    24 Apr 18 at 11:49 pm

  11. Folks, Spirit Halloween has set up shop here for hte next several weels...

    Andrew

    19 Sep 18 at 6:16 pm

  12. Value City Furniture is in the process of setting up shop here...

    Andrew

    14 Apr 19 at 12:49 pm

  13. So I noted that Value City Furniture is setting up shop here...it appears to me as if the one in Capitol Centre (behind Columbia Place Mall) is closing and this one is opening up in its place...

    Andrew

    2 Jul 19 at 5:40 pm

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