Toysrus to Liquidate over $200 Million in Merchandise and More Insider Details

The Illinois list makes some sense, but Moline, illinois should be on there. The store looks like it was transported here directly from 1985...no updates. The Bloomington, Illinois store should also be on the list. I don't understand the Schaumburg closure...the store was recently renovated from complete craphole to almost decent. I'm sure the rent is just too much in such a swanky Chicago suburb.

I'm glad Peoria, IL (my store) is a combo store and well run as far as TRU goes.

reluctantyouth wrote:The Illinois list makes some sense, but Moline, illinois should be on there. The store looks like it was transported here directly from 1985...no updates. The Bloomington, Illinois store should also be on the list. I don't understand the Schaumburg closure...the store was recently renovated from complete craphole to almost decent. I'm sure the rent is just too much in such a swanky Chicago suburb.

I think they are looking more at coverage areas than anything else. That would help explain Moline's and Bloomington's survival versus Schaumburg, Highland Park and Vernon Hills.

TF-fan kev777 wrote:

reluctantyouth wrote:The Illinois list makes some sense, but Moline, illinois should be on there. The store looks like it was transported here directly from 1985...no updates. The Bloomington, Illinois store should also be on the list. I don't understand the Schaumburg closure...the store was recently renovated from complete craphole to almost decent. I'm sure the rent is just too much in such a swanky Chicago suburb.

I think they are looking more at coverage areas than anything else. That would help explain Moline's and Bloomington's survival versus Schaumburg, Highland Park and Vernon Hills.

It's probably based on Performance as well, not just location.

I agree. Central Illinois benefits from (2) TRU. Bloomington, IL is a combo store. I know TRU has a warehouse in Joliet and Trucks need to pass Bloomington to get to Peoria. I think Chicago has more specialty stores and has to compete with the likes of Toynk and BigBadToystore.com for business. The Target and Walmart in Schaumburg are a hot mess too...Schaumburg store will be a loss for that area. I have yet to find anything when I go up there toy hunting though.

TF-fan kev777 wrote:

reluctantyouth wrote:The Illinois list makes some sense, but Moline, illinois should be on there. The store looks like it was transported here directly from 1985...no updates. The Bloomington, Illinois store should also be on the list. I don't understand the Schaumburg closure...the store was recently renovated from complete craphole to almost decent. I'm sure the rent is just too much in such a swanky Chicago suburb.

I think they are looking more at coverage areas than anything else. That would help explain Moline's and Bloomington's survival versus Schaumburg, Highland Park and Vernon Hills.

I don't think coverage is an issue there, as Davenport, IA is staying open, too (right across the river). I'm always able to find stuff there in stock the quickest, but it also looks transported here from the '80s.

william-james88 wrote:As you may recall, Toysrus Canada had also filed for bankruptcy protection independently from its American parent. Those stores, which were later revealed to be very profitable and a crucial asset to Toysrus, will remain open. The president of Toysrus Canada, Melanie Teed-Murch, said that their Canadian operations "will be taking additional steps to improve the overall customer omnichannel experience with compelling promotions, continued improvements to mobile and digital marketing and enhancements to our baby registry and loyalty programs."

This should not be surprising. The Canadian division filing for protection was a defensive measure to ensure creditors owed by TRU could not attempt to recoup losses by trying to bill the Canadian side for payments on American deliveries, or break orders/contracts with the Canadian side if they aren't happy with the US situation.

Long story short, it was done to have creditors treat the two divisions as separate entities, so the Canadian side doesn't "pay for the sins of the Father" so to speak.

That said, the Vancouver area could lose a store in the near future, as the Metrotown location could be impacted by developer (Concord Pacific) plans for the closed Sears that sat directly above that location. Of course the Target is still vacant if they just wished to increase in size and relocate to the other side of the mall, similarly to what they just did at their Willowbrook location.

I can tell TRU is run by MBAs and not retail people based on that slide. Reeks of the buzzword laden crap that Fast Eddie used to push before I left Sears forever ago. Look how they're doing now!

for those of us in Houston, the store listed in Katy, is incorrect. that store is actually located in Houston, at I-10 and Bunker Hill, on the west side.

kurthy wrote:

TF-fan kev777 wrote:

reluctantyouth wrote:The Illinois list makes some sense, but Moline, illinois should be on there. The store looks like it was transported here directly from 1985...no updates. The Bloomington, Illinois store should also be on the list. I don't understand the Schaumburg closure...the store was recently renovated from complete craphole to almost decent. I'm sure the rent is just too much in such a swanky Chicago suburb.

I think they are looking more at coverage areas than anything else. That would help explain Moline's and Bloomington's survival versus Schaumburg, Highland Park and Vernon Hills.

I don't think coverage is an issue there, as Davenport, IA is staying open, too (right across the river). I'm always able to find stuff there in stock the quickest, but it also looks transported here from the '80s.

Davenport remaining open was one of the reason's I thought Moline would likely close and surprised it is not on the list. Both locations have been helped by Kmart closures too. TRU Moline has Target to contend with, but Davenport location is holding its own in that very weird/horrible traffic/corner lot. I do miss the Davenport Kmart. I missed out on Lego deals at both and very disappointed.

ScottyP wrote:I can tell TRU is run by MBAs and not retail people based on that slide. Reeks of the buzzword laden crap that Fast Eddie used to push before I left Sears forever ago. Look how they're doing now!

Best thing I read today!

i think the one of the entries is wrong 5181 Sunrise Hwy is in Bohemia not sayville, started to freak out cause the TRU i go to is right on the edge of sayvile (think its technically holbrook) so i though it was closing but it looks like its just a babies r us that i didnt know existed. If someone can confirm this that would be great cause ill be really pissed if they close that down and i cant get gundam minikits anymore. Dont understand why the store id numbers arent there, would make things alot easier.

The only store in my town will be closing. The closest other store is almost a 2 hour drive. I hope at least they will mark down the stock so I can pick up a bunch of figures when my tax return arrives.

Rodimus Prime wrote:The only store in my town will be closing. The closest other store is almost a 2 hour drive. I hope at least they will mark down the stock so I can pick up a bunch of figures when my tax return arrives.

But I thought people kept saying TRU was terrible at stocking TFs. So why would a sale matter if there is nothing to pick up?

william-james88 wrote:

Rodimus Prime wrote:The only store in my town will be closing. The closest other store is almost a 2 hour drive. I hope at least they will mark down the stock so I can pick up a bunch of figures when my tax return arrives.

But I thought people kept saying TRU was terrible at stocking TFs. So why would a sale matter if there is nothing to pick up?

Most Transformers fans buy more than just Transformers.

Is it just me or does it feel like the east coast has a disproportionate number of closings compared to the entire rest of the country? Even just going from New York to Maine is a big chunk of the list. Granted, most are BRU stores, but still.

One of the two TRUs in Maine is closing, but these stores are so far from me I struggle to feel sad about it. I honestly wouldn't be upset with the whole company closing, it would just be one less frustration for me trying to get exclusives.

Emerje

Honestly I have a ton of Nostalgia for TRU, from my earliest memories in the early 80's, until about 2005, I really enjoyed shopping there. In the last decade or so, its been hit-and-miss, and the customer service has been terrible. I would love to see some stores stay open for sentimental reasons obviously, but sentiment alone cannot make a business run successfully. If their prices cannot compete with Walmart or Target, then unfortunately I don't see much of a future. Its just a shame really. Sure I guess we will still get exclusives from HTS, or 3P online retailors, but there's just not much fun in that. I still like to see things before I purchase them.

Emerje wrote: I honestly wouldn't be upset with the whole company closing, it would just be one less frustration for me trying to get exclusives.

less frustrating but more expensive. As is already happening now, if a retailer chooses not to take an exclusive, it doesnt get released. It happened to several platinum sets in the US and thats why none of your stores ever stocked YOTR Optimus Prime. If TRU goes away, thats one less store willing to pick up exclusives. Sure, they will probably be available at Robot Kingdom, and thus the less frustrating part, but have fun paying $30 USD to ship an exclusive deluxe figure.

william-james88 wrote:If TRU goes away, thats one less store willing to pick up exclusives. Sure, they will probably be available at Robot Kingdom, and thus the less frustrating part, but have fun paying $30 USD to ship an exclusive deluxe figure.

Exactly. Shipping from RK is especially bad. The only time I've ever ordered from them was for some late release Kreon figures I knew I cold get nowhere else. When the shipping cost alone is almost the same price as the item you intend to purchase, that is unacceptable IMHO.

o.supreme wrote:

william-james88 wrote:If TRU goes away, thats one less store willing to pick up exclusives. Sure, they will probably be available at Robot Kingdom, and thus the less frustrating part, but have fun paying $30 USD to ship an exclusive deluxe figure.

Exactly. Shipping from RK is especially bad. The only time I've ever ordered from them was for some late release Kreon figures I knew I cold get nowhere else. When the shipping cost alone is almost the same price as the item you intend to purchase, that is unacceptable IMHO.

Well... there was this one time I bought the MP Casettes from Lena at 12$ for the pair and shipping was about the same. I didnt mind then

william-james88 wrote: Well... there was this one time I bought the MP Casettes from Lena at 12$ for the pair and shipping was about the same. I didnt mind then

that's why brought up my example with the Kreon's. Fairly small items, with equivalent shipping is fine. But $70 to ship a 150 Unite Warriors set =$220 -NO THANK YOU.

I got severely worried about my Toy's R Us in Monroeville when I saw the address...only to be relieved that it's just a Babies R US. Phew.

I feel bad for the two closing in Alabama, because they are the best 2 within my local area, the 3rd one that is local is kind of sorry and is a babies r' us/tru hybrid in hoover, alabama, another one that is just a babies r us is around, wish they would have closed those 2 instead... the best one in the state is Hunstville, AL followed closely by the Summit and Tuscaloosa comes in a not so distant 3rd... too bad they couldnt close the useless baby r u parts instead

guess I will have to check out and see if they have any exclusives soon if I get the chance before they close.

Yeah, I don't know all of these, but my local BRU is on here. Not gonna be missed, barely anyone in the parking lot these days.

Looks like only one of the 3 TRU's near me will be closing. I am gonna miss it because I went to yugioh tourneys there as a kid. It's a huge bummer. Like I said the other two will still be there, not that I have been there in years anyway.

reluctantyouth wrote:

kurthy wrote:

TF-fan kev777 wrote:

reluctantyouth wrote:The Illinois list makes some sense, but Moline, illinois should be on there. The store looks like it was transported here directly from 1985...no updates. The Bloomington, Illinois store should also be on the list. I don't understand the Schaumburg closure...the store was recently renovated from complete craphole to almost decent. I'm sure the rent is just too much in such a swanky Chicago suburb.

I think they are looking more at coverage areas than anything else. That would help explain Moline's and Bloomington's survival versus Schaumburg, Highland Park and Vernon Hills.

I don't think coverage is an issue there, as Davenport, IA is staying open, too (right across the river). I'm always able to find stuff there in stock the quickest, but it also looks transported here from the '80s.

Davenport remaining open was one of the reason's I thought Moline would likely close and surprised it is not on the list. Both locations have been helped by Kmart closures too. TRU Moline has Target to contend with, but Davenport location is holding its own in that very weird/horrible traffic/corner lot. I do miss the Davenport Kmart. I missed out on Lego deals at both and very disappointed.

I'm from Iowa City, so the the absolutely horrendous traffic corner doesn't bother me as long as I can find cool stuff there like the boxsets. I need more reasons to go there because the stock is always better than the one in Cedar Rapids.

Glad none near me made the list.

The only TRU near me isn't closing but they really need to fix their stocking practices. They only restock Transformers like once every 6 months.

And every store needs to do better online. They all suck balls especially Hasbrotoyshop.

Went to my local TRU for the first time in years. While the WWE section was overflowing, the Transformers section was full of crickets. Bunch of those overpriced legion figures (they are overpriced at every store I go to) a whole convoy of Armor Turbo Changer Hounds, AKA the stuff nobody buys. There were at least 30+ of the legion figs from TLK and RiD.

I'd like to note that they didn't have any thing from Titans Return, but they did have ONE Dreadwind from PotP so I think they were getting cleaned out on the good stuff. My guess is that they are just ordering the wrong stuff to hit their mark or the good stuff gets cleaned out too fast so they are stuck with shelf-warm city.

We have more news about ToysRus's financial issues. This comes to us from fellow Seibertronian, mordhelm. USA Today reports that ToysRus may be planning to shut down 200 more stores. Considering roughly 170 US stores are holding going out of business sales, your store may be added to the list to be closed if they were not already on it. You can check that list here if you have not already seen it. In the meantime be sure to make plans for a last visit to ToysRus just in case. The article at least gives us a sliver of hope considering bankrupcy experts are predicting that the company will shrink down to fewer than 200 stores to remain viable.

The 200 store closings would be in addition to the approximately 170 U.S. stores where Toys R Us currently is holding going out of business sales. If the retailer goes ahead with those closings, it would be reducing its store fleet by close to 50%, from approximately 880 last year to roughly 400 stores.

Oh no...

Still glad I don't work at toys r us anymore. Sure I got discounts but this whole going out of business deal would've probably sent some panic to my managers, as well as leading up to having to find a new job.

I thought of working at TRU but my capacity for screaming children is 5 minutes or less so I know I am not a good fit.

If they do close more, I hope they get the list out quickly.
I'm guessing we wont be seeing to many TRU exclusive transformers at this point though.

Rodimus Knight wrote:If they do close more, I hope they get the list out quickly.
I'm guessing we wont be seeing to many TRU exclusive transformers at this point though.

Only 1 in 2018.

Right, time to recheck my local one... Last time they had a sign saying they'll continue to be open and be of service, apparently aware of the potential panic the overall news is bringing.

This is in part educated speculation, but the original 180 store list shows the TRU in Greenwood, IN as closing. I was just there two weeks ago and the TOYsRUS I does NOT have the Store Closing Signs up, but the BABIESrus next to them DOES. So with that in hand I firmly believe that at the very least the original list is populated with both TRU and BRU stores. And this one may be too.

"
Toys “R” Us Inc. is making preparations for a liquidation of its bankrupt U.S. operations after so far failing to find a buyer or reach a debt restructuring deal with lenders, according to people familiar with the matter."


The news sent shares of the biggest toymakers tumbling in late trading. Mattel Inc. fell as much as 6.1 percent, while Hasbro Inc. declined 3 percent.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles ... operations

Will, is the article accurate that TRU Canada entered bankruptcy last September? I don't recall hearing that!

You read that right. This Monday, Toys R Us is expected to appear at a bankruptcy hearing and shutting down all its stores and liquidating its entire US operations is one of the options they are considering. There are other options, of course, but this is the option certain lenders are pushing for, after a weak holiday performance. They had already planned to close 20% of their US stores (184 to be precise).

This comes to us from the Wall Street Journal which refers to unspecified people in the know.

Just to be very clear, this does not mean that all stores are closing Monday, it just means that the decision to close all stores in the US could be made official Monday. Liquidation would happen soon after. Also, this is just for US operations.

Here are the key parts from the Wall Street Journal Article:

- Troubled toy chain Toys R Us Inc. is preparing to liquidate all of its U.S. stores and abandon efforts to restructure through the bankruptcy process, people familiar with the matter said, after a weak holiday season torpedoed plans to reorganize.

- An announcement could come as soon as Monday when the parties are expected to appear at a bankruptcy hearing in Richmond, VA., the people said. How much Toys R Us decides to liquidate will depend on the size of the liquidator bids it receives, the people said.

- The plan to shut down the stores and liquidate the U.S. operations is one of several scenarios in play, one of the people said, and while some lenders are pushing that route, others want to find other options for Toys R Us to continue operations.

shajaki wrote:Will, is the article accurate that TRU Canada entered bankruptcy last September? I don't recall hearing that!

Yes, it did. But it did so seperately. It was indeed protection from the US going bankrupt since TRU Canada has been lending its surplus money to the US branches.

The US was sinking Canada down with them (which they can, they own it) so when they declared bankruptcy, Canada had to decalre bankruptcy too.

However, I do not think that the US liquidating means canada will have to be liquidated as well. Regardless, TRU Canada is ridiculously profitable due to the meager competition so what i beleive is someone would simply buy the Canadian operations if things got really dire.

Holy S*** this is troubling as all hell. Granted the decision isn't final yet, but it's still really concerning for TRU. One concern of mine is that TRU might be the only option for TF collecting for certain people. I also can't help but wonder what's going to happen to certain exclusives i.e. Studio Series Thundercracker. Are we going to get an alternative outlet for purchasing it, or are we just not going to see it as a result of this?

BombshellDaBug wrote:Holy S*** this is troubling as all hell. Granted the decision isn't final yet, but it's still really concerning for TRU. One concern of mine is that TRU might be the only option for TF collecting for certain people. I also can't help but wonder what's going to happen to certain exclusives i.e. Studio Series Thundercracker. Are we going to get an alternative outlet for purchasing it, or are we just not going to see it as a result of this?

Thundercacker is already out at TRU, and was the last TRU exclusive.

how does liquidating stores and inventory help lenders? Aren't the locations leased? Are the stores locations owned? Selling real estate would bring in money. Thanks for any answers.

If anyone has any news or theories on what might happen to the Canadian stores please let me know, I really hope they don't close down because it's my main supplier for transformers

SHIT

TK415 wrote:how does liquidating stores and inventory help lenders?

IIRC its a way to sell off unused products to get 'liquid funds'. Think of stores like ROSS, TJMaxx and Nordstrom Rack that sell surplus goods. My theory is some of the overstock from TRU may wind up those places. I could be wrong.

Well that's just Prime

WreckerJack wrote:

TK415 wrote:how does liquidating stores and inventory help lenders?

IIRC its a way to sell off unused products to get 'liquid funds'. Think of stores like ROSS, TJMaxx and Nordstrom Rack that sell surplus goods. My theory is some of the overstock from TRU may wind up those places. I could be wrong.

Basically anyone who wants to buy those goods is fair game. A step in the bankruptcy trajectory is to asses value of possessions, with movable stock as a primary focus. Once that is sold off either via sales in store or overstock to other companies, the real estate is next, which may take a while longer. It all depends on who shows interest in picking up a particular lot, it's a case by case basis, like one company buys up the lots in a particular city, another buys all the lots on East coast, and so on. I'm seeing it happen a lot back home in the Netherlands, with department stores and supermarkets biting the dust left and right.

Thankfully, the move to close up shop was an anticipated possibility so there are no exclusives in the pipeline: the future Movie MP figures and other normally TRU exclusives have been relegated to other stores. Anybody remember KB Toys with their exclusives close to bankruptcy in 2005? Nightmarish.

Kind of stupid of Hasbro to give a store in financial trouble and now could be closing a lot of exclusives. Maybe this might be a lesson and finally stop store exclusives

Funny how an American company decides to say f**k America after they established their brand in foreign countries. As much as I will miss the exclusives, I say f**k em and their overpricing. Why dont they just dump babies-r-us instead? Good luck in Australia with your $250 Trypticons and $50 voyagers.

Logsters65 wrote:If anyone has any news or theories on what might happen to the Canadian stores please let me know, I really hope they don't close down because it's my main supplier for transformers

Its main supplier for any toy there selection is bigger than walmart they even sell some Japanese stuff dbz naruto and other anime stuff