Kids "R" Us
 |
|
| Private | |
| Industry | Retail |
| Founded | 1948 Washington, D.C., United States |
| Founder | Charles Lazarus |
| Headquarters | Wayne, New Jersey, United States |
|
Number of locations
|
1,600 stores |
|
Area served
|
Worldwide |
|
Key people
|
Dave Brandon (Chairman & CEO) |
| Products |
Toys Clothing Baby products |
| Revenue | US$12.4 billion (2014) |
| Owner |
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts Bain Capital Vornado Realty Trust |
|
Number of employees
|
64,000 |
| Parent | Interstate Department Stores (1966–1978) |
| Divisions | Babies "R" Us |
| Website |
toysrus toysrusinc |
Toys "R" Us, Inc. is an American toy and juvenile-products retailer founded in 1948 and headquartered in Wayne, New Jersey, in the New York City metropolitan area. Founded by Charles P. Lazarus in its modern incarnation in 1957, Toys "R" Us traces its origins to Lazarus' children's furniture store, which he started in 1948 before adding toys, eventually shifting his focus.
Toys "R" Us experienced expansion as a chain, soon becoming predominant in its niche field of toy retail. Represented by cartoon mascot Geoffrey the Giraffe from 1969, Toys "R" Us eventually branched out into launching the stores Babies "R" Us and the now-defunct Kids "R" Us.
The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. on September 18, 2017, and has also filed for bankruptcy protection in Canada (see Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act). They have stated their stores will continue to operate. Operations in Europe and Australia, licensed stores and joint venture partnership in Asia, which are separate entities, are not part of the Chapter 11 filing.
The company's brands include Toys "R" Us, and Babies "R" Us. It also operates e-commerce sites including ToysRUs.com and BabiesRUs.com.
The company owns or licenses 866 Toys "R" Us and Babies "R" Us stores in the United States and Puerto Rico, more than 750 international stores and more than 245 licensed stores in 37 countries and jurisdictions.
Charles P. Lazarus (born 1923) founded Children's Supermart (which would evolve into Toys "R" Us) in Washington, D.C., during the post-war baby boom era in 1948 as a baby-furniture retailer. Its first location was at 2461 18th St. NW, where the nightclub Madam's Organ Blues Bar is located. Lazarus began receiving requests from customers for baby toys. After adding baby toys, he got requests for toys for older children. The focus of the store changed in 1957, and Toys "R" Us was born in Rockville, Maryland. Toys "R" Us was acquired in 1966 by Interstate Department Stores, Inc., owner of the White Front, Topps Chains and Children's Bargain Town USA, a toy-store chain related to Toys "R" Us in the American Midwest that would later be combined with the rest of the Toys "R" Us chain. The original Toys "R" Us store design from 1969 to 1989 consisted of vertical rainbow stripes and a brown roof with a front entrance and side exit.
...
Wikipedia