Toys R Us closing multiple US stores! 3-15-2018 - all stores expected to close

Discussion in 'Transformers News and Rumors' started by Prime135, Jan 23, 2018.

  1. WishfulThinking

    WishfulThinking The world has moved on...we've always said.

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    "Down the road", though. Not "tomorrow". Not "this year". Probably not even "next year". Maybe "not at all".
     
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  2. TFXProtector

    TFXProtector TFW2005 Supporter

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    Look at what they've pulled off so far. If I was a betting man, I'd put money down on 'em.
     
  3. WishfulThinking

    WishfulThinking The world has moved on...we've always said.

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    Well, slapping a sticker on product you already own and is probably just sitting in a factory somewhere while getting a "Midwest-based retailer" to agree to let you sell you wares through a special toy section isn't rocket science.

    It's considerably easier than creating an infrastructure to ship toys to as-of-right-now non-existent warehouses to as-of-right-now non-existent big-box stores in 500+ medium to super-large market across the nation.

    Seriously, this is about the laziest way of making a buck as they can find to do.
     
  4. 009*

    009* That Guy... Somewhere

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    I wouldn't be surprised if they just opened up some new stores inside shopping malls. Sears is one foot in the grave and Younkers just shut down all its stores so there's so space available.
     
  5. WishfulThinking

    WishfulThinking The world has moved on...we've always said.

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    That's not the plan. The plan is to do "store-within-a-store" displays with True Heroes, Imaginarium and whatever other off-brand toys they own the IP on. My suspicion is that they hope to raise easy capital this way and then use that to potentially reboot the stores in the far future. But they'll need a LOT of that easy capital to make it work. I don't know how many parents are going to rush out and buy that off-brand stuff at potentially higher prices than before - but I guess you never know.

    But yes, it feels a bit like "Weekend at Bernie's" with a toy store instead of a corpse.
    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Oct 9, 2018
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  6. Shepard Prime

    Shepard Prime 1st Cybertronian Spectre of the Galactic Council

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    I'm just glad that I can still get the True Heroes stuff if that's their plan. Their figures may be bland but their vehicles and playsets are aces.
     
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  7. RKillian

    RKillian http://www.rktoyandhobby.com

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    The flat modern Geoffrey is sterile and lifeless, like it was designed by committee. It's the same when you look at how Mario was drawn back around the 2nd and 3rd games versus that awful plastic 3D version they've had since the GameCube.

    Untitled.png images.jpg

     
    Last edited: Oct 9, 2018
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  8. Afterburner

    Afterburner For your health

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    Keep in mind it was the debtors that ultimately forced this whole situation, so yes it's still basically the same owners here. The American employee is not treated on the same level as the shareholder and until that changes, you will see situations like this more often and it will get worse. If the government didn't just make it readily apparent over the last month, the people in power will get away with as much as you let them get away with. There is no line that will not be crossed. If you don't like it, you have to fight back. That's done with your wallet and at the ballot box. And it's never being afraid to speak the truth, whether people can handle it or not.
     
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  9. stad

    stad Well-Known Member

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    TRU was over $1B in debt when it was bought in the leveraged buyout.
     
  10. Tekkaman Blade

    Tekkaman Blade Professor of Animation

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    Don't remember it was quite that much but after the sale it shot up to 5 or 6 billion in Dept.
    But your right I was confusing it to when the original owner/manager stepped down in the mid 90's. The company was in much better shape then, but 5 or 6 years later Wal-mart was out selling them. So they tried to go bigger like opening up that Toys R us in times square. Toys r us was doing fine, what was hurting them was Kids R us and Babies R us which many were closed and I believe all Kids R us were. Those were created after the original owner left. That was how they got in dept. But no where near as much as they would after the buyout. Then they started buying out other Toy companies Etoys.com and Toys.com, and toy retailers KB Toys and FAO Schwarz. Yes that's why those went away, they wanted to be the only toy store. And the dept kept growing.
     
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  11. artimus prime

    artimus prime Articulation Junkie... I'm a poser

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    I couldn't agree more. I use true heroes vehicles with my transformers.... especially the live action transformers. Their prices have skyrocketed.
     
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  12. Lazerwave

    Lazerwave My Most Prized Treasure

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    With toysrus coming back under a new name, I guess it's back to business mapping out the stores on vacation.
     
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  13. stad

    stad Well-Known Member

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    It'll be quite a while, if ever, before it gets to that level.
     
  14. Venixion

    Venixion Its always the middle of the night in Moonside

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    TrU is closing: Oh no! The last dedicated toy store is dying. Share pictures, memories and your last purchases, boo hoo! :( 

    Announces its return: How dare those bastards do such a thing? Dead is better! Dead. Is. Better!

    This thread in a nutshell. o_O 
     
    Last edited: Oct 13, 2018
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