03.15.21 - Toys R Us is under new management with a new owner. WHP Global announced recently that the firm has acquired a controlling interest in Toys R Us parent company, Tru Kids. The company also owns Babies R Us and Geoffrey the Giraffe brands.
“We’re in the brand business, and Toys R Us is the single most credible, trusted and beloved toy brand in the world,” Said the chairman and chief executive officer of WHP, Yehuda Shmidman, in a recent interview. “We’re coming off a year where toys are just on fire. ... And for Toys R Us, the U.S. is really a blank canvas.”
Toys R Us filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September of 2017 but has been unable to emerge from bankruptcy on its own, pushing it into liquidation. Shmidman had also been serving as vice chair of Tru Kids since 2019.
Tru Kids has attempted a variety of different ideas to build momentum since it filed for Chapter 11 in 2017, but the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in poor foot traffic and business for many retailers and many of the attempts have resulted in failure.
Other toymakers, such as Hasbro and Mattel, have recently been seeing a sales boom as people staying indoors due to the pandemic buy games and toys. WHP obviously sees much opportunity in the struggling business and has agreed to manage Tru Kid’s businesses going forward.
Source: Reuters
