Macy’s Rollout of Toys ʻ R’ Us Hits Herald Square
● The retailer is quickly rolling out locations in time for holiday shopping.
With a wide array of big brands like Lego, Barbie and Fisher-Price, and stuffed animals, STEM educational toys, games, magic tricks and even Geoffrey the Giraffe, Toys “R” Us launched inside Macy's Herald Square on Thursday, trumpeting the resuscitation of the toy retailer in America via its partnership with Macy's.
“This is a billion-dollar opportunity,” said Jeff Gennette, Macy's Inc. chairman and chief executive officer, referring to the fast and furious rollout of Toys “R” Us inside Macy's stores and on macys.com.
By Oct. 15, in time for the start of holiday gift shopping, 451 Macy's stores will have full-fledged Toys “R” Us stores, ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 square feet, though all 500 plus Macy stores will sell the toys. The Toys “R” Us department at Herald Square is the largest in the Macy's chain, at just over 14,000 square feet. It stands out with its colorful fixtures, demonstration tables for customers to interact with toys, arts and crafts, and even some earth science toys. There's also a Lego replica of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, and New York City yellow cab with Geoffrey riding inside. Toys “R” Us at Herald Square is on the seventh floor, adjacent to children's apparel and housed in former office space.
With Toys “R” Us, Macy's fills what's been a big hole in its merchandising.
“We saw a huge opportunity missing in America,” Gennette said. “The Toys “R” Us brand is known by everyone. I'm 61 years old. I was a Toys ‘R' Us kid. There isn't a Millennial parent out there who wasn't a Toys ‘R' Us kid. We saw the power of this brand and this huge need, and that in America, there isn't an experiential toy store. When you look at some of our competitors, either they're online or in the mass channel, it's not an experience.” Walmart and Target are the two biggest sellers of toys in the U.S.
In March 2021, WHP Global, a New Yorkbased brand acquisition and management firm with a portfolio including Anne Klein, Joseph Abboud, Joe's Jeans, William Rast and Lotto generating $4.5 billion in sales, acquired a controlling interest in TRU Kids Inc., parent company of Toys “R” Us, Babies “R” Us and Geoffrey the Giraffe brands, and more than 20 established consumer toy and baby brands, for an undisclosed price.
That summer, the deal with Macy's was announced and that August, Macy's starting selling toys on its website. “When we saw the amount of interest that came on the website, it gave us the courage to say, ‘Let's go fast to create the store experience,'” Gennette said.
Typically, a brand rollout of this magnitude would have taken years, but Macy's moved fast, seeing the consumer demand. “To move this quickly to bring this to life, is just incredible,” said Nata Dvir, Macy's chief merchandising officer.
“I grew up in New Jersey,” said Yehuda Shmidman, chairman and CEO of WHP Global. “I remember walking through Toys ‘R' Us and looking up and down the aisles of the store. I didn't know there was so many toys in the world.
“Our mission since WHP acquired the brand, not that long ago, was very simple. We wanted to rescue the Toys “R” Us brand and bring it back to all Americans,” Shmidman continued. “When we approached Macy's when we bought the business, Jeff and his team had the vision immediately. It was very organic and very fast. This is a landmark partnership with Macy's.”
It's also a near exclusive arrangement with Macy's, considering Toys “R” Us has one two-level, 20,000-square-foot store in American Dream, the mega entertainment and retail complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey. It's possible WHP will open other stand-alone Toys “R” stores in the U.S. Abroad, Toys “R” Us has about 1,000 locations in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Australia and South Africa.