Toys R Us has a new owner who’s planning to open stores
EMERYVILLE, CA – MARCH 15: The Toys R Us logo is displayed on the exterior of a store on March 15, 2018 in Emeryville, California. Toys R Us filed for liquidation in a U.S. Bankruptcy court and plans to close 735 stores leaving 33,000 workers without employment. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
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NEW YORK (NEXSTAR) — A New York-based brand management firm that already owns Anne Klein and Joseph Abboud is taking a controlling stake in the parent company of the Toys R Us and Babies R Us brands.
WHP Global declined to release the terms of the the deal with Tru Kids, which owns the iconic brands.
Tru Kids was formed in January 2019 when it acquired Toys R Us’ intellectual property during its liquidation in 2018.
The deal comes nearly two months after the closure of the only two Toys R Us stores that opened in November 2019 as part of a small U.S. comeback attempt by the iconic toy chain.
Yehuda Shmidman, WHP’s chairman and chief executive officer, told CNBC in an interview that the company plans to open some Toys R Us stores ahead of this holiday season.
He told CNBC the stores could be flagships, pop-ups, airport locations or mini stores inside other retailers’ shops. WHP hasn’t yet set a number for how many locations it plans to open in the U.S.
“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,” Shmidman said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
