Toys "R" Us May Leave the Toy Business ??

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Legolas
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Toys "R" Us May Leave the Toy Business ??

Post by Legolas »

I'm not quite sure if this is appropriate or not, but I saw this on yahoo, and thought "OMG this is really important everyone on CC may want to know about this...."

It appears that TRU hasn't been making very much money lately, due to the price wars between TRU and Wal-Mart. So they are considering getting out of the toy business. :shock:
The nation's second-largest toy retailer behind Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced plans Wednesday to restructure its toy business, but said it is considering selling the business outright as part of an effort to dramatically reduce operating and capital expenses.
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Toys "R" Us May Leave the Toy Business ??

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EDIT: Typos, I figured there would be a few at 4:30 in the morning :wink:
Last edited by Legolas on Thu Aug 12, 2004 1:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by doctorsparkles »

I saw this last night and thought about posting it here. Instead, I ate a sandwich. Mmm... sandwich...
I can't say that it surprises me. The Toys R Us near me has really gone down hill. The actual toy section keeps getting smaller and more disorganized, while the video game section keeps getting larger and more prominent. The Kids R Us stores have shut down and been crammed into Toys R Us. Toys R Us no longer has anything that you can only get from them, and their prices are higher than anywhere else.
The same thing happened with K.B. Toys, and now 5 of them have shut down in my area in the past year or two.
Oh well. I'll stick to Walmart and Target.
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Post by cnelson »

TRU is consistently $5-$10/set higher than Target, and they don't have Target's everything-must-go clearance prices that Tar-zhay seems to feel the need to do several times a year. They're usually disorganized and never have the latest stuff first any more. They've also lost the charm that they used to have because now each store pretty much stocks exactly the same thing as any other store. I remember a couple of years ago finding a 6089 Stone Tower Bridge for $25 at TRU. Doubt I'd ever make finds like that now.

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Post by Daimyo »

TRU has a better toy selection from Wal-Mart. (NO WAY!)
If it drops out, our biggest retail source of GOOD Lego will drop out of the picture. Wal-Mart sells more Megabloks than Toys R' Us.
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Post by Formendacil »

Daimyo wrote:TRU has a better toy selection from Wal-Mart. (NO WAY!)
If it drops out, our biggest retail source of GOOD Lego will drop out of the picture. Wal-Mart sells more Megabloks than Toys R' Us.
AGREED!!!

Walmart may have better prices. (On that score, it wins hands down, feet down, and mouth to the toes.) But selection-wise, it can't be beat. If it goes, where will people in my area go for Lego that's either brand new or a little bid old, aka: the stuff that TRU sells. (wlister, are there any specialty toy stores in Calgary that carry Lego? There are none in Red Deer.)

Besides, if TRU gets out of the toy business, doesn't that mean getting out of business period?

If TRU wants to be competitive, they could just lower their prices.
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Post by cnelson »

Besides, if TRU gets out of the toy business, doesn't that mean getting out of business period?
Yeah, it'd be kind of odd to go to a store named Toys R Us to buy lawn mowers or frozen pizzas...
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Post by Lord Resta »

They will all be called Babies R Us.
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Post by wlister »

Formendacil wrote:Snipped here and there. :D

wlister, are there any specialty toy stores in Calgary that carry Lego? There are none in Red Deer.

If TRU wants to be competitive, they could just lower their prices.
There are two specialty stores that carry Lego and a few Educational stores who do as well. There may also be a Lego exclusive store opening up in the next year or so. As to selection, only one of the stores currently open carries a full selection, and if you know the owner he will order cases in for you, you have to pre-pay and wait until he is ready to order again. He also sells you those cases at full retail. None of the other specialty and educational stores ever has a sale either.

As to the demise of TRU and lego collecting in Calgary, Walmart in Calgary has terrible selection and the Megabloks shelf space is larger. Perhaps we will see an improvement in selection once TRU closes. Or perhaps the new owners of TRU stores will have better business sense and find a way to manage competitive toy pricing with profitability.

As to toy pricing, the toy business is tough, both Walmart and Target run their toy departments at a loss especially during sales and the Christmas season. Toy departments are a hook, low toy prices bring in buyers for other departments. It may be hard to compete with that.

As a Canadian I look forward to the demise of TRU as a retail partner for Amazon. Hopefully the new toy supplier through Amazon will ship to Canada. 99% of the toy selection now is currently unavailable to us, including Lego. :(

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Post by rogue27 »

I doubt a toy specialty store can compete with a department store because the toy departments in the large stores are not what keeps them afloat.

I guess Wal-Mart will become our only source of Lego, and that is bad because Wal-Mart seems more interested in selling MegaBloks.

TLC will have a hard time regaining profitability if there are fewer places to buy their products. Tis a shame...
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Post by Emperor James »

I don't care if tru goes out of business. I see no reason to buy any of the current Lego sets except on very deep discount, and if tru does go out of business and has a clearance sale, it might end up being good for me. I will only buy new sets for full price if tlc rereleases a good old castle set, and if they do, it probably won't be available in stores.
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Post by Robin Hood »

Hmmm Stuff'or'us, I can't see it. I hope that TRU dosen't stop selling toys. I'll admit that they have to expensive prices but they do have a much better sellection that any other store. :wink:
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Post by jamitjames »

I don't have one near so I don't care....
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Post by Jojo »

Hello!

jamitjames wrote:I don't have one near so I don't care....
Nor do I.


Bye
Jojo

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Post by wlister »

Possible good news for Canadians, Target is in talks to purchase Hudsons Bay Company, this includes Zellers. It would be great to see Zellers replaced with Target and see Walmart have some real competition. From the sounds of it Target is the place to shop for Lego in the US so it would be great to have it here. :D

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Post by rogue27 »

To those who don't care:

You will care if this results in TLC posting unprofitable results for the next four years and then decide to leave the building toy market.


Target does seem to be the best place to buy Lego in the United States right now. They have just about an entire aisle devoted to lego. (on one side - the other side is other building toys) Much bigger lego section than Wal-Mart, ShopKo, Pamida... and that's about it here.
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