https://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/wireStory/toys-us-planning-liquidate-us-operations-53760755

There is a small chance TRU Canada and 200 most profitable US locations remain open. Small chance. https://toynewsi.com/news.php?catid=1&itemid=30776

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I have my fingers crossed that TRU can rise from the ashes like Hostess.

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My hope is that it gets bought and revitalized as a mid-size chain that can go into stripmalls. Something like the size of a 5 Below or a Big Lots.

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I don't see how that helps we 18th collectors much. TRU's buying power is already too small now to support exclusives like we enjoyed just a couple years ago and becoming '5 Below or Big Lots' for toys isn't gonna increase that power any. It doesn't help that those examples exist on selling other retailer's unsold stock, either. Do we really want a TRU in name only because of nostalgia?

If it doesn't help my toy collection, I can't say that I much care what happens to 'TRU' (which is not to be confused with apathy about the workers' plight).

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I wonder how much Ross/Marshall’s/Ollie’s etc depend on TRU’s existence for their toy sections. Will that supply dry up with such a huge loss of brick and mortar stores in the toy realm?

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Yeah.... I'm thinking beyond what benefits me most personally. I want a toy store to exist. It could sell nothing but Legos and 6 inch DC figures and American Girl dolls.... it would benefit me nothing, but I'd be glad it exists.

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Agree.

For me, the toy store was as much a part of my collecting as the toys themselves. Yes, it wasn't always the most pleasurable, and there were plenty of times I walked out with nothing, but just being in the toy store made me feel like a kid again and is why I still have my "toys".

Case in point - the night they were going to induce my wife with our first child, our last stop before the hospital was a Toys R Us. It was right at closing, and we both laughed at being able to take our child on their first "toy run". Didn't buy anything that night, but it was a blast.

But, as one article I read pointed out, debt has been hanging over TRU since the early 2000s. You combine that with both my changing collecting habits and what TRU even carries now days, and it's been like a slow, painful death of a dear friend.

I'm gonna head over there tomorrow and pick up the MegaBloks Mars Exploration Rover set or whatever it's called. Then I'll have lunch at Zaxby's and hopefully call it a nice day.

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My son's birthday is next week, so we decided to do one last TRU run, in case it closes down. Most of Tucson must have decided to do the same thing. I haven't seen the store that busy on a non-Black Friday in a long, long time.

Yeah, I went to Stonebriar in Frisco, TX. There was a line that wound through the aisles and reached the back of the store. It was worthy of Disneyworld.

The people were mostly there to use gift cards before they are worthless. A lot of them were talking to each other in the line about Toys R Us memories. It seems everyone is a bit sad to see it go.

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I didn't go to TRU a lot as a kid; the nearest one was a couple of hours away. In fact, I can't recall going there except maybe once until I was in my late teens and went on my own. KB was 'my' toy store (although most of my toys just came from Wal-Mart/K-Mart, the like) so KB closing was more personal for me.
I hate to see stores like this go out, but to put it in a better light, a local news station was doing a story on it the other night and talked to owners of mom-and-pop hobby/toy stores around. They were talking about how the internet had hurt them some, but they'd found their niche and were doing well enough. So while this might mean the end of the monolithic, nation/world-wide chain that has huge buying power, it means we might see a boom in the smaller boutique stores that can be more agile in what they decide to carry, so we see some things available in person that used to be internet-only and usually with outrageous shipping.

we went to the one in jxn ms last night. very crowded as compared to other times. lots of empty pegs with $1.98 items. I passed on everything for myself as the dark crystal garthoms were still $20 and twin peaks figures still $30. we might go back closer to closing (no idea when that is!)

ETA* the lady in front of us bought over $800 in lol pets/dolls! it was suspicious to say the least she told her daughter 1 was for her!

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They are still offering the TRU credit card on the website.



What happens if they close before the bill comes due?

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I had a Saturn when they were shutdown and they still wanted their money.

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