Toys R Us Could Be Making a Comeback

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www.cbr.com/toys-r-us-revived/

Nearly four months after packing his bags seemingly for good, it appears Geoffrey the Giraffe is readying for a comeback.

According to the Wall Street Journal, Toys R Us has opted to cancel its previously announced bankruptcy auction, which would have seen both the brand name and other intellectual property assets go up for sale. The surprising move comes approximately four months after the company closed all of its stores throughout the United States this past June. Instead, the company’s controlling lenders intend to try and revive the business, and with it the Toys R Us and Babies R Us brands.


The former retail giant apparently filled court papers yesterday that explained that, despite receiving “qualified bids for the assets,” — which would have included Geoffrey the Giraffe, registries and more – it has decided not to move forward with the auction. The reasoning for this decision is because the company’s controllers ultimately realized that despite the “qualified bids,” none of the bids would have served a superior alternative to the company’s revival plan.

Details regarding the company’s reorganization are currently sparse. However, court papers reveal the current plan is to have “a new, operating Toys ‘R’ Us and Babies ‘R’ Us branding company that maintains existing global license agreements and can invest in and create new, domestic, retail operating businesses” that will continue to operate under the brand name.


News that Toys R Us would be shuttering all 800 U.S. store first surfaced back in March of this year, with the company quickly confirming the reports.

Toys R Us was originally founded in 1948 at Children’s Discount Supermarts and was considered the “go-to” toy store for generations and was, undoubtedly, a cultural phenomenon — mainly thanks to Geoffrey the Giraffe.

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www.usatoday.com/story/money/business/2018/10/03/toys-r-us-comeback-new-name-but-same-mascot-geoffrey-remains/1507832002/

A Toys R Us comeback? New name, same mascot Geoffrey emerge in post-bankruptcy plan

Toys R Back?

Not quite, but the first signs of how the financial firms who carved up Toys R Us plan to resurrect the iconic brand from the ashes of its bankruptcy and liquidation have started to emerge.

The lenders who own a key piece of the old Toys R Us have revealed that they are keeping the corporate brand names and intellectual properties, including Geoffrey, the brand's giraffe mascot, and are dipping their toes back in the toy business with a wholesale venture called Geoffrey's Toy Box.

That new venture, for the time being, is being operated out of the Toys R Us headquarters building in Wayne, where a small number of former Toys R Us executives and employees continue to report to work.

Played a role in shutdown
Geoffrey, LLC, a subsidiary of Toys R Us that owns the companies intellectual property rights, and controlled by lender groups that provided financing during the bankruptcy and that have been criticized for the role they played in the shutdown, issued a press release late Tuesday saying it is working on a plan that could bring "new and re-imagined Toys R Us and Babies R Us stores" back to the United States.

Other players

The rise and fall of Toys R Us

Geoffrey's Toy Box also introduced itself to toy manufacturers and sellers Tuesday at the opening of the Dallas toy show, with an exhibit booth. The company describes itself in the show brochure as a "Wholesale toy distributor and intellectual property company whose focus is on popular play patterns across trusted brands that kids and parents love."

James Zahn, a toy reviewer and publisher of The Rock Father magazine reported Tuesday that a Geoffrey costumed mascot was roaming the aisles of the Dallas toy show wearing a cape with the words "Back From Vacation", with a sign advertising the Geoffrey Toy Box booth.

Zahn also noted that the Toys R Us Twitter account has recently been cleaned up, and all references to liquidation deleted.

Store partnerships

Trade publication The Toy Book reported Tuesday night that Richard Barry, the chief merchandising officer for the old Toys R Us, said that the new company is exploring "stores within stores" partnerships with large retailers. Barry's business card now has a Geoffrey's Toy Box logo.

Toys R Us opted to close all of its stores after lenders backing the bankruptcy financing said they had lost confidence in the company's reorganization plan. All of the stores closed by the end of June.

The lender group told the bankruptcy court in a document filed Monday that it had cancelled an auction for the brand names and intellectual properties that had been scheduled for Thursday. The group also said that while it had received bids for the properties, it believed that keeping the property rights and launching a branding business and possible retail operation would produce greater financial returns.

The group told the bankruptcy court it envisions "a new, operating Toys “R” Us and Babies “R” Us branding company that maintains existing global license agreements and can invest in and create new, domestic, retail operating businesses under the Toys “R” Us and Babies “R” Us names, as well as expand its international presence and further develop its private brands business."

Bloomberg News reported Tuesday that the Geoffrey LLC group includes the Solus Alternative Asset Management and Angelo Gordon funds. The brand names and intellectual property rights served as collateral to secure loans backed by the lender group.



Worker protests
Solus and Angelo Gordon has been criticized by worker groups for refusing to contribute to a fund for laid off Toys R Us employees. Workers appeared before the New Jersey State Investment Council last week to urge the state to withdraw its $300 million investment with Solus.

Geoffrey LLC owns the rights to more than 20 toy and baby brands Toys R Us sold as part of its private label merchandise, including Imaginarium, Koala Baby, Fastlane and Journey Girls. It could continue supplying those products on a wholesale basis.

It also owns the rights to the Toys R Us and Babies R Us names in all countries except for Canada, and baby and gift registries operated by the former company.

The Geoffrey LLC plan is subject to final approval by the bankruptcy court.

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money.cnn.com/2018/10/03/news/companies/toys-r-us-brand/index.html

Toys "R" Us may be coming back.
The company closed all of its US stores in June as part of a bankruptcy liquidation. But the owners of the company's remaining assets are looking into restarting the business, as well as the related Babies "R" Us brand, the company disclosed in a court filing this week.

Toys "R" Us had planned to auction off the rights to its name and the Babies "R" Us brand. Bidders had already made offers for them, according to the filing. But the company's owners decided to cancel the auction.

The company said it is considering "a new, operating Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us branding company," the filing said. The plan would "create new, domestic, retail operating businesses under the Toys "R" Us and Babies "R" Us names, as well as expand its international presence and further develop its private brands business."

The details of when and how the brand would be brought back to life were not disclosed.

The fact that other bidders were interested in buying the name doesn't necessarily mean that others were looking to bring it back to life. Companies often buy the brands of out-of-business competitors in bankruptcy court to make sure the brand can't be used again by a new rival. Details of who was looking to buy the Toys "R" Us brand also was not disclosed in the bankruptcy filing.

Toys "R" Us filed for bankruptcy a year ago, with the plans to use the reorganization process to shed debt and remain in business. But after a disastrously bad Christmas shopping season the company announced in March that it would close its remaining 800 US stores and go out of business.

That cost about 31,000 workers their jobs. The 70-year old retailer shut down in June.

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abc7chicago.com/business/toys-r-us-returns-new-owners-looking-to-bring-back-stores/4400835/

Toys 'R' Us returns? New owners looking to bring back stores

Just several months after retail giant Toys 'R' Us shuttered its operation and liquidated its stores, new owners are staging a comeback.

The Wall Street Journal first reported Tuesday that lenders who now own the iconic toy store have cancelled plans to auction off the company, according to a bankruptcy court filing acquired by the paper.

According to court papers filed Monday obtained by WSJ, while the company received qualified bids for assets, including the brand names of Toys 'R' Us, Babies 'R' Us, Geoffrey the Giraffe and the associated website domains, it has opted to forgo the bankruptcy auction.

In a press release, the company says it is moving forward with a plan for the assets to be acquired by a group of investors led by Geoffrey, LLC's existing secured lenders.

The transition of the business to its new owners is pending approval of the United States Bankruptcy Court.

So does this mean more Toys 'R' Us kids could soon be on the way?

The new owners of Geoffrey, LLC, say they are "actively working with potential partners to develop ideas for new Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us stores in the United States and abroad that could bring back these iconic brands in a new and re-imagined way."


Geoffrey LLC says "the reorganized company would control a portfolio of intellectual property that includes trademarks, ecommerce assets and data associated with the Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us businesses in the United States and all over the world, including a portfolio of over 20 well-known toy and baby brands such as Imaginarium, Koala Baby, Fastlane and Journey Girls."

The reorganized company would also own rights to the Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us brands globally, with the exception of Canada.

Back in June, low sales over recent years led to the closing of several stores, including the iconic flagship store in Times Square.


The company filed for bankruptcy in 2017, and in March 2018, the company announced that all 740 of its U.S. store would be closing.
The closing was attributed to a poor holiday sales performance, a shift to more play time on mobile devices and competition from online and discount stores.