According to USA Today, TRU is planning on a series of strategies to remain as a presence, including keeping Geoffrey the giraffe as its mascot, using pop up locations, and changing the name to Geoffrey's Toy Box. The full article here details further what is happening, including the short term business plan, and the presence of Solus Alternative Asset Management and Angelo Gordon funds behind the new company, plus some worker discontent at the latter, and how the new Geoffrey LLC owns the name for TRU and Babies R Us in all countries except Canada. Read more below!
They are also saying they hope to have pop-ups in place inside the stores of a regional mass merchant in time for the holidays, and to relaunch Toys R Us and Babies R Us stores down the road.
Geoffrey's Toy Box introduced itself to toy manufacturers and sellers Tuesday at the opening of the Dallas toy show, with an exhibit booth and a costumed Geoffrey mascot, who was spotted wearing a cape with the words "Back from Vacation." Toy manufacturers at the show were tweeting and posting on LinkedIn that they had spotted Geoffrey and Richard Barry, the former chief merchandising officer at Toys R Us who appears to be heading the new venture for the investors.
The new venture, for now, is being operated out of the Toys R Us headquarters building in Wayne, New Jersey, where a small number of former Toys R Us executives and employees continue to report to work.
