Named Tru Kids, the new company, like its predecessor, is headquartered in New Jersey, with an undisclosed number of former Toys 'R' Us employees. Tru Kids is essentially the new parent company of Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us and also owns the rights to mascot Geoffrey the Giraffe and dozens of Toys 'R' Us toy brands.
Tru Kids will be led by Richard Barry, the former global chief merchandising officer at Toys 'R' Us, who will serve as president and CEO along with an experienced management team that includes several other former Toys 'R' Us executives.
A statement released by Tru Kids states that Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us generated over $3 billion in global retail sales in 2018 through more than 900 stores and e-commerce businesses in 30+ countries across Asia, Europe, Africa and the Middle East. In the U.S., Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us continue to have strong brand affinity and loyalty with more than 9.5 million followers across their social media channels.
"Despite unprecedented efforts to capture the U.S. market share this past holiday season, there is still a significant gap and huge consumer demand for the trusted experience that Toys 'R' Us and Babies 'R' Us delivers," said Richard Barry, president and CEO of Tru Kids.
"We have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to write the next chapter of Toys 'R' Us by launching a newly imagined omnichannel retail experience for our beloved brands here in the U.S. In addition, our strong global footprint is led by experienced and passionate operating teams that are 100% focused on growth."
Toys 'R' Us liquidated its operations in the U.S., U.K., Australia and other regions last year after failing to emerge from bankruptcy. Tru Kids plans to open 70 stores this year in Asia, Europe and India. It will also have a domestic plan for the U.S. and place a large emphasis on growing the brand in the United States, but the details haven’t yet been announced.
