Geoffrey Giraffe is seen on the side of a Toys “R” Us truck March 17, 2005 in Colma, California.
Justin Sullivan | Getty Images
Toys R Us has a new owner – again.
Brand management company WHP Global announced on Monday that it has acquired a controlling stake in Tru Kids, the parent company of the Toys R Us, Babies R Us and Geoffrey brands, the Giraffe brand.
“We are in the field of the brand, and Toys R Us is the most credible, reliable and beloved toy brand in the world,” Yehuda Shmidman, president and CEO of WHP, said in an interview. “We come from a year when toys are just on fire … And for Toys R Us, the US is really an empty canvas.”
Shmidman has been Vice President of Tru Kids since 2019. Tru Kids, supported by Solus Alternative Asset Management and funds managed by private equity group Ares Management, bought the trademarks and intellectual property from Toys R Us after applying for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September 2017. Toys R Us ultimately failed to come out of bankruptcy on its own after a crippling 2017 holiday season, pushing it into liquidation.
Tru Kids has tried a number of strategies to boost momentum since then, including opening two pop-up locations in the United States using the b8ta technical platform. But those closed earlier this year due to poor mall traffic, which was suppressed especially during the Covid pandemic. For a while, the big-box retailer of the Toys R Us website powered the target. Currently, all purchases on ToysRUs.com are redirected to Amazon.
“The restructuring has affected the company a lot,” Shmidman said. “And then Covid is, hopefully, once a century. But now we’re overcoming those two things. And the sky is the limit.”
In the future, WHP has stated that it will manage the global Tru Kids business and guide its expansion. Toys R Us and Babies R Us together have over 900 branded stores in over 25 countries – in parts of Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and the Middle East.
In North America, Shmidman said the plan is to reopen Toys R Us stores – ideally, a number before this holiday season. He said this could come in a variety of formats: flagships, pop-ups, airport locations or mini-shops in other retailers’ shops. WHP has not yet set a number for how many locations it intends to open in the US
“There are so many malls that won’t be there in the future, so we don’t need to be there,” Shmidman said. “But we could be in malls with traffic. … So we really have an opportunity not only to capture that experience for the toys that people want, but also to capture them where [people] I want to buy. It will be very interesting after Covid. “
WHP is backed by a $ 350 million capital commitment from funds managed by Oaktree Capital Management.
The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.