- The company
- Over its
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Toys R Us fans are mourning the death of the store — take a look back at what it was like in its heyday
With Toys R Us preparing to close for good in the US, fans are reminiscing about their favorite memories. Take a look back at what it was like in its heyday.
As Toys R Us nears its end, fans of the store are lamenting its demise.
The retailer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in September and officially filed for liquidation early Thursday. As a result, Toys R Us will soon close or sell its more than 700 stores across the US.
The store has been saddled with debt since a leveraged buyout in 2005 and struggled to keep up with competitors.
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Though many Toys R Us fans were aware of this, they're still heartbroken to see it go.
In 1948 in Washington, DC, Charles Lazarus opened a baby-furniture store that would become the first Toys R Us after expanding into toys in 1957.
In the 1990s, Toys R Us was the biggest toy seller in the US, expanding rapidly as it pushed out smaller chains. But by 1998, things had changed, and Walmart began selling more toys than Toys R Us in the US — a signal of more trouble ahead.
Take a look back at what Toys R Us was like in its heyday:
As Toys R Us prepares to close its doors for good, fans are lamenting the death of the chain and looking back on their favorite childhood memories.
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This is what a store in New Jersey looked like in 1996.
It had everything a kid could want. This photo from 2001 shows the Imaginarium section of a New Jersey store.
It had seemingly endless aisles, lined with dolls ...
... toys ...
... and bikes. It was the perfect place to test them before buying.
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The Toys R Us "Big Toy Book" was filled with ads like this one for GI Joe ...
... or this one for the Nintendo 64.
They could all be purchased with Geoffrey Dollars, the equivalent of store credit or a gift card.
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Geoffrey Dollars were named after the "spokes-animal" of the store, Geoffrey the Giraffe. Here's how he's changed over the years.
Fans everywhere are mourning the end of Toys R Us.
Parents are having a hard time telling their kids that their favorite store is closing ...
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... and teens are having a hard time letting go.
People of all ages are sad to see the store go.
Some referenced the memorable song heard in early Toys R Us commercials.
Others mentioned their favorite toys.
The end of Toys R Us has fans wishing it weren't true.
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More on Toys R Us demise:
- Here's why Toys R Us couldn't be saved
- Toys R Us will close or sell all of its US stores
- Toys R Us is closing all its US stores — and blowout clearance sales could begin within weeks
- Toys R Us gift cards will expire in 30 days
- These companies will be the biggest winners when Toys R Us closes its stores
- We visited one of the last Toys R Us stores to open — here's what it looked like
- Toys R Us says a 'perfect storm' killed the toy chain — and it blames Amazon, Walmart, and Target
- Babies R Us stores will close — here's what will happen to baby registries
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