Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't know why you're being down voted. For better or worse, this is common child behavior now.
I am curious: how to downvote in HN?
At some Karma threshold (might be 500?) you get a downvote button on comments.
Toys ‘R’ Us Didn’t Have to Die
111–120 of 226 posts
Re: Toys ‘R’ Us Didn’t Have to Die
#112Bloomberg made a really nice 80-esque adventure game where you're the manager of a mall:
https://www.bloomberg.com/features/american-mall-game/
Re: Toys ‘R’ Us Didn’t Have to Die
#113I read the whole article, and I didn't really see a convincing argument that it didn't have to die. Sure, it could have eked out a few more years... but it was living on borrowed time. Not only do most people shop online now, most toys are also online. I imagine most parents put money into TV shows, video games, iPhone apps, etc.
There's nothing about the brick & mortar toy space that's inherently living on borrowed time. It was Toys 'R' Us' own mismanagement that doomed it. Toy stores can be a destination. Provide a compelling experience for parents and kids alike. It's easy to imagine a space where kids get to play with toys hands-on, and parents get to judge for themselves whether they think they're appropriate in terms of fun and quality—…
Hamley's (in London) seems to have nailed the whole "destination" thing, and I think it's largely because it treats the adults as bigger, hairier kids.
Re: Toys ‘R’ Us Didn’t Have to Die
#114Earlier quoted context omitted.
Ok, that explains the US situation. Of my local situation, probably the explanation is because on a 30km radius there are not really any other shopping malls ( space being filled with cows on green pastures :) ).
It's not just your town. I live in Dresden, which already has one of the highest "shop space per capita" values in Germany, and while they've stopped opening new malls in the city (out of sheer lack of space), every new building adds more shop space. In some places, it takes just 5 minutes to walk from one Rewe branch to the next one. (Context: Rewe is a German supermarket chain. There are about 5 nation-wide superma…
FWIW I think a big reason for this is also rent control. In Austria for instance many stores can't afford existing units because the moment a old store moves out the rent increases 10 fold. So many old stores remain in prime locations because for them still cheap rent exists and they sell old radios or similar things there because based on their rent this model still works whereas if the store were to close and be re-opened under a new owner they would not be able to continue that business model any more. These artificially low rents keep many stores afloat that would otherwise already have closed.
Re: Toys ‘R’ Us Didn’t Have to Die
#115and the morale of the story is, dont let your business get taken over by a bunch of vultures fueled by a lot of debt. unless you like seeing it die a slow death, that is.
Re: Toys ‘R’ Us Didn’t Have to Die
#116Earlier quoted context omitted.
Wild guess: Dropping the rents would prompt their remaining tenants to renegotiate their contracts.
Maybe. It's just strange as I've seen large % of commercial areas stay empty, they keep up the place, but almost nothing in the spaces, for years.
They can borrow against the property at the stated rent instead of what the market would actually pay. As soon as they accept lower rents they can no longer claim it's worth as much in collateral.
Re: Toys ‘R’ Us Didn’t Have to Die
#117Earlier quoted context omitted.
There's nothing about the brick & mortar toy space that's inherently living on borrowed time. It was Toys 'R' Us' own mismanagement that doomed it. Toy stores can be a destination. Provide a compelling experience for parents and kids alike. It's easy to imagine a space where kids get to play with toys hands-on, and parents get to judge for themselves whether they think they're appropriate in terms of fun and quality—…
Hamley's (in London) seems to have nailed the whole "destination" thing, and I think it's largely because it treats the adults as bigger, hairier kids.
I'm a grown ass man and I'd legit be excited to go to Hamley's.
Re: Toys ‘R’ Us Didn’t Have to Die
#118Do anyone know how FAO Schwarz is doing? This is also a huge destination-location in New York that sells toys.
Manhattan location closed a few years ago.
Re: Toys ‘R’ Us Didn’t Have to Die
#119Earlier quoted context omitted.
You're missing the key piece: Toys R Us didn't go into debt for any good business reason, it was bought by a private equity firm and loaded with debt it didn't need. This is how private equity works: 1. A PE firm uses a combination of other people's money (limited partners a.k.a investors) and debt to buy a company. 2. The PE transfers the debt to the company's books. This way, if the company goes bankrupt the PE fun…
Why is this legal?
Why wouldn't it be? Did the PE firm force someone to issue debt for a worthless business? I would hold the lender responsible for due diligence.
Re: Toys ‘R’ Us Didn’t Have to Die
#120Earlier quoted context omitted.
Why is this legal?
Free market and all this stuff. Also a similar "technique" (LBO to be exact) was used to break down a giant company into smaller companies, effectively shutting down monopolies at the expense of a small number of workers, often making big gain for investors. With the failure of RBR Nabisco LBO, investors think twice about this kind of venture nowaday. If Toys'R US failure could cost the investors a bulk of money, may…
> Free market and all this stuff.
But in a truly free market, I think there should be no protection against bankruptcy. I mean, the government is protecting the PE firm from creditors.