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Aw man, I've just rediscovered this place with our 9 month old son. Was looking forward to going there as he grew up. Hopefully they can work out some sort of restructuring..
That is to say: your son will be just as happy with something you two might find or make together.
It really is unfortunate that stores I grew up with as a kid, ones like KB Toys, Montgomery Wards, Service Merchandise, Blockbuster, Kmart/Sears, and now even Toys"R"Us have gone by the wayside for one reason or another. It both depresses me and blows my mind that future generations may not even be able to experience Brick and Mortar.
Do we really want our kids to enjoy fluorescent-lit warehouses full of cheap crap that will be thrown away a couple months after it's bought?
Of course if they didn't let me play with the stuff and instead made me keep it in the box on the shelf, I'd be wealthier today.
Take the same building, reduce the space dedicated to toy sales, open up a series of indoor playgrounds and gymnasiums. Heck maybe carve out a daycare facility. Maybe some sort of toy lab for kids to try before they buy. Refocus the concept on being a real place for kids to grow and I think you'd see customers coming in the door again.
It sounds like from reading relevant articles it's not so much business model as staggering debt loads from being taken private that is hurting the company. They have no money to do anything with right now.
Can someone explain why it would be loaded up with debt on going private?
It really is unfortunate that stores I grew up with as a kid, ones like KB Toys, Montgomery Wards, Service Merchandise, Blockbuster, Kmart/Sears, and now even Toys"R"Us have gone by the wayside for one reason or another. It both depresses me and blows my mind that future generations may not even be able to experience Brick and Mortar.
Do we really want our kids to enjoy fluorescent-lit warehouses full of cheap crap that will be thrown away a couple months after it's bought?
It's a game of "what-ifs", but I'm fairly confident in saying I wouldn't be pursuing the career I am now if I had never had the experiences of walking down the Lego aisle at the toy store and falling in love with piecing together toy cities.
Aw man, I've just rediscovered this place with our 9 month old son. Was looking forward to going there as he grew up. Hopefully they can work out some sort of restructuring..
Most kids are just as happy playing with the wrapping paper as with the toy inside. That is to say: your son will be just as happy with something you two might find or make together.
Can someone explain why it would be loaded up with debt on going private?
This is a variant of the 80s era stuff in the movie Wall St. When WalMart was expanding regional players like Ames, Jamesway, etc would do this. You could tell when it was happening because the stores would be stuffed to the brim with stuff before the bankruptcy.
Take the same building, reduce the space dedicated to toy sales, open up a series of indoor playgrounds and gymnasiums. Heck maybe carve out a daycare facility. Maybe some sort of toy lab for kids to try before they buy. Refocus the concept on being a real place for kids to grow and I think you'd see customers coming in the door again.
Take the same building, reduce the space dedicated to toy sales, open up a series of indoor playgrounds and gymnasiums. Heck maybe carve out a daycare facility. Maybe some sort of toy lab for kids to try before they buy. Refocus the concept on being a real place for kids to grow and I think you'd see customers coming in the door again.
A place to try before you buy on amazon.
I feel like this was a failed approach to this idea.
That said, the try-before-you-buy combined for a primarily eCommerce company with a playground for kids approach makes a lot of sense to me. But I'm doubtful it transfers well to other submarkets. Unless they are living (but welcoming) examples of say a fashion lookbook or home furniture example displays by interior designers, similar to what Ikea has in half their maze-like suburban stores.
Can someone explain why it would be loaded up with debt on going private?
Note - not all PE firms do this (big or small) but it is a common strategy that does earn them money.