Photo: The Wall Street Journal
As part of its previously announced global expansion strategy, FAO Schwarz’s new 20,000-square-foot Rockefeller Center location is set to open in November.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the new store hopes to enhance the retail experience. This means the retailer will staff product demonstrators, magicians, and costumed characters in addition to traditional clerks.
The giant piano made famous by Tom Hanks in Big will also return, and the company is seeking dancers who can perform on it. The auditions for the store will begin September 8.
The New York store will be considered the FAO flagship, but ThreeSixty Group, the firm that acquired the FAO Schwarz brand, plans to open smaller versions of the store. One will open in LaGuardia Airport later this fall and another will open in China next year.
