Macy’s is ready to welcome a new generation of Toys “R” Us kids to its stores in time for the holidays.
The partnership between two storied retailers is kicking into high gear thanks to an expanded pact between Macy’s Inc. and Toys “R” Us owner WHP Global that will see Toys “R” Us in-store shops open in every Macy’s store across the U.S. The expanded agreement ups the location count from the 400 stores initially announced last year.
Toys “R” Us will begin opening its store-within-a-store locations beginning later this month with the rollout set to be completed by Oct. 15. The size of each Toys “R” Us is market-dependent and will range from 1,000 square feet to 10,000 square feet at flagship locations in Atlanta, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, and San Francisco.
“Macy’s cannot wait to bring the Toys “R” Us experience to life in our stores,” says Nata Dvir, chief merchandising officer, Macy’s. “We hope Toys ”R” Us kids of all ages discover the joy of exploration and play within our shops and families create special memories together. The customer response to our partnership with Toys “R” Us has been incredible and our toy business has seen tremendous growth.”
Each Toys “R” Us location will feature colorful new fixtures and signage, and an assortment of hands-on demonstration tables for families to interact with new toys. Additionally, each location will include a life-size “Geoffrey on a Bench” photo op.
Throughout the holiday season, the footprint of Toys “R” Us stores may flex up to an additional 500 to 3,000 square feet to allow for additional inventory and hot products.
Toys “R” Us Macy’s Flagship Locations
- Lenox Square, Atlanta
- State Street, Chicago
- Ala Moana, Honolulu
- Memorial City, Houston
- South Coast Plaza, Los Angeles
- Aventura, Miami
- Dadeland, Miami
- Herald Square, New York City
- Roosevelt Field, New York City
- Union Square, San Francisco
- Valley Fair, San Jose
Last August, the Macy’s x Toys “R” Us partnership kicked off with Macy’s powering digital sales for Toys “R” Us. During the holiday season, an assortment of toys was available at Macy’s stores with cardboard standees of Geoffrey in place to alert families that a Toys “R” Us would be back in action for 2022.
By November, Macy’s reported that its toy sales had doubled, while first quarter earnings for this year reflected sales that were 15 times higher than Q1 2021, prior to the beginning of the Toys “R” Us partnership.
Macy’s previously partnered with Toys “R” Us for pop-up stores inside 24 Macy’s locations back in 2012 following an experiment with FAO Schwarz for pop-ups in 275 stores.
Under the leadership of WHP Global, a new, double-decker Toys “R” Us global flagship store operated under license by Brooklyn’s Toys 4 U opened at the American Dream mall in New Jersey just before Christmas last year. Toys “R” Us currently exists with more than 900 stores and e-commerce sites operating across 25 countries. Additional expansions are underway in the UK, Australia, and New Zealand.
