For the past few weeks, we have been talking about the retailing environment and retail store strategy for Toys R Us.
So for this week, we will be sharing about how category management works for Toys R Us.
So what is category management?
Category Management is a business practice by which a retailer plans its strategy on a product-category level rather than on a brand by-brand basis. As for Toys 'R Us, products are grouped into commonly understood categories such as educational toys, sports & outdoor, or more broadly, by gender.
One main objective of Category Management is to assess consumer demand at the category level and stock store shelves in a way that best reflects that demand. Once the Category Manager determines who shops at the targeted retailer and what products those consumers wish to purchase, they can design the category appropriately.
Countless variables influence consumer purchasing decisions, and Category Management focuses on those that a retailer can most effectively leverage to drive sales.
The four main decision points, or components, of Category Management are choosing the most appropriate assortment, placement, pricing, and promotion of products
carried at the store level.
Through focus on these four components, Category Management has transformed the way grocers sell consumer products. What was once trial and error is now a sophisticated marketing science. Consumer desires, behaviors, values, beliefs, social norms, and preferences are closely studied and analyzed. The findings from these studies are then reflected not only in the features of the products consumers purchase, but in the layout and design of supermarkets as well. The resulting product assortment, price, promotion, and placement have a dramatic effect on consumer decisions at the point of purchase.
Because Category Management strategy and implementation is critical to a retailer’s success and profit-maximizing performance , it may be surprising to learn that some retailers rely heavily upon manufacturers to make these decisions for them.
With category management, it can helps to analyze the store needs and offer recommendations services. For each product category, the retailer can produce a planogram for the display of the products.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
Week 4
Target market:
Toys For Different Ages
Toys R US carries a number of different products to suit the play needs of children.
Babies (0-12 months) :
Rattles, squeaky toys, ball, chimes and bells.
Toddlers (1-3 years) :
Pull along toys, soft toys, dolls, finger paints and large crayons.
Pre-school (3-5 years) :
Hand puppets, construction kits, train sets and puzzles.
5 years onwards :
As well as all the toys listed above, bat and ball games, pencil sets, colouring kits, craft and hobby kits and musical instruments.
ALL Ages: Will benefit from appropriate leaning and developmental toys but do remember they also need to just have fun! Action figures, play-sets, games and collectibles as well as radio controlled and out-door toys.
We have observed that the current trend is towards electronic toys and computer assisted learning with many of these highly developed to attract children.
Therefore, sales of traditional toys and games have been relatively static over the last ten years in real terms.
However, we feel that the popularity of toys will never fade as toys also follows film and TV trends with Licenses launching spin-off merchandise. With a growing cable and satellite television markets, we expect the popularity of toys to remain high and the target market to increase as demonstrated by the success of many top selling toys.
While very few children buy their own larger toys, we feel that today’s affluent pre-teens would be able to influence their parents to buy the toys they like, and if a product doesn’t deliver they simply won’t be interested.
We think that as children are becoming richer and more sophisticated they may grow out of toys – or at least see them as childish - more quickly than they did some years ago. To accommodate this phenomenon, toys should be reworked to track pre-teen fashions trends and adult interests especially sport and technology.
From our observations, we feel that the industry is much more consumer-orientated towards children even though parents were once viewed as the customers in the toy market.
However, with the significant rise in the number of working mothers, and a similar growth in the average age of women having their first child. These factors indicate that parents are, on the whole, more financially able to provide for their children and also see educational progress as very important. The elderly population is also expected to continue rising, and as many are in a higher socio-economic bracket, this could cause an increase in gift purchases for grandchildren.
Retail format:
* Kids "Я" Us - A store chain no longer operating independently, Kids "R" Us deals in children clothing. Kids "R" Us stores now are co-branded with some Toys "R" Us stores, located inside most Toys "R" Us locations. Kids "R" Us is also the brand name label of kids' clothing found at the Geoffrey Stores. One of the Kids "R" Us locations was found at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota.
* Babies "Я" Us - Superstores specializing in clothing, furniture, toys and other accessories for babies.
* Bikes "Я" Us - Bike store inside Toys "R" Us (UK only)
* Geoffrey's Toys "R" Us/Geoffrey - Retailtainment stores named for Toys "R" Us' mascot Geoffrey the Giraffe, offering toys, juvenile merchandise, and children apparel all in one location. Other features include a "Studio G" activity center. Mostly found in the American Midwest, but are also found in Texas, Mississippi, and North Carolina. The first store under the "Geoffrey" banner opened in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, but eventually closed because of poor sales figures. Two other remaining Geoffrey's Toys "R" Us stores in Wisconsin still exist in nearby markets, such as the Northeast Wisconsin market. Other locations include Louisville, Kentucky, San Antonio and Austin, Texas. Each location had a playground at the front of the store. These stores are currently in the process of being reverted back to regular Toys "R" Us stores as of spring 2008, although the name still remains.
* Toys "R" Us Toy Box (introduced in 2003) - This version of Toys "R" Us is found in Albertsons, Giant, Jewel-Osco supermarkets, and stores in Hong Kong, Philippines and Singapore.
* Toys "R" Us KidsWorld - A toy superstore format introduced in 1996. Stores were built in Elizabeth, New Jersey(which was remodeled into a Toys "R" US/Babies "R" Us Superstore), and Fairfax, Virginia (which was remodeled in 2006 into a standard Toys "R" Us).
* Toys "R" Us/Kids "R" Us - co-branded stores found in markets not served by the Geoffrey Stores.
* Toys "R" Us Express - mini store version of Toys "R" Us, found inside Asian stores. (Hong Kong, Macau, Malaysia, Taiwan (Republic of China), and other)
* Imaginarium - An independent chain of kids toy stores with a focus on learning toys, located mostly in malls was bought by Toys "R" Us in 1999. Its mascots were Cosmo (a purple puppy) and Professor Fun. When most of the Toys "R" Us stores were remodeled, their layouts were redesigned to included an Imaginarium department.
* Studio Alice- Found inside Toys "R" Us in Japan.
KidsWorld megastore- at 95,000 square feet located off the New Jersey Turnpike.
The second Kids World store, an 85,000-sq.-ft. unit, opened on Nov. 23 in Fairfax, Va., and a third store is slated to open next year inn Nyack, N.Y., in a mall now under construction.
We think that this new store format is part of Toys "R" Us' revival efforts in the wake of mounting competition from discount department store operators, particularly Wal-Mart.
The new Kidsworld store is a one-stop-shopping emporium combining Toys "R" Us, Babies "R" Us and Kids "R" Us. The store is expected to produce $30 million in sales per unit, compared to $10 million to $12 million for a traditional 45,000-square feet Toy R US store. The floor space is divided this way: 44% TRU, 19% BRU, 17% Kids "R" Us, 10% leased space and 10% common areas such as aisles and restrooms.
The store features an impressive array of toys, apparel and juvenile products in a cavernous building with a ceiling that soars more than 30 ft. high. Music, at times playing too loudly, sets an upbeat mood for the well lit store. Sculptures of children enjoying activities such as climbing a castle and Geoffrey in an airplane set the stage for the fun-filled environment.
The feeling in the store is one of spaciousness and abundance. The merchandise is organized into 25 departments, such as girls' and boys' clothing, preschool toys, infant care, baby furniture, cars and trucks and a learning center. The color scheme in the store is in child-friendly primary colors. The ceiling is open and painted white; the racetrack is in yellow and blue tiles, and the carpeted areas in apparel and baby furniture are in blue. The store's merchandise aisles feature white tile with blue and green accents.
KidsWorld also features special service areas including Cartoon Cuts, a hair salon for children 12 and under; where kids can watch videos while getting their hair cut; Focus Pocus, a kid-oriented photography studio targeted to mothers with children 6 years old and under; Fuzziwig's Candy Factory, a self-serve, bulk candy store with sweets priced at $6.99 per pound; and Jeepers!Jr. a themed indoor family restaurant and entertainment area featuring Pizza Hut pizza and other menu items. The entertainment portion of Jeeper!Jr includes a soft play area, rides, costumed characters and birthday party opportunities, and Kids Foot Locker. There is also a carousel for children to ride.
Special features of the store include:
* An information center is located in the middle of the store with at least one bilingual associate on premises at all times.
* Eight information stations with phones, video screens and store directory to help direct customers are on hand.
* A computerized baby and gift registry that soon will be integrated throughout the Toys "R" Us organization.
* Four-color lifestyle photos dress the walls.
* Aisles are named and outfitted with appropriate lighted icons. In Babies, for example, the icon is a three dimensional baby bottle with a car seat. The action figure aisle is identified by two superheroes.
* In the Big Barbie area, some dolls run as high as $500. The area includes a 15-ft. Barbie collector section under glass. The area also features other dolls in try-me glass cases to highlight their features. In boys' toys, a spinning Hot Wheels endcap displays the full range of available cars.
* Decals of toys and licensed properties, such as Cabbage Patch, Hot Wheels and Sky Dancers, adorn the floor.
* A bike shop presentation features 15 major manufacturers and a see-through bike assembly area.
* Electronics is divided by system, making it easier on shoppers to find their way. Software is positioned adjacent to the accompanying hardware.
* The play set area features a soft foam floor so children can test the equipment without risk of injury from a fall.
* A Warner Bros. shop is featured at the front of the store.
Sustainable competitive advantage:
Definition of Sustainable Competitive Advantage (SCA)
If a company makes a profit in excess of its Cost of Capital, it is probably able to do so because it has achieved a Competitive Position that offers some kind of an 'edge' over its current or potential rivals. To achieve such a temporary competitive edge is hard to do, and typically takes the successful formulation and execution of a business strategy. The 3 factors that can provide such a Competitive Advantage were famously described by Porter:
- Cost Leadership
- Differentiation, and
- Focus.
But to develop a competitive advantage into a sustainable competitive advantage is even harder to do, because this means that the company must possess value creating things or capabilities that cannot be duplicated or imitated by other firms (Competitive Defend ability), nor can they be made redundant by developments in the environment (Environmental Consonance).
Toys"R"Us’s sustainable competitive advantages
Toys"R"Us is positioned as "the worldwide authority on kids, families and fun". It is the largest child-related product specialty chain store in the world. And Toys"R"Us believes in providing a happy shopping experience to customers with the biggest selection of toys and baby products priced to offer best value for money.
Therefore, Toys"R"Us’s sustainable competitive advantage can be defined as the prolonged benefit of formulating and implementing the unique value-creating strategy not simultaneously being implemented by any current or potential competitors along with the inability to duplicate or imitate the benefits of this strategy and the absence of threatening market developments.
Toys For Different Ages
Toys R US carries a number of different products to suit the play needs of children.
Babies (0-12 months) :
Rattles, squeaky toys, ball, chimes and bells.
Toddlers (1-3 years) :
Pull along toys, soft toys, dolls, finger paints and large crayons.
Pre-school (3-5 years) :
Hand puppets, construction kits, train sets and puzzles.
5 years onwards :
As well as all the toys listed above, bat and ball games, pencil sets, colouring kits, craft and hobby kits and musical instruments.
ALL Ages: Will benefit from appropriate leaning and developmental toys but do remember they also need to just have fun! Action figures, play-sets, games and collectibles as well as radio controlled and out-door toys.
We have observed that the current trend is towards electronic toys and computer assisted learning with many of these highly developed to attract children.
Therefore, sales of traditional toys and games have been relatively static over the last ten years in real terms.
However, we feel that the popularity of toys will never fade as toys also follows film and TV trends with Licenses launching spin-off merchandise. With a growing cable and satellite television markets, we expect the popularity of toys to remain high and the target market to increase as demonstrated by the success of many top selling toys.
While very few children buy their own larger toys, we feel that today’s affluent pre-teens would be able to influence their parents to buy the toys they like, and if a product doesn’t deliver they simply won’t be interested.
We think that as children are becoming richer and more sophisticated they may grow out of toys – or at least see them as childish - more quickly than they did some years ago. To accommodate this phenomenon, toys should be reworked to track pre-teen fashions trends and adult interests especially sport and technology.
From our observations, we feel that the industry is much more consumer-orientated towards children even though parents were once viewed as the customers in the toy market.
However, with the significant rise in the number of working mothers, and a similar growth in the average age of women having their first child. These factors indicate that parents are, on the whole, more financially able to provide for their children and also see educational progress as very important. The elderly population is also expected to continue rising, and as many are in a higher socio-economic bracket, this could cause an increase in gift purchases for grandchildren.
Retail format:
* Kids "Я" Us - A store chain no longer operating independently, Kids "R" Us deals in children clothing. Kids "R" Us stores now are co-branded with some Toys "R" Us stores, located inside most Toys "R" Us locations. Kids "R" Us is also the brand name label of kids' clothing found at the Geoffrey Stores. One of the Kids "R" Us locations was found at the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota.
* Babies "Я" Us - Superstores specializing in clothing, furniture, toys and other accessories for babies.
* Bikes "Я" Us - Bike store inside Toys "R" Us (UK only)
* Geoffrey's Toys "R" Us/Geoffrey - Retailtainment stores named for Toys "R" Us' mascot Geoffrey the Giraffe, offering toys, juvenile merchandise, and children apparel all in one location. Other features include a "Studio G" activity center. Mostly found in the American Midwest, but are also found in Texas, Mississippi, and North Carolina. The first store under the "Geoffrey" banner opened in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, but eventually closed because of poor sales figures. Two other remaining Geoffrey's Toys "R" Us stores in Wisconsin still exist in nearby markets, such as the Northeast Wisconsin market. Other locations include Louisville, Kentucky, San Antonio and Austin, Texas. Each location had a playground at the front of the store. These stores are currently in the process of being reverted back to regular Toys "R" Us stores as of spring 2008, although the name still remains.
* Toys "R" Us Toy Box (introduced in 2003) - This version of Toys "R" Us is found in Albertsons, Giant, Jewel-Osco supermarkets, and stores in Hong Kong, Philippines and Singapore.
* Toys "R" Us KidsWorld - A toy superstore format introduced in 1996. Stores were built in Elizabeth, New Jersey(which was remodeled into a Toys "R" US/Babies "R" Us Superstore), and Fairfax, Virginia (which was remodeled in 2006 into a standard Toys "R" Us).
* Toys "R" Us/Kids "R" Us - co-branded stores found in markets not served by the Geoffrey Stores.
* Toys "R" Us Express - mini store version of Toys "R" Us, found inside Asian stores. (Hong Kong, Macau, Malaysia, Taiwan (Republic of China), and other)
* Imaginarium - An independent chain of kids toy stores with a focus on learning toys, located mostly in malls was bought by Toys "R" Us in 1999. Its mascots were Cosmo (a purple puppy) and Professor Fun. When most of the Toys "R" Us stores were remodeled, their layouts were redesigned to included an Imaginarium department.
* Studio Alice- Found inside Toys "R" Us in Japan.
KidsWorld megastore- at 95,000 square feet located off the New Jersey Turnpike.
The second Kids World store, an 85,000-sq.-ft. unit, opened on Nov. 23 in Fairfax, Va., and a third store is slated to open next year inn Nyack, N.Y., in a mall now under construction.
We think that this new store format is part of Toys "R" Us' revival efforts in the wake of mounting competition from discount department store operators, particularly Wal-Mart.
The new Kidsworld store is a one-stop-shopping emporium combining Toys "R" Us, Babies "R" Us and Kids "R" Us. The store is expected to produce $30 million in sales per unit, compared to $10 million to $12 million for a traditional 45,000-square feet Toy R US store. The floor space is divided this way: 44% TRU, 19% BRU, 17% Kids "R" Us, 10% leased space and 10% common areas such as aisles and restrooms.
The store features an impressive array of toys, apparel and juvenile products in a cavernous building with a ceiling that soars more than 30 ft. high. Music, at times playing too loudly, sets an upbeat mood for the well lit store. Sculptures of children enjoying activities such as climbing a castle and Geoffrey in an airplane set the stage for the fun-filled environment.
The feeling in the store is one of spaciousness and abundance. The merchandise is organized into 25 departments, such as girls' and boys' clothing, preschool toys, infant care, baby furniture, cars and trucks and a learning center. The color scheme in the store is in child-friendly primary colors. The ceiling is open and painted white; the racetrack is in yellow and blue tiles, and the carpeted areas in apparel and baby furniture are in blue. The store's merchandise aisles feature white tile with blue and green accents.
KidsWorld also features special service areas including Cartoon Cuts, a hair salon for children 12 and under; where kids can watch videos while getting their hair cut; Focus Pocus, a kid-oriented photography studio targeted to mothers with children 6 years old and under; Fuzziwig's Candy Factory, a self-serve, bulk candy store with sweets priced at $6.99 per pound; and Jeepers!Jr. a themed indoor family restaurant and entertainment area featuring Pizza Hut pizza and other menu items. The entertainment portion of Jeeper!Jr includes a soft play area, rides, costumed characters and birthday party opportunities, and Kids Foot Locker. There is also a carousel for children to ride.
Special features of the store include:
* An information center is located in the middle of the store with at least one bilingual associate on premises at all times.
* Eight information stations with phones, video screens and store directory to help direct customers are on hand.
* A computerized baby and gift registry that soon will be integrated throughout the Toys "R" Us organization.
* Four-color lifestyle photos dress the walls.
* Aisles are named and outfitted with appropriate lighted icons. In Babies, for example, the icon is a three dimensional baby bottle with a car seat. The action figure aisle is identified by two superheroes.
* In the Big Barbie area, some dolls run as high as $500. The area includes a 15-ft. Barbie collector section under glass. The area also features other dolls in try-me glass cases to highlight their features. In boys' toys, a spinning Hot Wheels endcap displays the full range of available cars.
* Decals of toys and licensed properties, such as Cabbage Patch, Hot Wheels and Sky Dancers, adorn the floor.
* A bike shop presentation features 15 major manufacturers and a see-through bike assembly area.
* Electronics is divided by system, making it easier on shoppers to find their way. Software is positioned adjacent to the accompanying hardware.
* The play set area features a soft foam floor so children can test the equipment without risk of injury from a fall.
* A Warner Bros. shop is featured at the front of the store.
Sustainable competitive advantage:
Definition of Sustainable Competitive Advantage (SCA)
If a company makes a profit in excess of its Cost of Capital, it is probably able to do so because it has achieved a Competitive Position that offers some kind of an 'edge' over its current or potential rivals. To achieve such a temporary competitive edge is hard to do, and typically takes the successful formulation and execution of a business strategy. The 3 factors that can provide such a Competitive Advantage were famously described by Porter:
- Cost Leadership
- Differentiation, and
- Focus.
But to develop a competitive advantage into a sustainable competitive advantage is even harder to do, because this means that the company must possess value creating things or capabilities that cannot be duplicated or imitated by other firms (Competitive Defend ability), nor can they be made redundant by developments in the environment (Environmental Consonance).
Toys"R"Us’s sustainable competitive advantages
Toys"R"Us is positioned as "the worldwide authority on kids, families and fun". It is the largest child-related product specialty chain store in the world. And Toys"R"Us believes in providing a happy shopping experience to customers with the biggest selection of toys and baby products priced to offer best value for money.
Therefore, Toys"R"Us’s sustainable competitive advantage can be defined as the prolonged benefit of formulating and implementing the unique value-creating strategy not simultaneously being implemented by any current or potential competitors along with the inability to duplicate or imitate the benefits of this strategy and the absence of threatening market developments.
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Week 3
Toys R Us is classified under Category Killer.
The assortment for Toys R Us are toys that caters for children and adults.
From our observations, we feel that the challenges for Toys R Us are:
1. Limited customer service resources - We do not see sales personnel on the sales floor assisting customers throughout the shopping process. We feel that this would pose as a threat to Toys R Us as any similar competitor in the market can improve on this aspect and catch up or overtake them.
Recommendations
We feel that as advising customers is an essential part of the job, staff should be friendly and approachable with a basic knowledge of children’s play for various age groups. This should cover exploratory, constructive, energetic, modeling, pretend, social and skillful play. It is also important to have a genuine love of children, endless patience, tolerance, energy and a sense of humour.
In US and the UK, there are other toy stores providing fierce competition and they are The Entertainer, Hamleys and the Early Learning Centre. Supermarkets also encroach on the sector, with Asda and Tesco strong in toys and games while some department stores also have major stocks of toys, eg House of Fraser and John Lewis.
2. Another challenge that we feel is threatening Toys R Us is the ability to maintain its brand image across all its channels of distribution and whether they can sustain their position as the leader in the toy industry.
The assortment for Toys R Us are toys that caters for children and adults.
From our observations, we feel that the challenges for Toys R Us are:
1. Limited customer service resources - We do not see sales personnel on the sales floor assisting customers throughout the shopping process. We feel that this would pose as a threat to Toys R Us as any similar competitor in the market can improve on this aspect and catch up or overtake them.
Recommendations
We feel that as advising customers is an essential part of the job, staff should be friendly and approachable with a basic knowledge of children’s play for various age groups. This should cover exploratory, constructive, energetic, modeling, pretend, social and skillful play. It is also important to have a genuine love of children, endless patience, tolerance, energy and a sense of humour.
In US and the UK, there are other toy stores providing fierce competition and they are The Entertainer, Hamleys and the Early Learning Centre. Supermarkets also encroach on the sector, with Asda and Tesco strong in toys and games while some department stores also have major stocks of toys, eg House of Fraser and John Lewis.
2. Another challenge that we feel is threatening Toys R Us is the ability to maintain its brand image across all its channels of distribution and whether they can sustain their position as the leader in the toy industry.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Welcome!!
In this blog, we will be blogging stuffs related to retailing.
And this blog will be updated on a weekly basics.
Enjoy!
We have decided to choose Toys "R" Us as our retail format. It is a category specialist as it offers toys of all variety and prevents competition from stores like the toy department of other department stores.
A brief introduction of Toys "R" Us
Toys "R" Us was founded in 1948(Washington, D.C., U.S.) as a Children's Supermarket and only in 1957 (Rockville, Maryland, U.S.), it is known as Toys "R" Us
Toys "R" Us is a toy store chain based in the United States. The chain also has locations in Europe, Asia, Oceania, Africa, and Canada. The company currently operates 585 stores in the United States and 716 stores in 34 other countries, with some of them under franchises or licenses. The flagship store in New York City's Times Square is the largest toy store in the world, featuring a colorful Ferris wheel. It is the largest toy-centered retailer and the second largest overall toy retailer in the United States (Wal-Mart being the largest).
Industry : Retail
Products : Toys
Revenue : $13.646 billion USD (2007)
Employees: 97,000
Website :
www.toysrus.com
www.toys.com
www.toysrus.com.sg
History - The early years
Chuck Lazarus initially started a Children's Supermarket, which would later evolve into the modern day Toys "R" Us in Washington, DC during the post-war baby boom era in 1948 as a baby furniture retailer. Its first location was at 2461 18th St, NW, where the nightclub, Madam's Organ Blues Bar is currently located. Lazarus began receiving requests from customers for baby toys. After adding baby toys, he got requests for more mature toys. Eventually, the focus of the store changed in 1957 and Toys "R" Us as it is known today was born in Rockville, Maryland when Toys "R" Us was acquired in 1966 by Interstate Stores, owner of the White Front and Topps Department Stores as well as Children's Bargain Town USA, a sister toy store chain to Toys "R" Us in the American Midwest which would later be rebranded as part of the Toys "R" Us chain. The original Toys "R" Us store design in the 1970s and 1980s consisted of vertical rainbow stripes and a brown roof with a front entrance and side exit. Some brown roof locations still exist, although some were painted different colors or renovated in recent years. Toys "R" Us is also notable for making its mark in popular culture for being mentioned, parodied, or appearing in movies and TV shows, such as Back to the Future, The Blues Brothers, The Simpsons, Family Guy,The Flintstones, and Mystery Science Theater 3000.
The buyout
In an effort to improve its company, the Board of Directors installed John Eyler, formerly of FAO Schwarz. Eyler launched an unsuccessful, and very expensive plan to remodel and re-launch the chain. Blaming market pressures (primarily competition from Wal-Mart and Target), Toys "R" Us considered splitting its toys and baby businesses. On July 21, 2005, a consortium of Bain Capital Partners LLC, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR), and Vornado Realty Trust completed the $6.6 billion acquisition of the toy giant. Public stock closed for the last time at $26.74, just pennies from the 68-week high, but far short of its all time high of almost $45 in fourth-quarter 1993, and its five-year high of $31 in 2Q 2001. Toys "R" Us is now a privately owned entity.
Amazon.com lawsuit
In early 2006, Toys "R" Us won a major battle against Amazon.com after years of bitter battles over their original 10 year contract made at the height of the dotcom boom at the turn of the century. The battle focused on exclusivity rights as viewed from both companies' perspectives. The judge in the matter believed Amazon's top officials were not completely forthcoming in their testimony during the trial:
In her [the judge's] opinion, McVeigh took a rather dim view of the trial testimony of some Amazon executives, including that of the company’s billionaire founder Jeff Bezos, saying she had "no doubt his knowledge and understanding (of the Toys "R" Us agreement) went much deeper than revealed." When pushed on the witness stand, "certain information 'just came back to him'" she said in the ruling, while another of Bezos’ explanations was referred to as "rather childlike."
Toys "R" Us, after winning the right to end its contract with Amazon.com, forged a partnership with GSI Commerce, a company specializing in running e-commerce sites. By the middle of 2006, Amazon's stock had taken serious 15% losses, one consideration being the $50 million per year payment lost from Toys "R" Us. Amazon announced the loss of the case late in the quarter to its stock owners.
Closure of 87 stores
On January 9, 2006, Toys "R" Us announced that 87 stores in the United States would close that year, most closing within the spring. 12 more stores were to be converted to the "Babies "R" Us" format. Approximately 3,000 jobs were eliminated as a result of the closures.
Mascot - Geoffrey Jr.
In the 1960s, an anthropomorphic giraffe cartoon character was introduced as Toys "R" Us' mascot. His name, Geoffrey the Giraffe, followed in the 1970s, after a "Name the Mascot"–type contest. In 1973, Geoffrey was given a family with the addition of his wife Gigi. However, over time and with different marketing campaigns, it has been unclear as to whether Gigi is Geoffrey's wife or sister. Also in 1973, Geoffrey's daughter, Baby Gee, was introduced. In 1979, his son Junior (a.k.a. Geoffrey Junior) was added. Geoffrey was then re-introduced in 2001, after being given a full makeover. He then appeared not as a cartoon character, but rather as a real-life giraffe who talks; an animatronic version of Geoffrey the Giraffe (created by Stan Winston Studios) was voiced by Jim Hanks, brother of actor Tom Hanks, in commercials for radio and television. The character's present appearance is again that of a cartoon.
International locations
Toys "R" Us, International is a separate division which operates the toy stores outside of the United States. Toys "R" Us, International opened its first stores in 1984 in Singapore and Canada. Today, Toys "R" Us International operates, licenses or franchises approximately 688 toy stores in 33 countries outside the United States.
* Australia
* Austria
* Bahrain
* Canada
* Chad
* China
* Denmark
* Egypt
* Finland
* France
* Germany
* Hong Kong
* Iceland
* India
* Ireland
* Israel
* Italy
* Japan
* Kuwait
* Macau
* Malaysia
* Norway
* Philippines
* Portugal
* Qatar
* Saudi Arabia
* Singapore, established 1984, 7 stores including Vivocity
* South Africa
* South Korea
* Spain
* Sweden
* Switzerland
* Republic of China, Taiwan
* Thailand
* Turkey
* United Arab Emirates
* United Kingdom
* United States, established 1948 as Children's Supermart, changed its name to Toys "R" Us in 1957, and in the early 1970s, Interstate Stores, Inc. (now known as Toys "R" Us, Inc.) bought out Children's Bargain Town USA, a similar midwest toy store chain.
Countries where Toys R Us is no longer active
Netherlands, established 1993, 17 stores. All stores continued on March 3rd 2009 as Toys XL. Toys R Us tried to sell it's stores in 1997 already but encountered objections from the European Competition regulator.
And this blog will be updated on a weekly basics.
Enjoy!
We have decided to choose Toys "R" Us as our retail format. It is a category specialist as it offers toys of all variety and prevents competition from stores like the toy department of other department stores.
A brief introduction of Toys "R" Us
Toys "R" Us was founded in 1948(Washington, D.C., U.S.) as a Children's Supermarket and only in 1957 (Rockville, Maryland, U.S.), it is known as Toys "R" Us
Toys "R" Us is a toy store chain based in the United States. The chain also has locations in Europe, Asia, Oceania, Africa, and Canada. The company currently operates 585 stores in the United States and 716 stores in 34 other countries, with some of them under franchises or licenses. The flagship store in New York City's Times Square is the largest toy store in the world, featuring a colorful Ferris wheel. It is the largest toy-centered retailer and the second largest overall toy retailer in the United States (Wal-Mart being the largest).
Industry : Retail
Products : Toys
Revenue : $13.646 billion USD (2007)
Employees: 97,000
Website :
www.toysrus.com
www.toys.com
www.toysrus.com.sg
History - The early years
Chuck Lazarus initially started a Children's Supermarket, which would later evolve into the modern day Toys "R" Us in Washington, DC during the post-war baby boom era in 1948 as a baby furniture retailer. Its first location was at 2461 18th St, NW, where the nightclub, Madam's Organ Blues Bar is currently located. Lazarus began receiving requests from customers for baby toys. After adding baby toys, he got requests for more mature toys. Eventually, the focus of the store changed in 1957 and Toys "R" Us as it is known today was born in Rockville, Maryland when Toys "R" Us was acquired in 1966 by Interstate Stores, owner of the White Front and Topps Department Stores as well as Children's Bargain Town USA, a sister toy store chain to Toys "R" Us in the American Midwest which would later be rebranded as part of the Toys "R" Us chain. The original Toys "R" Us store design in the 1970s and 1980s consisted of vertical rainbow stripes and a brown roof with a front entrance and side exit. Some brown roof locations still exist, although some were painted different colors or renovated in recent years. Toys "R" Us is also notable for making its mark in popular culture for being mentioned, parodied, or appearing in movies and TV shows, such as Back to the Future, The Blues Brothers, The Simpsons, Family Guy,The Flintstones, and Mystery Science Theater 3000.
The buyout
In an effort to improve its company, the Board of Directors installed John Eyler, formerly of FAO Schwarz. Eyler launched an unsuccessful, and very expensive plan to remodel and re-launch the chain. Blaming market pressures (primarily competition from Wal-Mart and Target), Toys "R" Us considered splitting its toys and baby businesses. On July 21, 2005, a consortium of Bain Capital Partners LLC, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR), and Vornado Realty Trust completed the $6.6 billion acquisition of the toy giant. Public stock closed for the last time at $26.74, just pennies from the 68-week high, but far short of its all time high of almost $45 in fourth-quarter 1993, and its five-year high of $31 in 2Q 2001. Toys "R" Us is now a privately owned entity.
Amazon.com lawsuit
In early 2006, Toys "R" Us won a major battle against Amazon.com after years of bitter battles over their original 10 year contract made at the height of the dotcom boom at the turn of the century. The battle focused on exclusivity rights as viewed from both companies' perspectives. The judge in the matter believed Amazon's top officials were not completely forthcoming in their testimony during the trial:
In her [the judge's] opinion, McVeigh took a rather dim view of the trial testimony of some Amazon executives, including that of the company’s billionaire founder Jeff Bezos, saying she had "no doubt his knowledge and understanding (of the Toys "R" Us agreement) went much deeper than revealed." When pushed on the witness stand, "certain information 'just came back to him'" she said in the ruling, while another of Bezos’ explanations was referred to as "rather childlike."
Toys "R" Us, after winning the right to end its contract with Amazon.com, forged a partnership with GSI Commerce, a company specializing in running e-commerce sites. By the middle of 2006, Amazon's stock had taken serious 15% losses, one consideration being the $50 million per year payment lost from Toys "R" Us. Amazon announced the loss of the case late in the quarter to its stock owners.
Closure of 87 stores
On January 9, 2006, Toys "R" Us announced that 87 stores in the United States would close that year, most closing within the spring. 12 more stores were to be converted to the "Babies "R" Us" format. Approximately 3,000 jobs were eliminated as a result of the closures.
Mascot - Geoffrey Jr.
In the 1960s, an anthropomorphic giraffe cartoon character was introduced as Toys "R" Us' mascot. His name, Geoffrey the Giraffe, followed in the 1970s, after a "Name the Mascot"–type contest. In 1973, Geoffrey was given a family with the addition of his wife Gigi. However, over time and with different marketing campaigns, it has been unclear as to whether Gigi is Geoffrey's wife or sister. Also in 1973, Geoffrey's daughter, Baby Gee, was introduced. In 1979, his son Junior (a.k.a. Geoffrey Junior) was added. Geoffrey was then re-introduced in 2001, after being given a full makeover. He then appeared not as a cartoon character, but rather as a real-life giraffe who talks; an animatronic version of Geoffrey the Giraffe (created by Stan Winston Studios) was voiced by Jim Hanks, brother of actor Tom Hanks, in commercials for radio and television. The character's present appearance is again that of a cartoon.
International locations
Toys "R" Us, International is a separate division which operates the toy stores outside of the United States. Toys "R" Us, International opened its first stores in 1984 in Singapore and Canada. Today, Toys "R" Us International operates, licenses or franchises approximately 688 toy stores in 33 countries outside the United States.
* Australia
* Austria
* Bahrain
* Canada
* Chad
* China
* Denmark
* Egypt
* Finland
* France
* Germany
* Hong Kong
* Iceland
* India
* Ireland
* Israel
* Italy
* Japan
* Kuwait
* Macau
* Malaysia
* Norway
* Philippines
* Portugal
* Qatar
* Saudi Arabia
* Singapore, established 1984, 7 stores including Vivocity
* South Africa
* South Korea
* Spain
* Sweden
* Switzerland
* Republic of China, Taiwan
* Thailand
* Turkey
* United Arab Emirates
* United Kingdom
* United States, established 1948 as Children's Supermart, changed its name to Toys "R" Us in 1957, and in the early 1970s, Interstate Stores, Inc. (now known as Toys "R" Us, Inc.) bought out Children's Bargain Town USA, a similar midwest toy store chain.
Countries where Toys R Us is no longer active
Netherlands, established 1993, 17 stores. All stores continued on March 3rd 2009 as Toys XL. Toys R Us tried to sell it's stores in 1997 already but encountered objections from the European Competition regulator.
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