Toys R Us To Auction Off Geoffrey the Giraffe, Logos, and More

Toys "R" Us is liquidating everything it owns as part of its closure, including the beloved Geoffrey the Giraffe.

The former Toy giant is nearing the end of its liquidation process, and as stores clean out inventory the company is also looking for buyers for its intellectual property. That includes the name Toys "R" Us, the Geoffrey the Giraffe logo, and the Babies "R" Us logo and brand. Crazily enough brand specialists are saying it could be one of the most valuable brands ever sold by a company that's going out of business (via Reuters).

Toys "R" Us isn't just selling intellectual property though, as it has a bevy of domain names to sell too. Included in that batch of names are domains like ihatetoysrus.com, toysrussucks.com, kinkytoysrus.com, adult-toys-r-us.com, and sex-toys-r-us.com. That might seem strange to some, but for those familiar with internet businesses, it is quite normal.

Any successful brand will likely have someone trying to capitalize on that with a similar domain name, so often companies will purchase any and all similar domains it can think of, as well as any that would appear detrimental to the brand if someone else got ahold of them. Toys "R" Us went above and beyond in this regard according to Retail Doctor brand specialist Bob Phibbs.

"They just went crazy," Phibbs said. "I'm sure they were laughing and drinking Red Bull and then just came up with every iteration they could."

You can understand why though when you look at how many other variations there are surrounding the Toys "R" Us domain name. There are plenty of registered domains like lodges-r-us.com, bistros-r-us.com- and burguers-r-us.com, proving how valuable and well known the brand is.

"It shows the power of the brand," Phibbs said. "The 'R' Us is the key to the brand, not the Toys."

Sales are continuing to increase as local stores wind down, and CEO Dave Brandon was quite disappointed things came to this in his official statement on the closings.

"There are many people and organizations who have remained in our corner every step along the way," Brandon said. "I want to thank our extraordinary team members who helped build Toys"R"Us into a global brand. I also want to express my appreciation for my colleagues on our board who have continued to provide support to sustain the brand and our operations throughout the restructuring process. I would also like to thank our vendors who we owe a great deal of gratitude to for their decades of support. This is a profoundly sad day for us as well as the millions of kids and families who we have served for the past 70 years."