Toys ‘R’ Us Survives Bankruptcy... in Canada

Popular toy retailer Toys 'R' Us recently shuttered in the United States, but is alive and well in Canada after eight months of bankruptcy protection (via Financial Post).

In light of the domestic bankruptcy and closures, Toys 'R' Us lives on in Canada where it's wholly Canadian owned and operated with more than 4,000 Canadian staff and 82 stores nationwide.

"We look forward to building for the long term and allowing the Toys 'R' Us team in Canada to reinvest in the business instead of the past history of just sending earnings to the U.S.," said Prem Watsa, chief executive of Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd., Toys 'R' Us Canada's long-term partner, who purchased the retailer for $300 million in June.

Because it shared a credit facility with its U.S. parent, the company was forced to file for protection last September after Toys 'R' Us' Chapter 11 filing.

After suffering a dull 2016 holiday season because of online retailers like Amazon and eBay, Toys 'R' Us Canada is committed to upping its in-store shopping appeal to lure millennial parents into physical stores by way of modern and experiential shopping services.

The company hopes to encourage store visits over online shopping by improving service and implementing activities like weekend events as a means of doing away with a "box-store stigma."

"As stewards of the toy and baby industry, we need to bring the boxes to life," Toys 'R' Us Canada president Melanie Teed-Murch told Financial Post. "That's what they can count on us for in the future."

Teed-Murch wants to ensure Canadian consumers Toys 'R' Us is alive and afloat, unlike its U.S. counterpart, who announced in March it would close all 735 of its stores after failing to land a buyer or restructure its $4.9 billion debt.

"The media still coming in from the U.S. is enormous and, unfortunately, the pickup of bad news is tenfold that of good news," Teed-Murch said. "It's our No. 1 priority to get our message out that there is a business here."

While Toys 'R' Us Canada gives itself a makeover, the U.S. brand is attempting a reboot of its own as Fairfax Financial is in "discussions" over a potential stateside revival.