Toys “R” Us Closing 200 More Stores With Additional Corporate Layoffs

Toys “R” Us is continuing its efforts to slim down, and that will result in even more store closings.

Toys “R” Us previously announced the closure of 182 of its stores, which also included some of its Babies “R” Us locations. Now a new report says the longtime toy destination will close an additional 200 stores, though no time frame for those store closings was revealed. This latest round of layoffs will also affect “a significant portion” of its corporate staff (via ICv2).

This will bring the number of Toys R Us and Babies “R” Us locations to around half of the 800 stores the company had last year. Unfortunately, the report also states that Toys “R” Us has stopped telling affected employees that they will receive severance payments. To put that into perspective, the initial 182 store closings affected around 4500 employees.

Store closings were expected as part of Toys “R” Us bankruptcy restructuring, though 382 is probably higher than most were expecting. CEO Dave Brandon explained why these steps were necessary in the original closure announcement.

“The reinvention of our brands requires that we make tough decisions about our priorities and focus,” Brandon said. “To that end and following a top-to-bottom assessment of our business, we have decided to close a number of our U.S. stores. We also intend to convert a number of locations into co-branded Toys “R” Us and Babies “R” Us stores. The actions we are taking are necessary to give us the best chance to emerge from our bankruptcy proceedings as a more viable and competitive company that will provide the level of service and experience you should expect from a market leader.”

As specified in the announcement, some stores will be getting converted to dual-brand stores, which at the time was around 12 locations.

In a later email to customers, Brandon assured that Toys “R” Us is here to stay.

“No matter how you choose to shop with us, know that you can continue to count on us for an outstanding experience,” Brandon said. “We have been in the business of bringing joy to kids for nearly seven decades, and we welcome the opportunity to serve you this holiday season and long into the future.”