A UK toy store that closed its doors five years ago is set to return to the high street. Toys R Us has reached an agreement with newsagent chain, WH Smith which will see it reopen in stores on a trial basis across the country.
It will have a number of high street locations along with a brand new website for customers to order through. It is thought that the store is set to open nine in-store concessions across the UK reports Wales Online.
The Nottinghamshire branches of Toys R Us were located in Mansfield, Nottingham's Victoria Centre and Riverside Retail park but the stores closed in 2018. The premises has now become a Home Bargains store.
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The new website is already live with a new banner advert announcing 'we're back' in bold letters. It already has around 14,000 toys on display ready for the busy Christmas shopping period.
When it comes to Christmas gifts, shoppers hoping to pick up a few presents in-store will have to wait as the concessions will not be open until next year.
The store has said its deal with WH Smith will see stores back on the high street in the first six months of 2023. It will be run on a trial basis and will last at least a year.
Shoppers will be able to pick up toys, games and other family products at the counters according to stock exchange documents. It has not been revealed where the stores will be located.
If successful the trial could be extended by five or 10 years. It will only focus on Toys R Us, not the chain's sister firm Babys R Us.
The new Toys R Us website has free delivery on all orders over £20 and next-day delivery on all orders placed before 6pm. The website says: "We're back! We can't wait to develop and grow with you and your loved ones, over the coming weeks, months and years!"
Categories of toys sold on the website include all the favourites such as LEGO and construction, dolls, vehicles and remote control, teddy bears, puzzles, arts and crafts.
Toys R Us chief executive Louis Mittoni, said: "Toys R Us and Babies R Us are much-loved brands in the UK, and our teams have described this as 'returning home', not just a relaunch."
Toys R Us launched in the UK in 1985, when as the 'world's first toy supermarket'. However, in 2017 the US parent company filed for bankruptcy after debts reached more than £3.5billion.
A year later, the toy chain closed all of its 100 UK branches. Thousands of staff lost their jobs as a result of the closures.
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