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Toys R no longer Us

Long gone are the days of filling shopping carts with old school Barbies and the latest Nerf Guns, as Toys R Us filed for bankruptcy at the end of last year, and announced the liquidation of one fifth of their  stores by the end of January 2019. The company believes that in the long run, 21st century society will brush the toy utopia under the carpet due to the undeniable rise of technology-based entertainment.

The once kid-pleasing super power, Toys R Us has been defeated in the face of its modern day competitors. But who will be this rising producer that diminished this faded childhood memory? Two words, one corporation: Amazon Prime. The U.S. is experiencing a greater dependence on technology, and companies such as Amazon Prime, Postmates, and Uber are prospering.  This, in return, reflects on the toy industry. With the growing convenient accessibility of the latest toy gadgets and gizmos, it is no surprise that ordering online has replaced the former.

The national economic impact of shutting down Toys R Us will not only hit the actual company (that also owns Babies R Us), but also producing companies in the toy industry. Toys R Us is one of the  largest retailers of kids’ toys across the nation, so companies looking to sell their products will take a definite setback due to their loss of business platform. BMO Capital Markets predicts that the company’s dilution will result in a decrease of nationwide sales of the toy market in the long run.

This is mainly because of one thing: Toys R Us is considered a “toy tester”. This means that large companies often use the store as a platform to get a feel for the product’s popularity before placing them in corporations such as Walmart.

Shoppers rushing to catch the closing sale
Photo courtesy CNBC

Have no despair, 90’s kids, because Toys R Us is having a massive liquidation sale in the vast majority of its store fronts. Now is the perfect time for buyers  to pick up that Easy Bake Oven they’ve had their eye on for years, since all gift cards or coupons from the store will cease to be valid post April 20th. The sales are said to begin at 20-30% off, but later will reach up to 80% off sales products.

Although this may be hard for long time fans of the retailer to accept, this really is happening. Toys R Us is said to finalize the process by January of 2019. The elders of this generation will forever remember the Toys R Us jingle, slowly humming “From bikes to trains to video games, it’s the biggest toy store there is, Gee Whiz!”.

Written by Sarah Kadous

Sarah Kadous is an 18-year-old political activist from San Diego, CA. When she's not fulfilling her duty as the Co-Editor in chief of the MC Sun, the News and Activism Editor of Pure Nowhere Magazine, and Co-Director of March for Our Lives San Diego, Kadous religiously drinks cold brew and listens to the soothing soul Luiz Bonfa.

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