Toys ‘R’ Us to return to UK high streets ‘within months’ four years after it closed down

Toys ‘R’ Us is poised for its grand high street return ‘within months’ and is already hiring a new UK team, reports have detailed today.

According to The Mirror, the company has now ramped up its recruitment and plans to relaunch the brand in the next couple of months.

Reports also claim that Toys ‘R’ Us has already hired senior buyers, all of which have extensive experience from industry giants such as Debenhams, Mothercare and Argos.

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Toys R Us went bust back in 2018 after struggling to keep up with the new age of online shopping and, as a result, was forced to close all of its UK and US stores, much to the dismay of those who grew up with the retailer throughout the 2000s.

But in October last year, the parent firm of both Toys R Us and Babies R Us announced that it had signed a long-term exclusive licence agreement to relaunch the stores across the UK from 2022 onwards.

This was mainly down to the ongoing success of Toys R Us branches in Canada and Australia, which have been going from strength-to-strength these last few years. Bosses reportedly saw these as proof that there is still hope for stores – both physical and online – here in the UK.

Toys ‘R’ Us Australia chief executive Louis Mittoni, who is spearheading the UK launch, said in a statement: “I’m very excited to welcome over 100 years of retailing experience in our new team, who will lead the relaunch our iconic brand back into the UK market in the next few months.

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“We have an amazing toy and baby buying team, which I believe is the best in the country.

“With this team now in place, we’re hitting the ground running and have been reaching out to the supply base to see with whom we can align on this amazing journey.”

Toys ‘R’ Us launched in the UK in 1985, when it emerged as the ‘world’s first toy supermarket’.