The Toys R' Us brand in the UK ceased trading in 2018 as the business went into administration. Since then work has been going on behind the scenes to resurrect the brand in the UK spearheaded by Toys R Us ANZ Ltd. the Australian-based arm of the Toys R Us brand that was separate from the main US and UK operations that disappeared 5 years ago. Having first returned as an online presence, the SUmmer of 2023 saw the return of Toys R Us as a physical store - albeit a franchised space agreed with WH Smiths in its larger retail units. There are now 9 of these throughout the UK, and we recently visited the first of these to open its doors on the Monk Cross Retail Park in York.
The building is of course WH Smiths branded, but with a smaller Toys R Us banner underneath and Geoffrey was very prominent in the windows via brigth and impactful Point of Sale posters. Inside, the layout is reminiscent of the old TRU stores with the colourful aisle headers with the familiar colours and fonts.
The offerings on sale are of course limited vs the old superstores and is very much aimed at the children's toy market rather than collectors. The stock is similar to that of The Entertainer with brands like Lego, V-Tech, Geomag and Ravensburger jigsaws. There are no obviously big ticket items as you might see in Smyths, most things are aimed at that pocket money price.
There is, as is now standard in most Toy stores, a full section dedicated to Funko Pops! While the action figure aisle covers the usual Hasbro big hitters like Star Wars, Marvel, and Transformers - but the low spec figures rather than the collector lines.
For now, these 9 stores are up and running to reestablish the brand and are leaning heavily into nostalgia, more for parents than the younger children who will have grown up in a world without Toys R Us. Definitely worth a visit to suck up that familiar feeling of being in a Toys R Us store if you find yourself near one of the WH Smiths stores (as listed below).
Canterbury (St George Street)
Chelmsford (High Street)
Cheltenham (High Street)
Cwmbran (The Mall)
Oxford (Cornmarket Street)
Poole (Towngate Shopping Centre)
Reading (Broad Street)
Solihull (Mell Square)
York (Monks Cross retail park)
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About Me : As a child of the '70s and '80s I grew up in a golden age for action figures and in my youth bought and sold myself through collections of Star Wars, G.I. Joe (Action Force), and M.A.S.K. while also dabbling in He-Man, Transformers and Ghostbusters. Roll forward and I am now reliving that Youth with the action figures of today and am a collector and fan of the larger 6-8 inch figures from my favourite movie and TV licenses - including the ones mentioned above, but also the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Who, and the Aliens. I launched The Mephitsu Archives in 2015 with a view of creating a UK-focused site or these figures where fans can pick up the latest action figure news, read reviews and get information on where to buy their figures and what is currently on store shelves. I hope I am delivering that to you guys...