Many viewed MGA Entertainment’s CEO Isaac Larian as the last hope for Toys R Us in the US. Sadly, it seems he has given up on his efforts to save the brand and some of the stores.
Larian told CCN Money that he is not going to continue his efforts. “I am most disheartened that the legacy of the retailer will be lost for future generations”, he said.
Larian had several tries to reach a deal. In April he and fellow investors offered more than $890 million for 274 US Toys R Us stores and 82 Canadian stores.
The management of Toys R Us though reportedly felt the offer is too low and rejected it. Larian then decided to focus only on the US stores.
He remained positive on the idea. “I’m an optimist. I think things are going to work out,” he said at the time. “The people handling the sale, I think they’re genuinely trying to save the stores here in the US.”
In the end, he wasn’t successful. Larian also wasn’t successful in a recent takeover bid for Mattel, too. MGA will continue to focus on their best sellers like Bratz and LOL Surprise. In the mean time Toys R Us seems to continue on its current course and will close down completely. Unless a miracle deal isn’t announced at the last minute, which doesn’t seem likely at this point.
