It’s a sad day. Toys R Us has announced that it will be closing its flagship Times Square store in New York. The company will seek a new place nearby.
Toys R Us had a beautiful spot in the heart of Times Square at 1514 Broadway that occupied for the past 15 years. The reasons are simple – the rent prices have doubled and it has become way too expensive for the company to keep the huge 110 000 square foot store.
So it has decided not to renew the contract and seek for another smaller and cheaper store in the area. The current store will go to Gap which has already signed the lease. It will hold both a Gap and an Old Navy store in the space. The plan is to open the stores in early 2017.
This is the second big toy store that shuts down in the heart of New York for the past two months. In mid may FAO Schwarz, which is owned by Toys R Us, announced it is leaving the store it held for the past 153 years on 767 Fifth Avenue in Manattan right next to the flagship Apple store.
The reasons were the same – too high rent costs. The company is also seeking a new place in the area which is to be smaler and with lower rent.
If you haven’t been to the Toys R Us Times Square store, here is a nice video that will give you a great tour.
