Jun 28, 2018
Party City is looking to be one of the retailers that benefits from the demise of Toys “R” Us. The party goods retailer announced a pilot to open 50 temporary Toy City stores “alongside” its Halloween City pop-ups across the country.
The retailer expects the Toy City pop-ups to benefit from their physical connection with the Halloween City sites. Both pop-ups will open in early September.
“Party City is the unmatched leader when it comes to relevant product offerings for everyday occasions and seasonal celebrations, and we’re always looking for opportunities to enhance these assortments for our customers,” said James Harrison, CEO of Party City. “The creation of a Toy City concept to complement our temporary seasonal retail strategy is a logical extension of our brand; one that will allow us to leverage our existing pop-up store capabilities and capitalize on the category whitespace that has recently been created.”
The retailer also plans to expand its assortment of toys online in order to reinforce that experience for its shoppers.
“As the leading omni-channel retailer in the category, there are many benefits to this pop-up store expansion strategy,” said Mr. Harrison. “We’re excited to increase our toy assortments while still remaining focused on our core seasonal offerings.”
A CNBC article points out that the pop-up strategy being employed by Party City is the very same one Toys “R” Us used after KB Toys folded in 2009. The once giant toy retailer opened 90 Express stores during the 2009 holiday season, many in former KB locations, and followed up with around 600 of the pop-ups for Christmas 2010.
The architect of Toys “R” Us’ Express strategy, former CEO Jerry Storch, is reported to be working with investors to acquire the intellectual property of the chain with plans to open several hundred stores that would combine toys and baby brands under a single roof.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: Do you agree that expanding into toys is a logical extension for the Party City brand? Will the Toy City pop-ups and expanded selection of toys online prove successful for Party City?
“Do you agree that expanding into toys is a logical extension for the Party City brand?”
