For many kids growing up Toys 'R' Us was part of being a kid and for some of us, it was part of being a really big kid as an adult. Five years after declaring bankruptcy, the iconic toy store with Geoffroy the giraffe mascot is back... sort of.

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Growing up in the Chicago suburbs Toys 'R' Us was ubiquitous. They seemed to have a brightly colored store in almost every suburb. Part of my childhood was begging my Mom to stop so I could window shop, or on occasion, even buy a toy at Toys 'R' Us. I still remember the time she took me over there to look at the then-WWF action figures, and the toy wrestling ring they were selling. No, that's a toy I never did get.

As an adult, my wife and I shopped Toys 'R' Us for our niece and nephew. It was the most fun I've ever had Christmas shopping. Not only because we got to get the kids in our life something cool, but because it was fun to check out the Matchbox and Hot Wheels cars.

Toys R Us Plans Restructuring
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That all went away when Toys 'R' Us filed for bankruptcy in 2017 and between the bankruptcy and the pandemic, ended up shutting all their stores. Fast Company has a few more details on this if you'd like to learn a little more about this.

Well Toys 'R' Us is back for the holiday season in 2022, although in a different format than the big toy stores we knew and loved. According to Fast Company, they've partnered with Macy's to open Toys 'R' Us stores inside Macy's stores.

It makes a lot of sense to me because I remember in my childhood most department stores would expand their toy departments around the holiday. Whether it was Marshall Field's or Wiebolt's, most of the year they didn't have a big toy department. Yet, between Thanksgiving and the new year. You betcha the toy department was expanded. So why not open one of the most iconic toy store brands, in what's arguably, the department store most identified with the holidays? (Ya know, "Miracle on 34th Street" and The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.)

Toys "R" Us Event in Tampa
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According to Macy's website, there are 22 Macy's stores in Missouri and Illinois that will have Toys 'R' Us Stores inside them which Fast Company says will range from 1,000 square feet to 10,000 square feet depending on location. Here's where they're located:

Missouri 

  • Chesterfield Mall, Chesterfield
  • Mid Rivers Mall, St. Peters
  • Battlefield Mall, Springfield
  • South County Center, St. Louis
  • Metro North Mall, Kansas City
  • West County Mall, St. Louis
  • St. Louis Galleria, St. Louis

Illinois 

  • Louis Joliet Mall, Joliet
  • Gurnee Mills, Gurnee
  • St. Clair Square, Fairview Heights
  • White Oaks, Springfield
  • Oakbrook Center, Oakbrook
  • Old Orchard Center, Skokie
  • Woodfield Mall, Schaumburg
  • CherryVale Mall, Rockford
  • Hawthorn Center, Vernon Hills
  • The Promenade, Bolingbrook
  • Orland Square Mall, Orland Park
  • Fox Valley Mall, Aurora
  • River Oaks Center, Calumet City
  • Market Place Mall, Champaign
  • Macy's State Street, Chicago (The Loop)

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