03.15.2018
Toys “R” Us announced today that it has filed a motion seeking Bankruptcy Court approval to begin the process of conducting an orderly wind-down of its U.S. business, and liquidation of inventory in all 735 of the company’s U.S. stores, including stores in Puerto Rico. Toys “R” Us will provide more details about the plans for the liquidation of its U.S. stores and going out of business sales in the near term.
“We are implementing an orderly process to shutter our U.S. operations and will pursue going concern sales or reorganizations of certain of our international businesses, while our other international businesses consider their options,” said Dave Brandon, chairman and chief executive officer. “I am very disappointed with the result, but we no longer have the financial support to continue the company’s U.S. operations.
“I would like to thank our vendors who we owe a great deal of gratitude to for their decades of support,” he continued. “This is a profoundly sad day for us as well as the millions of kids and families who we have served for the past 70 years.”
Toys “R” Us is pursuing a going concern reorganization and a sale process for its Canadian and international operations in Asia and Central Europe, including Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The company’s international operations in Australia, France, Poland, Portugal and Spain are considering their options in light of this announcement, including potential sale processes in their respective markets. The company’s stores in all these international markets are currently open and serving customers.
In connection with the sale process, the motion the company filed with the Bankruptcy Court included bidding procedures for the Canadian operations. The company also disclosed that it is engaged in discussions with certain interested parties for a transaction that could combine up to 200 of the top performing U.S. stores with its Canadian operations. While discussions continue on this potential transaction, Toys “R” Us is seeking court approval to implement the liquidation of inventory in all the U.S. stores, subject to a right to recall any stores included in the proposed Canadian transaction.
The previously announced administration of the UK business continues.
The company and its advisors are working to minimize the impact of the U.S. liquidation on the Canadian and other international markets. As part of these efforts, the company is implementing a transition services arrangement for the next 60 days and is developing plans for a potential shared service function to support the international operations going forward.
Additional information regarding the company’s restructuring process can be obtained by calling the Information Hotline, toll-free in the U.S. and Canada at 844-794-3476, or sending an email to toysrusinfo@PrimeClerk.com. Court filings and other documents related to the court-supervised process in the U.S. are available on a separate website administered by the company’s claims agent, Prime Clerk, at https://cases.primeclerk.com/toysrus.
