ToysRUs.com on track to become more diversified children’s retailer
Despite the fact that Toys “R” Us Inc. is under new ownership, the move isn’t going to affect the marketing plans at ToysRUs.com to continue to diversify its merchandising base.
On March 17, Toys "R" Us announced that it has concluded a strategic review and reached a definitive agreement to sell its worldwide operations, including both its global Toys "R" Us and Babies "R" Us businesses, to an investment group consisting of affiliates of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., Bain Capital Partners LLC and Vornado Realty Trust in a deal valued at $6.6 billion.
But the sale won’t have an impact on the multi-channel retailer’s plan to diversify its online merchandising base. The longer-term web marketing goal at ToysRUs.com is morphing into a more diversified children’s-oriented Internet retailer. To accomplish that objective, ToysRUs.com in the last year launched SportsRUs.com, a new site with more than 10,000 SKUs. In addition to its core site, ToysRUs.com, the new company operates five different web stores for various lines of children-oriented merchandise. “Clearly our core business is toys, but we are taking things to the next level,” says John Sullivan, vice president and general manager of ToysRUs.com.
To round out its 2005 online marketing and merchandising plan, ToysRUs.com also will expand its new Canadian web site, promote its new online redeemable gifts certificates program and look at new ways to achieve better multi-channel retailing and personalization. “We will be looking this year at ways to stress profitability,” Sullivan says.
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