Toys "R" Us Could Be Making a Comeback

Kids and kids-at-heart still mourning the shuttering of Toys "R" Us may not have reason to mope for much longer. As CNN Money reports, the owners of the company's remaining assets are no longer putting the rights to the Toys "R" Us and Babies "R" Us names up for bid, and instead are considering reviving the brands.

Following years of damage sustained from competing online retailers and last decade's recession, Toy "R" Us filed for bankruptcy in September 2017 and liquidated hundreds of stores in June. News outlets at the time proclaimed the death of the toy store chain and "the end of an era," but those reactions may have been premature.

A group of Toys "R" Us investors thinks the branding attached to the iconic company could still be valuable to them. Their original plan was to auction off the assets to the highest bidders, and they had already attracted a few offers before taking the properties off the auction table. Who the interested buyers were, and whether they planned to do something with the Toys "R" Us name or just keep competitors from using it, wasn't disclosed.

In a recent bankruptcy court filing, the investors said they're making early plans to launch "a new, operating Toys "R" Us and Babies "R" Us branding company." The company would open new domestic retail businesses and expand its presence overseas, but it wouldn't necessarily be the same store customers remember. Rather, the group said it's looking to "bring back these iconic brands in a new and reimagined way."

The demise of Toys "R" Us left a hole in the toy market, with some analysts predicting a 10 to 15 percent loss in overall toy sales. If Toys "R" Us doesn't return to close the gap it left behind, there are plenty of retailers looking to take its place.

[h/t CNN Money]