- Toys “R” Us, which closed the last batch of its U.S. stores just over a week ago.
- Arts and crafts retailer Hobby Lobby, off-price chains Burlington Stores and T.J. Maxx, and Marshalls parent TJX are just some of the new tenants.
- Other retailers including Big Lots and Scandinavian Designs have also bid on some Toys “R” Us locations in bankruptcy court.
Toys “R” Us, which closed the last batch of its U.S. stores just over a week ago, has left behind not only nostalgia but also hundreds of empty stores across the country. Still, if you thought this paints a gloomy picture of brick-and-mortar retail, you’d be mistaken.
As much as consumers mourn the death of Toys “R” Us, their sad and sweet memories may soon be replaced by curiosity and even excitement over who’s moving into the bankrupt retailer’s old homes. Arts and crafts retailer Hobby Lobby, off-price chains Burlington Stores and T.J. Maxx, and Marshalls parent TJX are just some of the new tenants, the Wall Street Journal recently reported, citing Conor Flynn, CEO of Kimco Realty KIM -0.66% Corporation, which owns some of the vacated Toys “R” Us properties and is a major open-air shopping center developer. Other retailers including Big Lots and Scandinavian Designs have also bid on some Toys “R” Us locations in bankruptcy court, The WSJ reported.
Kimco’s Toys “R” Us locations “are already seeing significant demand from our list of growing retailers that are in search of high-quality locations,” Flynn said in Kimco’s Q1 earnings call in April. “In addition to the thriving categories of off-price, health and wellness, specialty grocer, home improvement, furniture, arts and crafts, and entertainment, we have started to see new demand coming from co-working facilities, hospitality groups and medical facilities.”
It’s not just those emptied Toys “R” Us locations that are getting new leasing interest. Kimco detailed in April that it has seen over 3,000 net new store openings this year from “trending and growing” retailers—from Sprouts Farmers Market, Planet Fitness and GoHealth urgent care to traditional retailers Dollar General, Dollar Tree and Sephora.
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Who besides Toys “R” Us are those new tenants replacing? Sears and its discount chain Kmart, Macy’s and J.C. Penney, as well as bankrupt Bon-Ton department stores and Payless shoe shops.
Date: July 12, 2018
Source: Forbes