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This is the first time I feel comfortable saying "But think of the children". How can this country be creating a world where children grow up without toy store

This is the first time I feel comfortable saying "But think of the children". How can this country be creating a world where children grow up without toy stores? When I was a kid Toys 'R' Us was a wonderland that excited my imagination around every corner. Money isn't everything. Money doesn't even really matter at all. A world without toy stores matters. i'm a toys 'r' us kid

farnsworthy 9y ago
Sad Original Simba. :(
aembleton 9y ago
I don't know the US, but here in the UK the rival toy stores - Smyths and The Entertainer are more entertaining for children and The Entertainer is predominantly based in town centres. Toys R Us relies upon parents driving to an out of town shopping centre. There are also independents that do a better job of presentation than Toys R Us. They're more expensive but so are Toys R Us compared to Amazon.
- lnsru 9y ago
  The store in Germany, Reutlingen to be exact, wasn’t appealing. The toys were ok, but the location wasn’t the one to go with kids on the weekend. Worn out buildings in industrial area.
  - yitchelle 9y ago
    The toy shop situation in Germany is desperate. The ToysRUs near Cologne looks like they are from the 60s and is hardly distinguishable from local Obi or Toom hardware store. It is not an attractive place for the kids to visit.
- tonyedgecombe 9y ago
  In the UK Toys R Us was really grim and dirty, the staff were distracted, the whole place felt like a prison you wanted to escape from. I'm not at all surprised by its demise.
- originalsimba 9y ago
  I'm not an expert on the subject but I think the problem is there's a "Boys" and "Girls" and "Toddlers" toy isle in every Walmart in America. They don't have the selection but they carry the hot products.
robotbikes 9y ago
The problem is that kids these days like adults play with digital toys in cyberverse aka videogames and their imaginations while Toys-R-Us just sold cheap plastic stuff in catdboard boxes. Last time I went there trying to shop their videogame selection was disorganized, it was unclear what systems they had in stock and the games that were in stock were random. Toys in our youth were well-marketed phenomens that everyone had to have and a store could consistently profit off of by having them in stock. How do you stock Minecraft mods ? There are also still lots of physical toys, probably too many of them considering how often they are made to be disposable and prolific.
- posterboy 9y ago
  The only stuff I ever wanted from them as a kid were super nintendo games, so yeah.
d--b 9y ago
Humanity lived for a while without toy stores, and I think many children never experienced any. I personally always felt these were too big and creating envy and frustration in children, cause of course they'll want everything in them.
icebraining 9y ago
Maybe in the US they're different, but I always found Toys R Us shops to be pretty uninteresting, they're like a supermarket that happens to have boxes of toys instead of boxes of detergent.
- nkrisc 9y ago
  That's a pretty accurate assessment of the stores here in the US, too.
- wccrawford 9y ago
  As a kid, seeing toys everywhere, floor to ceiling, on every aisle... It's awesome. I still remember that feeling of wonder from walking into a TRU store and seeing toys everywhere, and I'm 40 years old now. It's different then walking into a Walmart or Target and seeing a toy section, because it's surrounded by other things and there's not nearly as many toys to look at.
  - originalsimba 9y ago
    You get it.
slivym 9y ago
Toys r' us isn't some wonderland of childrens toys. It was piled high with plastic crap which is why it hasn't survived. There are still plenty of small independent toy shops where kids can get really nice and quality toys. Toys 'r' us is amazing for kids - but go back as an adult. They're badly maintained, they're full of over-priced rubbish. They're not a good example of a toy shop.
- tossaway1 9y ago
  > Toys 'r' us is amazing for kids - but go back as an adult. It kind of sounds like you're agreeing with the GP. Kids love mountains of cheap plastic crap so for them it can be exciting even if parents detest it...
  - crispyporkbites 9y ago
    They love it because they have the advertising and peer pressure shoved down their throat so hard. Parents can and evidently do do better.
- originalsimba 9y ago
  Your problem is you're viewing it from the perspective of an adult. It's not for you. Toys 'r' Us was always a walmart of toy stores. But when you're 3 feet high and playing with TMNT figures everything in the store is _awesome_.
cpkpad 9y ago
I would have much the same feeling if I didn't have a child myself. There are many good toy stores around. Toys-R-Us just isn't one of them anymore. At some point between when I was a child and now, someone cannibalized that whole business for short-term profit, and that seems to have come due. Last time I was there, there were zero toys at Toys-R-Us I'd want to buy for my kid. That's not a commentary on socioeconomic status either; I'm pretty poor. But I can get high-quality educational toys elsewhere cheap.
- originalsimba 9y ago
  "there were zero toys at Toys-R-Us I'd want to buy for my kid." Looking over these comments I see a lot of adults talking about buying toys for their children as adults and you are all missing the entire point. The toys aren't for you. Toys do not exist for you to mold your children into whatever predestined vision you have for them. The toys the kids want are cheap and plastic and they excite their imagination. They look cheap and plastic to you because you're 30 years older and playing with $2,000 computers or $30,000 cars (yes, your cars are toys). Toys are about giving a child property they can do whatever they want with. It's about treating them like they have a mind of their own and letting them explore things that you probably never even thought of. If your "toy buying decisions" are riddled with adult concepts like responsibility and educational value you are missing the point. I'm not saying educational toys are bad, I'm saying kids know what educational toys are and what they want is action figures and video games and toy weapons. A store that is packed floor to ceiling with exactly those things is a _wonderland_ to a child.
matt_s 9y ago
I get the feels when you got a trip to Toys R Us it was really cool. Today, my kids get to a toy store weekly - Walmart and Target have pretty decent sized toy departments that they repeatedly get lost in for a while. There isn't a need to go somewhere to find out what is new, kids just research it online. Target's website prices are usually close to Amazons and they will price match themselves. Toys R Us had slightly higher prices than pretty much everywhere, even a Lego store was usually cheaper. What I hope this spawns are more mom-n-pop toy stores that will carry the specialty items.
- bpicolo 9y ago
  This might be an unpopular opinion, but I love the board game / toys sections in Barnes and Noble. I think it was a smart business move and I think they play to the market well to put learning/creative/"nerdy" toys alongside books.
  - icantdrive55 9y ago
    My local BN has a lot of toys now. Plus--all the adult tech toys. I see a few people looking, and pulling out that phone, and punching in the UPC. It's usually the same people who leave mounds of books on the floor. I really like my BN. I don't know how to save it though. I think we will look back on technology with complete distain. The foxey ones will just eliminate more stores, and employees. It's all cutting edge until you are the one left out? And when they literally have no one local to pedal their stuff; there's the emerging markets overseas? BN will close any day now. A few weeks ago, they fired all full time employees. Corporate fat cats said you can reapply, but only part time, and lower wages.
  - dole 9y ago
    Nice while it's lasting, anyway.

farnsworthy 9y ago

Sad Original Simba. :(

aembleton 9y ago

I don't know the US, but here in the UK the rival toy stores - Smyths and The Entertainer are more entertaining for children and The Entertainer is predominantly based in town centres. Toys R Us relies upon parents driving to an out of town shopping centre. There are also independents that do a better job of presentation than Toys R Us. They're more expensive but so are Toys R Us compared to Amazon.

lnsru 9y ago
The store in Germany, Reutlingen to be exact, wasn’t appealing. The toys were ok, but the location wasn’t the one to go with kids on the weekend. Worn out buildings in industrial area.
- yitchelle 9y ago
  The toy shop situation in Germany is desperate. The ToysRUs near Cologne looks like they are from the 60s and is hardly distinguishable from local Obi or Toom hardware store. It is not an attractive place for the kids to visit.
tonyedgecombe 9y ago
In the UK Toys R Us was really grim and dirty, the staff were distracted, the whole place felt like a prison you wanted to escape from. I'm not at all surprised by its demise.
originalsimba 9y ago
I'm not an expert on the subject but I think the problem is there's a "Boys" and "Girls" and "Toddlers" toy isle in every Walmart in America. They don't have the selection but they carry the hot products.

robotbikes 9y ago

The problem is that kids these days like adults play with digital toys in cyberverse aka videogames and their imaginations while Toys-R-Us just sold cheap plastic stuff in catdboard boxes. Last time I went there trying to shop their videogame selection was disorganized, it was unclear what systems they had in stock and the games that were in stock were random. Toys in our youth were well-marketed phenomens that everyone had to have and a store could consistently profit off of by having them in stock. How do you stock Minecraft mods ? There are also still lots of physical toys, probably too many of them considering how often they are made to be disposable and prolific.

posterboy 9y ago
The only stuff I ever wanted from them as a kid were super nintendo games, so yeah.

d--b 9y ago

Humanity lived for a while without toy stores, and I think many children never experienced any. I personally always felt these were too big and creating envy and frustration in children, cause of course they'll want everything in them.

icebraining 9y ago

Maybe in the US they're different, but I always found Toys R Us shops to be pretty uninteresting, they're like a supermarket that happens to have boxes of toys instead of boxes of detergent.

nkrisc 9y ago
That's a pretty accurate assessment of the stores here in the US, too.
wccrawford 9y ago
As a kid, seeing toys everywhere, floor to ceiling, on every aisle... It's awesome. I still remember that feeling of wonder from walking into a TRU store and seeing toys everywhere, and I'm 40 years old now. It's different then walking into a Walmart or Target and seeing a toy section, because it's surrounded by other things and there's not nearly as many toys to look at.
- originalsimba 9y ago
  You get it.

slivym 9y ago

Toys r' us isn't some wonderland of childrens toys. It was piled high with plastic crap which is why it hasn't survived. There are still plenty of small independent toy shops where kids can get really nice and quality toys. Toys 'r' us is amazing for kids - but go back as an adult. They're badly maintained, they're full of over-priced rubbish. They're not a good example of a toy shop.

tossaway1 9y ago
> Toys 'r' us is amazing for kids - but go back as an adult. It kind of sounds like you're agreeing with the GP. Kids love mountains of cheap plastic crap so for them it can be exciting even if parents detest it...
- crispyporkbites 9y ago
  They love it because they have the advertising and peer pressure shoved down their throat so hard. Parents can and evidently do do better.
originalsimba 9y ago
Your problem is you're viewing it from the perspective of an adult. It's not for you. Toys 'r' Us was always a walmart of toy stores. But when you're 3 feet high and playing with TMNT figures everything in the store is _awesome_.

cpkpad 9y ago

I would have much the same feeling if I didn't have a child myself. There are many good toy stores around. Toys-R-Us just isn't one of them anymore. At some point between when I was a child and now, someone cannibalized that whole business for short-term profit, and that seems to have come due. Last time I was there, there were zero toys at Toys-R-Us I'd want to buy for my kid. That's not a commentary on socioeconomic status either; I'm pretty poor. But I can get high-quality educational toys elsewhere cheap.

originalsimba 9y ago
"there were zero toys at Toys-R-Us I'd want to buy for my kid." Looking over these comments I see a lot of adults talking about buying toys for their children as adults and you are all missing the entire point. The toys aren't for you. Toys do not exist for you to mold your children into whatever predestined vision you have for them. The toys the kids want are cheap and plastic and they excite their imagination. They look cheap and plastic to you because you're 30 years older and playing with $2,000 computers or $30,000 cars (yes, your cars are toys). Toys are about giving a child property they can do whatever they want with. It's about treating them like they have a mind of their own and letting them explore things that you probably never even thought of. If your "toy buying decisions" are riddled with adult concepts like responsibility and educational value you are missing the point. I'm not saying educational toys are bad, I'm saying kids know what educational toys are and what they want is action figures and video games and toy weapons. A store that is packed floor to ceiling with exactly those things is a _wonderland_ to a child.

matt_s 9y ago

I get the feels when you got a trip to Toys R Us it was really cool. Today, my kids get to a toy store weekly - Walmart and Target have pretty decent sized toy departments that they repeatedly get lost in for a while. There isn't a need to go somewhere to find out what is new, kids just research it online. Target's website prices are usually close to Amazons and they will price match themselves. Toys R Us had slightly higher prices than pretty much everywhere, even a Lego store was usually cheaper. What I hope this spawns are more mom-n-pop toy stores that will carry the specialty items.

bpicolo 9y ago
This might be an unpopular opinion, but I love the board game / toys sections in Barnes and Noble. I think it was a smart business move and I think they play to the market well to put learning/creative/"nerdy" toys alongside books.
- icantdrive55 9y ago
  My local BN has a lot of toys now. Plus--all the adult tech toys. I see a few people looking, and pulling out that phone, and punching in the UPC. It's usually the same people who leave mounds of books on the floor. I really like my BN. I don't know how to save it though. I think we will look back on technology with complete distain. The foxey ones will just eliminate more stores, and employees. It's all cutting edge until you are the one left out? And when they literally have no one local to pedal their stuff; there's the emerging markets overseas? BN will close any day now. A few weeks ago, they fired all full time employees. Corporate fat cats said you can reapply, but only part time, and lower wages.
- dole 9y ago
  Nice while it's lasting, anyway.