Toys R Us opens in Houston with more than 200 people in line

Brooklyn and her mom Sherri Allgood wore matching sweatshirts to commemorate the reason they left San Antonio at 6:30 a.m. and trekked to Houston: Toys R Us Galleria Mall, Dec. 7, 2019. And underneath Brooklyn’s sweatshirt was a Geoffrey giraffe costume she’d worn for Halloween last year. The same year that 735 Toys R Us and Babies R Us stores were closed nationwide. “When it went away, she mourned,” Sherri Allgood said of her 11-year-old daughter. “She was devastated. She studied why it went away. She learned about bankruptcy.” The toy store has since been given another lease on life. And when the Allgoods learned its second U.S. location would open just 200 miles from their home, the duo was determined to be there. On HoustonChronicle.com: Toys R Us returns to Houston with more interactive store They joined hundreds of others who waited outside of the new Toys R Us store for its grand opening Saturday. Brooklyn met Richard Barry, the former chief merchandising officer of Toys R Us and current CEO of TRU Kids, a Parsippany, N.J. company that acquired the toy store’s intellectual property, while the store’s actual Geoffrey giraffe mascot took pictures with the non-hoofed patrons. The first person lined up at 6 a.m., and Alicia Gachétt, 35, and her 11-year-old daughter Loryn joined the cue at 7:30 a.m. They used to live within walking distance of the Toys R Us on Westheimer, where Loryn was particularly fond of the Project Mc2 dolls that came with science experiments. But on Saturday, Loryn wore her L.O.L. Surprise Queen Bee dress that has the doll’s head on the top and a bumble-bee striped skirt. She was selected to help cut the grand opening ribbon at 10 a.m., clutching scissors that were at least half her height with a boy who’d also been standing in line as the crowd counted down. As the first 200 customers, both Loryn and her equally excited mother received a free 9-inch stuffed Geoffrey. These had been passed out by 10:20 a.m., and more than 500 customers had visited the store by 11:30 a.m. “It definitely is very nostalgic to be here,” Alicia Gachétt said. “I was saying this is a great year for my childhood. First Disney+, then Toys R Us is back.” Loryn went straight to the L.O.L. section, hoping to snag the hard-to-find L.O.L. Surprise O.M.G. Winter Disco 24K D.J. She didn’t find that doll but gladly settled on a Queen Bee furniture kit. “I missed Toys R Us,” Loryn said after exploring the store’s various offerings. The new stores — the first one opened recently in New Jersey — are smaller and more interactive than the former stores, which averaged 40,000 square feet. The Galleria location is 6,473 square feet and carries only about 1,500 best-selling toys. Children can climb a treehouse overlooking a reading nook with artificial grass, small benches and bookshelves. Toward the back of the store is a theater that can host birthday parties and toy events. Though kids are encouraged to play with toys throughout the entire store, and they can even ask staff to open and demonstrate products. In the store’s Nintendo section, Brooklyn took photos of her mom pretending to jump out of the Mario franchise’s famous green pipe. Sherri Allgood liked that the store is bright and interactive. “This one is really improved,” Brooklyn concurred. Toys R Us general manager Elizabeth Lentz loves watching such interactions. She described the store as a place where families can create memories and adults can relive their childhoods. “Right now, they’re experiencing a flashback,” Lentz said. “I can see it all over their faces.” On HoustonChronicle.com: Retailers look to ‘wow’ toys to revive fortunes during holidays Lentz grew up in rural Wisconsin and treasured the rare trips to Toys R Us when visiting her aunt in Madison, Wis. As an adult, she’s worked as a general manager at both Toys R Us and Babies R Us stores. Her daughter, Isabelle, used to pretend she, too, worked at Toys R Us. Geoffrey was her favorite, and so it was difficult last year when Lentz had to explain that Geoffrey was gone. Isabelle turned 6 on the day Toys R Us had a soft opening for friends and family. Lentz, who hadn’t told Isabelle about her new job, surprised her with Geoffrey. “She was ecstatic,” Lentz said. “She was so happy.” It was a sentiment shared by many store employees on Saturday, as roughly half of them are Toys R Us veterans. This new store is an experience they previously wanted to create but knew the company couldn’t afford, as Toys R Us had billions of dollars of private equity debt that forced it to file for bankruptcy in 2017 before going out of business early last year. “We watched our company fade away,” Lentz said. “And now, we’ve watched a new business model come to life. And seeing this many people in a toy store is fantastic.” Staff writer Paul Takahashi contributed to this report. andrea.leinfelder@chron.com Twitter.com/a_leinfelder

Toys R Us opens in Houston with more than 200 people in line

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