NEW YORK — Toys “R” Us is planning to shutter a fifth of its U.S. stores.
The troubled retailer, which declared bankruptcy in September, is looking to close down as many as 182 outlets across the country, including one in Williamsport, according to a court filing late Tuesday.
Over nearly seven decades in business, Toys “R” Us has built up 1,600 stores around the world. About 880 of them are in the U.S.
The filing Tuesday by the company’s lawyers said the decision to shut so many stores was prompted by increased competition and a shift by customers toward online shopping.
The planned closures, which need court approval, are expected to begin early next month and be mostly completed by the end of April, Toys “R” Us CEO Dave Brandon said in a message to customers posted on the company’s website.
“The actions we are taking are necessary to give us the best chance to emerge from our bankruptcy proceedings as a more viable and competitive company,” he said.
Several other stores will be converted into co-branded Toys “R” Us and Babies “R” Us outlets, Brandon added.
Toys “R” Us stores outside the U.S. are unaffected.
Melanie Teed-Murch, president of Toys “R” Us Canada, said in a statement that all 83 locations there would continue operating as usual.
The news comes after a brutal year for retailers in the U.S. in which store closings more than tripled from the previous year to nearly 7,000 closings, setting a record. There was also an increase in the number of store openings, as more successful retailers moved into vacated locations. But the year marked the first time since the Great Recession of 2009 that there was an absolute decrease in the number of U.S. stores, according to Fung Global Retail & Technology, a retail industry think tank.
Much of the problem in traditional brick-and-mortar stores was because of a shift by consumers to buying more goods online. Foot traffic in stores fell 8% last year, according to Fung.
But the problems at Toys “R” Us predate the growth of online shopping. It suffered from fierce competition and lost market share to fellow big box retailers like Walmart and Target. It has lost nearly $2.5 billion since its last reported an annual profit five years ago, which has left it reeling under $5 billion in debt.
Unlike other retailers that have been steadily closing unprofitable locations, Toys “R” Us continued to add stores right up until recently. It had 1,691 company owned stores as of a year ago, up from 1,622 a year earlier. Still the store closings announcement was not a surprise. CEO Dave Brandon said in December that the company was studying the question of whether to close stores. The bankruptcy process makes it less costly for retailers to break lease on unprofitable locations.
The company’s same-store sales fell 4.4% in the quarter ended October, with its U.S. stores experiencing a sharper drop of 7%. The toy industry at large is also facing headwinds, with key manufacturers like Lego and Mattel struggling with declining sales.
Here is the list of stores on the Toys “R” Us closing list, according to USA Today:
ALABAMA
Tuscaloosa 2600 McFarland Blvd. East AL
Birmingham 335 Summit Boulevard, AL
ARIZONA
Yuma 801 W. 32nd Street AZ
Paradise Valley 12801 North Tatum Blvd. AZ
Scottsdale 9139 Indian Bend Rd. AZ
Tucson 4619 N. Oracle Rd AZ
Scottsdale 7000 E. Mayo Blvd AZ
Mesa US 60 and Signal Butte Rd AZ
ARKANSAS
Little Rock 2616 S. Shackleford Rd AR
CALIFORNIA
Indio 42500 Jackson St. CA
Simi Valley 1189 Simi Town Ctr Way CA
Santa Clarita 26573 Carl Boyer Dr. CA
Covina 960 Lakes Drive CA
Puente Hills 1600 S. Azusa Ave. CA
Brea 2575 E. Imperial Highway CA
Westminster 530 Westminster Mall CA
Torrance 20120 Hawthorne Blvd. CA
Riverside 2550 Canyon Springs Pkwy S. CA
Yuba City 700 “A” Onstott Rd. CA
Folsom 2785 E. Bidwell St. CA
Pinole 1330 Fitzgerald CA
Pittsburg 4505 Century Blvd. CA
San Rafael 600 Francisco Blvd. CA
Brentwood 5461 Lone Tree Way CA
Fairfield 1400 Gateway Blvd CA
Emeryville 3938 Horton CA
E. San Jose 2179 Monterey Hwy CA
San Jose / Almade865 Blossom Hill Road CA
Fresno 3520 W. Shaw Ave. CA
Union City 31250 Court House Drive CA
Stockton 10640 Trinity Pkwy CA
Santa Ana 3900 Bristol Street CA
Corona 3665 Grand Oaks CA
Mission Bay 1240 W. Morena Blvd. CA
Mira Mesa 8181 Mira Mesa Blvd. CA
Vista 1990 University Drive CA
COLORADO
Aurora 1150 S. Ironton CO
CONNECTICUT
North Haven 376 North Universal Drive CT
Waterbury 275 Union St. CT
Newington 3491 Berlin Turnpike CT
Manchester 169 Hale Road CT
DELAWARE
Dover 1061 N. Dupont Highway DE
FLORIDA
Tallahassee 1625 Apalachee Pkwy. FL
St. Petersburg 1900 Tyrone Blvd. FL
Tampa 3908 West Hillsborough Avenue FL
Orange Park 6001 Argyle Forest Blvd FL
Altamonte Spring 708 West State Rd 436 FL
Boca Raton 21697 State Road # 7 FL
Port St. Lucie 10732 SW Village Pkwy FL
Royal Palm Beach450 South SR 7 FL
Kissimmee 2601 W.Osceola Parkway FL
Coral Springs 6001 West Sample Road FL
Kissimmee 3214 N John Young Pkwy. FL
GEORGIA
Albany 2601 Dawson Rd. GA
Smyrna 2955 Cobb Parkway GA
Alpharetta 6380 No. Point Parkway GA
Dunwoody 1155 Mt. Vernon Hwy GA
Douglasville 6875 Douglas Boulevard GA
Conyers 8160 Mall Parkway GA
Newnan 221 Newnan Crossing Bypass GA
Fayetteville 132 Pavilion Parkway GA
INDIANA
Indianapolis 3928 E 82nd Street IN
Greenwood 8800 US 31 South IN
IOWA
S. Des Moines 1211 E. Army Post Rd. IA
Des Moines 8801 University Ave IA
ILLINOIS
Highland Park 1610 Deerfield Rd. IL
Schaumburg 16 East Golf Road IL
Vernon Hills 295 Center Drive IL
Matteson 5001 Lincoln Highway IL
Bricktown 6420 W. Fullerton IL
Burbank 7750 South Cicero Avenue IL
Niles 5660 Touhy Avenue IL
KANSAS
Wichita 4646 W. Kellogg KS
Overland Park 8500 W 135th ST KS
KENTUCKY
St. Mathews 4900 Shelbyville Rd KY
Simpsonville 1155 Buck Creek Rd. KY
Lexington 1965 Star Shoot Parkway KY
LOUISIANA
Slidell 137 Northshore Blvd. LA
Muskegon 5363 Harvey Street MI
Traverse City 2620 Crossing Circle MI
Lansing 5900 W. Saginaw Highway MI
Grand Rapids 4923 28th Street South East MI
Ann Arbor 3725 Carpenter Road MI
Ann Arbor 3725 Washtenaw MI
MINNESOTA
Minnetonka 14100 Wayzata Blvd. MN
Blaine 170 89th Ave. MN
Woodbury 8236 Tamarack Village MN
Richfield 900 West 78th Street South MN
MISSISSIPPI
Meridian 1003 Bonita Lakes Circle
Bass Pro Dr. MS
MISSOURI
Columbia 1901 Bernadette MO
Cape Girardeau 201 Silver Springs Rd. MO
Bridgeton 5590 St. Louis Mills Blvd MO
Chesterfield 220 THF Blvd MO
NEBRASKA
Omaha 3505 S. 140th Plaza NE
NEVADA
Las Vegas 2150 North Rainbow Blvd. NV
Spring Valley 7020 Arroyo Crossing Parkway NV
NEW MEXICO
Albuquerque 45 Hotel Circle NM
NORTH CAROLINA
Asheville 801 Fairview Road NC
Durham 7001 Fayetteville Road NC
Durham 3300 Westgate Drive NC
MAINE
Bangor 6 Bangor Mall Blvd. ME
Portland 200 Running Hill Road ME
MARYLAND
Clinton 8401 Mike Shapiro Drive MD
MASSACHUSETTS
Dedham 302 Providence MA
Millbury 70 Worcester Providence Tpk/Rt 146 MA
Holyoke 50 Holyoke Street MA
Bellingham 217 Hartford Ave. MA
Northborough 6110 Shops Way MA
Framingham Shoppers World Plaza,1 Worcester Ro MA
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Nashua 29 Gusabel Avenue NH
NEW JERSEY
Phillipsburg 1280 Rt. 22 & St. James Ave. NJ
Eatontown 137 Route 35 NJ
Bridgewater 100 Promenade Blvd. NJ
Union 2700 Route 22 East. NJ
North Brunswick 909 US Hwy 1 South. NJ
Burlington Rt. 541 & Cadillac Road NJ
Cherry Hill 2135 Route 38 NJ
Wayne 7 Wayne Hills Mall NJ
Paramus 545 Route 17 South NJ
East Hanover 98 Route 10 West. NJ
Elizabeth-KidsWo 900 Center Drive NJ
Mt. Olive 50 International Drive South. NJ
NEW YORK
College Point 139-19 20th Ave NY
Union Square 24-30 Union Square E NY
Sayville 5181 Sunrise Hwy NY
Massapequa 5214 Sunrise Hwy NY
Henrietta 2335 Marketplace Drive NY
Amherst 1569 Niagara Falls Blvd NY
Kingston 401 Frank Sottile Boulevard NY
Glens Falls 708 Upper Glen St. NY
Latham 221 Wade Road Extension NY
Yonkers 2700 Central Park Ave NY
Middle Village 66 Metropolitan Ave. NY
Westbury 1350 Corporate Drive. NY
Commack 108 Veterans Memorial Highway NY
Williamsport 461 Lycoming Mall Cir
Greece 1530 Ridge Rd. West NY
OHIO
Western Hills 6251 Glenway Ave. OH
Dayton 2661 Miamisburg-Centerville Rd. OH
Mentor 7841 Mentor Ave OH
Dublin 3610 West Dublin-Granville Rd. OH
OKLAHOMA
Oklahoma City 1119 SE 66th St. OK
Fort Smith 5609-E Rogers Ave OK
Norman 560 Ed Noble Pkwy. OK
PENNSYLVANIA
461 Lycoming Mall Circle, Williamsport, PA
Horsham 100 Welsh Road PA
Erie 6680 Peach St. PA
Monroeville 3700 William Penn Highway PA
Exton 104 Bartlett Ave. PA
Ross Park Mall 2003 Cheryl Dr. PA
Washington 301 Oakspring Road PA
Beaver Valley Route 18/Valley View Dr. PA
RHODE ISLAND
Warwick 300 Quaker Lane
SOUTH CAROLINA
Columbia 254 Harbison Boulevard SC
SOUTH DAKOTA
Rapid City 450 E. Disk Drive SD
TENNESSEE
Memphis 7676 Polo Ground Blvd. TN
Nashville 5731 Nolensville Rd TN
TEXAS
West El Paso 801 Mesa Hills Dr. TX
Katy 9730 Katy Freeway TX
Allen 170 E. Stacy Road TX
Irving 7730 N. MacArthur Blvd TX
Lewisville 420 E. Round Grove Rd TX
Dallas Galleria 13710 Dallas Parkway TX
Hurst 1309 W. Pipeline Rd TX
Hulen 5800 Overton Ridge Blvd TX
UTAH
Ogden 4042 Riverdale Rd. UT
Midvale 1122 Fort Union Boulevard UT
VIRGINIA
Potomac Mills 14173 Crossing Place VA
Newport News 12153 Jefferson Ave. VA
WASHINGTON
Silverdale 3567 N.W. Randall Way WA
Everett 1325A S.E. Everett Mall Parkway WA
Spokane 6104 N. Division Street WA
WISCONSIN
Brookfield 18550 W. Bluemound Rd. WI
Madison 2161 Zeier Road WI
