K·B Toys (also known as Kay Bee Toys) is a defunct American chain of mall-based retail toy stores in the United States. Founded in 1922, it operated, at its height, 1,200 stores across all 50 states, and went out of business in 2009. International retailer Toys "R" Us acquired the remains of K·B Toys, consisting mainly of its website, trademarks, and intellectual property rights. Strategic Marks, a company that buys and revives defunct brands, purchased the brand and intends to open new stores under the name beginning in late 2018.
Video KB Toys
History
Operations
Brothers Donald and Richard Kaufman originally opened a wholesale candy store, Kaufman Brothers, in Pittsfield, Massachusetts in 1922. During the 1940s, the brothers acquired a wholesale toy company from a candy client who owed them money for outstanding debts. In 1948, the brothers ended their involvement in the candy business to focus entirely on the toy business, which was thriving by that time. In 1973, the company ended its toy wholesaling to become a toy retailer known as Kay-Bee Toy & Hobby. The company had 26 stores at the time. In 1977, the company name changed to Kay-Bee Toy and Hobby Shops Inc. In 1981, the Melville Corporation purchased the company and renamed it Kay-Bee Toy Stores. Richard Kaufman retired that year from his position as company president. At the time, the company had 210 stores.
In 1982, Kay-Bee acquired Circus World's 330 stores, as well as Toy World's 52 stores. Kay-Bee subsequently acquired K&K Toys' 133 stores in 1991. During 1993 and 1994, as part of a major restructuring plan, Kay-Bee closed approximately 250 stores that had underperformed. The company became a direct competitor to Toys "R" Us in 1994, when it expanded its mall locations and began opening stores known as KB Toy Works. In 1996, Kay-Bee had sales of $1.1 billion, and was sold that year to Consolidated Stores Corporation at a cost of $300 million. Company sales reached $1.6 billion in 1998, the same year that its merchandise website was launched. The store logo was also changed to "KB" that year.
In December 2000, Bain Capital purchased the company for $305 million. Starting in 2001, KB Toys opened temporary "stores within a store" at select Sears department stores during the Christmas season. In January 2004, the company filed for bankruptcy protection and closed more than 600 stores, resulting in the layoffs of more than 3,400 employees. The company exited Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2005, with 90 percent of its ownership under Prentice Capital Management. In August 2007, the company announced a business strategy that included layoffs at its headquarters in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. That November, the company had 566 stores and began closing 122 of them.
The company used the slogans "America's Toy Store," "Hot We Got, at KB," and "The Toy Store in the Mall." At the time of its liquidation, KB Toys operated three distinct store formats: KB Toys, KB Toy Works (the result of a merger between KB Toys and The Toy Works), and KB Toys Outlet (aka Toy Liquidators). KB Toys stores were mostly found in the company's traditional base of shopping malls, where many of its stores were located for years. KB Toy Works stores were typically found in outdoor strip malls. KB Toys Outlet and Toy Liquidators stores, as the name implies, were usually found in outlet centers/malls.
Liquidation
The company filed for bankruptcy on December 11, 2008, and the chain began going-out-of-business sales that month. At the time, the company had 10,850 employees, including approximately 6,500 seasonal workers. The company had 277 mall locations, 114 KB Toy Outlet stores, 40 KB Toy Works stores, and 30 KB Toys Holiday stores, for a total of 461, down from its peak of 1,200 stores. It was the largest mall-based toy retailer in the United States at the time, operating in 44 states, as well as Guam and Puerto Rico. It was also the second-oldest operating toy retailer in North America (behind FAO Schwarz) before its demise. The store-closing sales (as well as the termination of the company's website) were concluded on February 9, 2009.
The K·B Toys brand and related intangible assets were sold by Streambank LLC to Toys "R" Us on September 4, 2009, for a reported $2.1 million. Because K·B Toys's stores had been closed and liquidated, the sale applied mainly to the company's logo, website, trademarks, and other intellectual properties. Toys "R" Us was initially unsure of how to integrate the K·B name into its business plan. Toys "R" Us has used the K·B Toys name on self-manufactured toys under the name "KB Classics" with the K·B Toys logo.
Revival
In 2016, Strategic Marks LLC registered a trademark for KB Toys, after Toys "R" Us allowed the previous registration to lapse. Founder Ellia Kassoff stated that due to Toys "R" Us going out of business, they plan to have 1,000 pop-up stores up and running before Christmas 2018. After the holiday season, Kassoff will decide which stores will then become permanent.
Maps KB Toys
References
External links
- Official website (Archived)
- Exhibit A Delaware Bankruptcy Court Chapter 11 Document
- "KB Toys emerges from bankruptcy, names Toys 'R' Us exec as CEO", BizJournals.com
- "KB Toys files for Chapter 11 after cutthroat holiday season", usatoday.com
Source of article : Wikipedia
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