Although the final straw for the company was a £15m VAT bill the writing had been on the wall for some time as the company struggled with finances and attempts to sell the company were unsuccessful. However, the business has been criticised by some for pricing stock too highly compared to similar items on the market.
Another key reason for the stores closing and the the decline in sales was competition from online companies such as Amazon and others. The fact that less customers go to a physical store for goods as more people shop online than ever before was also a contributory factor.
So far a third of branches have shut down and others will be closing in the future. However, the bonus for customers is that there are bargains to be had with big discounts in the remaining stores, and gift cards and vouchers will still be honoured in stores subject to conditions.
Moorfields Advisory were appointed in February 2018 to undertake the closures after the bid to sell the firm had failed. This was partly due to the complexities of how the company is run with a number of subsidiaries and the difficulties that a buyer would have in acquiring the rights to use the company name held by the U.S. parent business.
For many the closure of Toys R Us will be the end of an era representing an iconic name and brand in the UK retail industry.
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