In a sad day for all toy-loving tots, Toys ‘R’ Us Australia has collapsed into voluntary administration.
The collapse affects 44 Toys ‘R’ Us and Babies ‘R’ Us stores across Australia. It comes after the American and UK counterparts of the global toy retailer got into similar trouble.
Now Australian customers of the toy shop giant are urged to be quick and use any gift vouchers or pick up any lay-bys. But there’s catch.
Toys ‘R’ Us administration! What does this mean?
Toys ‘R’ Us has always been a popular destination for toys, bikes, games, gadgets and so much more. But this is all set to change as Toys ‘R’ Us goes into administration across Australia.
Essentially, voluntary administration means that the stores will remain open for now while the administrators try to find a buyer or refinance the business. In addition to Toys ‘R’ Us, the administrators are selling the trademarks for Babies ‘R’ Us and Geoffrey the Giraffe.
The directors of Toys ‘R’ Us have appointed voluntary administrators McGrathNicol to help them with the next stage.
What about the employees?
There are 44 Toys ‘R’ Us stores across Australia with 700 jobs at stake. However, according to McGrathNicol, employees will still be paid at this stage:
“The administrators will continue to pay employees and expect that employee entitlements will be met either through a sale of the business, recoveries from the sale of stock, or through the Commonwealth Government’s Fair Entitlements Guarantee (FEG) Scheme.”
What about lay-by?
For those who have gift cards and items on lay-by, now’s the time to use them.
McGrathNicol explains that Toys ‘R’ Us Australia will no longer offer refunds, and gift cards and vouchers will only be honoured if customers spend an additional equivalent amount.
This means that to redeem a $50 gift card, customers will need to spend an extra $50 in store. Gift vouchers can’t be used online.
Online orders and lay-bys will be delivered or honoured where goods had been paid for in full and if stock is available.
Although the news come as a shock and we will certainly miss Toys ‘R’ Us if a buyer can’t be found, the decision was half-expected after Toys ‘R’ Us in America, the UK and Ireland announced their demise in March 2018. At this stage Toys ‘R’ Us remains open in several countries in Europe and Asia as well as Canada.
So where can mums go to bag a bargain if Toys ‘R’ Us shuts up shop for good? We’re sure Kmart and BigW will be bringing out the toy sales very soon! Stay tuned…
