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Sorry Not Sorry, Toys R Us
Several months ago, word got out that Toys R Us and Babies R Us would be filing for some bankruptcy protections and closing some stores. Today they officially announced they would be closing all of their stores, as early as this week.
Seeing today’s news from a mile away when that first announcement hit a few months ago, I decided to use up all of the gift cards we had received over the course of the last years of having babies. I had several hundred dollars worth, and went on the website, and later, in store when I couldn’t find anything I wanted on the website. Eventually, I just decided to buy a dozen cases of diapers and wipes, knowing I would at least go through them eventually (I have three kids four years old and younger).
After spending over an hour on the website trying to purchase these diapers (which were cheaper on Amazon), I decided to try to make the purchase over the phone. I was on the line almost another hour and a half before I was able to complete the purchase and use up all of the cards I had. I decided to buy a few pairs of socks to round out the order, and half of those socks never arrived, and I received notice that they were out of stock several weeks later. Not wanting to spend another two hours trying to use up my remaining $10 in gift cards, I ate the rest and washed my hands of dealing with them again.
A few weeks later, I had to go into a store while on vacation in Los Angeles because I lost my baby carrier. It was a similar experience; I called ahead to see if they had the items I wanted, and after spending twenty minutes on hold, I was given a non-commital “yes, probably.” I went into the store, which was dirty, disorganized and half-stocked, and wandered for 30 minutes looking for someone to help me find the item. When I could find no sales associate and ran out of patience, I called the store while inside the store asking where the baby carriers were. I eventually located the baby carriers, and checked out, spending more money than I would have directly from the company or on Amazon (I needed it immediately, for the flight home).
I’m always sad to see businesses close and individuals lose their jobs. With the closures of a lot of these brick and mortars, though, I’m starting to think that it’s the market just correcting itself. We were once at the mercy of giant stores like Toys R Us and Sears; we had few choices for places to shop for the items they carried. But now thanks to the Internet, I could have purchased that baby carrier from Amazon if there’s a sale, directly from the company, or from a small boutique baby shop in Tennessee (I’ve purchased baby carriers from all three; yes I have a lot).
I once had fond memories of visiting Toys R Us and picking out toys with my mother for special occasions; now my children imagine a toy they want, and we sit together trying to find out of it exists somewhere on the Internet. The experience of visiting a store was special, but the Internet holds a different kind of magic.
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Good point. I used to go to the smoking store, the book store, and the knife shop. But most mall stores are geared towards women.
Except for Victoria’s secret. Once it looked had a simple, elegant and inviting storefront. Now it has a large, glossy, trashy storefront and looks like it caters to an audience that’s not your mall-going family.
Or they’ll mandate cardboard recycling.
“I decided to buy a few pairs of socks to round out the order…”
Of course you did!
There is more than enough space on the continent to bury whatever the hell we want
I blame the pernicious effects of Frederick’s of Hollywood coupled with Victoria’s long-held secret getting out.
Cardboard is already recycled in a lot of places (here on Cape Cod, for example), so perhaps the Amazon packing materials will be spared.
I can see this going either way in the future.
Being a liberal arts guy, math is not my strong point, but looking at this graphic, I have to wonder what OkieSailor does that gets him paid $330 an hour. I also note that the unnamed woman is apparently worth only about $250 an hour. Clear sexism!
(Also, if this posts the graphic three times with this comment, it shows that computer skills are not my strong point either.)
I’d have disagreed 5 or 6 years ago. Shopping on the internet is fun, but a lot like looking at toys in the giant Christmas catalogs. Toys R Us and KB were special events when we visited a bigger city. They made it possible to check out toys that my friends didn’t have and that wasn’t in the toy aisle at Wal Mart or Target. I could judge whether they measured up to the catalog or an ad, and frequently the specialty stores got stuff that was available in their stores exclusively.
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Sometimes I’d check out a toy in the store and realize it was smaller than it had appeared to be, or it was plastic with decals when I expected tampos on die-cast, or the proportions were wrong on a model or the sculpting was awful on a figure. ‘Awww, that’s not what I imagined. It’s cheap junk.’ On the other hand, there were times I’d see it and think, ‘I want it. I want it. I want it.” About 6 weeks later when we were at the store again I’d have saved up enough and I’d get it!
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Not too long ago a kid buying a toy off the internet was taking a chance they’d end up with junk. Now, though, there’s an unboxing vid on youtube for practically everything. Collectibles are well done, with channels that do careful inspections and review the product with a lot of attention to detail.
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I still think the way it worked when I was a kid was more fun though.
Yes- the import aisle, with toys from properties that weren’t on American TV!
I don’t think my family every realize just how much I so wanted those kinds of toys.
My main childhood memory of Toys R Us is wanting one of those cool motorized vehicles. They probably moved slower than a lizard. But something with a motor and brakes seemed cooler at the time than the pushcart we built with a rope to steer.
I found that pushcart stashed away a few years ago and was disappointed my nephews didn’t want it.
When is the last time you made a toy?
We crafted some cardboard swords and shields a while back. The kids loved them.
My lovely wife made our girl a robot costume out of cardboard boxes and cardboard packing. CC loves it.
I go to a board game store that has toys every week (as I can). But it’s in Eastern Market, D.C., so that may prove your point. I will say, that the staff there can normally answer any questions a bout the games. In fact, I’ve played games with most of them. And to be honest, the next games I buy, I’ll likely do there.
That is soooo true! I’m on about my tenth time playing Skyrim, the best computer RPG ever, IMHO. I can’t help it – I always end up running the Thieves Guild and Dark Brotherhood . . .
Agreed! Not playing SkyrimVR now by chance? If I wasn’t such a poor bum, I’d buy a PS4 and PSVR just for that.
I was actually tempted by VR just for this. Love the game. It’s the one I really wish I had a little time to play.
Tempting, but I have to know how the visual interface works with the weapon (and other) controls. That, and I need a new laptop with more horsepower (in the works, just have to get the wife
drunkconvinced enough to let me order it) . . .It can be played either with VR wands or with a traditional controller. VR comfort varies from person to person, but many players seem to do fine with a regular console controller. I’m sure aspects of the sticks are preferable at times, but I imagine I would prefer smooth movement to teleportation.
The sense of scale alone would be worth it. I spend so much time in Skyrim just admiring landscapes and scenes.
Incidentally, Sea of Thieves releases on Tuesday and I highly recommend it. I’m told both Xbox and PC players can subscribe to Game Pass to try it (along with dozens of other games) for cheap, if you don’t want buy it outright. It’s a Play Anywhere game, so buying it on one platform grants access on both. Rare plans to expand the game for free over the next 5-10 years. Look for my gamertag on the ghost ship!