It's back: Toys R Us to open at Garden State Plaza on Wednesday morning

Melanie Anzidei | NorthJersey

Toys R Us officially is back in business in North Jersey.

The beloved toy brand is making its comeback with the opening its first new U.S. retail store at Westfield Garden State Plaza in Paramus on Wednesday morning — just one day before Thanksgiving Day.

The store will open to the public at 10 a.m., after a ribbon cutting ceremony and media preview earlier that morning, officials said Tuesday morning. The new store, which officials in a press release describe as a "highly experiential small-format retail space," is located on the second level of the mall next to the AMC movie theater, officials said.

The opening is considered a soft launch, with a grand opening scheduled for Saturday, with in-store events, giveaways and character visits.

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After a crippling 2017 holiday season, the toy retailer, then based in Wayne, liquidated its stores across the United States. By February 2019, the company resurrected under a new name, Tru Kids Brands, and with operations in Parsippany.

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The new company later announced in July that it partnered with b8ta, a software-powered experiential retailer, to launch a new kind of Toys R Us store by this year's holiday season. The company's first two stores were expected to open at the Plaza in Paramus and Simon Property Group's The Galleria in Houston this month.

"We have an incredible opportunity to entirely reimagine the Toys R Us brand in the U.S. and are thrilled to partner with b8ta and key toy vendors to create a new, highly engaging retail experience designed for kids, families and to better fit within today’s retail environment," Richard Barry, Tru Kids' chief executive, said in a statement at the time.

Melanie Anzidei is the retail reporter for NorthJersey.com. To get unlimited access to the latest news about store openings and closings in North Jersey’s biggest malls, shopping centers and downtowns, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: anzidei@northjersey.com Twitter: @melanieanzidei