Lazarus’ first toy-specific store opened in Rockville, Md. Soon after, he switched to toys, on the premise they were less durable goods and in constant demand. A retail and merchandising genius, he had the foresight to see the potential in specializing in toys alone and to invest in a revolutionary computerized inventory system. He served in World War II as a cryptographer, returning from overseas to take over the family shop and replace the bicycle inventory with baby furniture. Overview Charles Lazarus is one of the nations most enterprising and successful entrepreneurs. He grew up helping his father refurbish and resell bicycles. Charles Lazarus, who founded Toys 'R' Us 70 years ago, died Thursday, a week after the company announced it will be forced to shut down its U.S. As many as 33,000 people could lose their jobs.Ĭharles Phillip Lazarus was born Oct. Toys R Us, deeply indebted to its investor ownership, announced the closing of 180 stores in January, another 200 in February, and finally the whole shooting match last week. From an early age he helped his father refurbish broken bicycles and sell them.
Toys R Us was acquired in a leveraged buyout by three hedge funds in 2005, sowing the seeds of its demise today. 4, 1923, in Washington, the son of Frank and Fannie Lazarus. Walmart became the top toy retailer in the United States in 1998. Toys R Us also attracted an adolescent cool with its smooth entry into video game sales as the Nintendo Entertainment System resurrected the market in the late 1980s.īut after Lazarus left, retail toy competition got a lot meaner. Born in 1923, Lazarus served in World War II as a cryptologist before returning home to start a family and a business. His cause of death was not immediately known. Lazarus came up with the store’s childlike motifs, such as the backward R in the logo and mascot Geoffrey the Giraffe. Charles Lazarus, the Toys R Us founder who was affectionately known by those who loved him as the 'Toy King,' has died. Joe and Transformers at every store - made a trip to the big box Toys R Us a reward for a well behaved kid and a lifesaver for a harried parent in mid-December. In the era of pre-Internet retail, Lazarus’ focus of providing dependability - the same comprehensive selection of Barbie, Star Wars, My Little Pony, G.I. In that span, the company was acquired by a larger chain, spun off in bankruptcy, and emerged as a publicly traded company in 1978, widening its expansion across the United States. Lazarus had been chief executive of Toys R Us from its first store in the Maryland suburbs of Washington until 1994. In a sad irony, Charles Lazarus, 94, died the same day that liquidation sales began for 735 of the colorful, wide-eyed toy meccas for children started from a single store in 1957.īloomberg reported that Lazarus died Thursday in New York, quoting a family friend and a former chairman of the company.
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