FAO Schwartz in Galleria to close
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Alecia Foster
DOWNTOWN -- FAO Schwarz in the Glendale Galleria will become a
casualty in The Right Start Inc.’s acquisition of the toy store chain.
The store was one of 18 throughout the country that will be closed as
part of the acquisition. There are 41 FAO Schwarz stores nationally.
Officials for Calabasas-based The Right Start Inc. said it would be
several days before they announced which stores would be closing.
Galleria officials, however, learned shortly after the acquisition
announcement, said Joanne Brosi, general manager of the mall.
When the store would be closing is not yet known, she said. Thirty
employees work at the Glendale location.
Officials at both The Right Start Inc. and FAO Schwarz could not be
reached for comment Friday.
Earlier in the week, The Right Start Chief Executive Officer Jerry
Welch indicated that FAO Schwarz stores near The Right Start and Zany
Brainy stores would probably not be targeted for closure. The Galleria
store is near both.
The $58-million sale is expected to be finalized by early January.
Jackie Fernandez, a partner in Deloitte & Touche’s retail sales group,
called the acquisition of FAO Schwarz interesting.
Each company caters to a different crowd, with Schwarz offering more
of the higher-end specialty toys and The Right Start focusing on
educational toys and games, she said.
While there didn’t seem to be any trends in toy company buyouts, being
a toy retailer is a tough market to be in these days, Fernandez said.
“The ones who have higher prices struggle a little,” she said.
“Everyone is looking for a bargain.”
During the past few years, toy stores have faced growing competition
from chains such as Wal-Mart and Kmart, which buy toys in bulk and are
able to offer lower prices.
As for the Galleria, officials there said while they would be sad to
see the FAO Schwarz store close, they didn’t predict any problems in
leasing the space.
“We feel that’s such a great location that many retailers would want
it,” Brosi said.