Business Corpus: Toys R Us Could Return Next Year; Kroger To Sell Firm's Brands Over HolidaysA resurrected Toys R Us could boost struggling toy giant Mattel and rival Hasbro. The shuttering of 735 Toys R Us stores resulted in the absence of a place to discover new toys. The post Toys R Us Could Return Next Year; Kroger To Sell Firm's Brands Over Holidays appeared first on Investor's Business Daily.

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There are plans afoot to relaunch Toys R Us next year, while grocery giant Kroger (KR) has announced it will sell the firm's popular brands over the holiday season.

Hedge funds Solus Alternative Asset Management and Angelo Gordon are seeking capital to help revive the chain, insiders told Bloomberg. Such a move could be a boost for toy giants Mattel (MAT) and Hasbro (HAS), who relied on the chain for a large portion of sales.

And a first phase of the recovery plan will see pop-up sections named Geoffrey's Toy Box, in honor of the famous giraffe mascot, appearing in around 600 Kroger stores. Geoffrey's Toy Box is a division of Geoffrey LLC, which owns what remains of Toys R Us' assets.

"Geoffrey's Toy Box delivers a unique shopping destination within Kroger stores," Kroger's senior VP of merchandising Robert Clark said in a press release. "We're excited to offer Geoffrey's Toy Box this holiday season to provide our customers with the opportunity to purchase a selection of toys once exclusive to Toys 'R' Us."

Toys R Us branded merchandise and displays will appear. In total 35 children's toys, priced from $19.99 to $49.99, will be sold. They will include products from Animal Zone, Imaginarium, Journey Girls, Edu Science, You & Me and Just Like Home.

Geoffrey's Toy Box EVP Richard Barry, who was previously global chief merchandising officer at Toys R US, was also upbeat.

"We are thrilled to partner with Kroger to bring a curated collection of product from our beloved portfolio of brands to American consumers this holiday," he said in a release.

However industry watchers, and parents, may be more excited about the prospect of new Toys R Us stores opening. Hopes for a comeback began after creditors last month pulled the plug on an auction to liquidate the firm's assets, believing they can make more money by reviving the retailer than selling off its brand name at a discount.

Toys R Us Good For Toy Stocks

A resurrected Toys R Us could boost struggling toy giant Mattel and rival Hasbro. The shuttering of 735 Toys R Us stores resulted in the absence of a venue where parents can take their children to discover new toys, Jefferies managing director Stephanie Wissink told IBD.

"The Toys R Us of yesteryear was about retail-tainment. It was transactional retail, but also entertainment," she said. "What has happened now is there is this conversation around reviving the Toys R Us experience."

At the moment there is a concentration risk for the firms, as Amazon (AMZN) and Walmart (WMT) could end up accounting for 65% of the market combined.

"While Toys R Us was an important retailer, it was also important to the equilibrium within that top core," she warned. "Target and Toys R Us together were about the size of Walmart, so losing Toys R Us, if Amazon and Walmart are the big share winners, creates a dual-headed retail structure."

Mattel stock rose 1.4% in Friday's stock market trading. Hasbro climbed 0.8%.

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