Back in 2016, ThreeSixty Group announced the acquisition of the FAO Schwarz brand from the pre-bankruptcy Toys “R” Us, quickly making plans to resurrect it into retail. 2017 presented an unfortunate almost-misstep, with FAO launching pop-ups in Bon-Ton Stores (including Carson Pirie Scott and Younkers, among others) just ahead of that company’s collapse. A minor hiccup in the grand scheme, FAO Schwarz put on an impressive show at the 115th North American International Toy Fair in New York City back in February, having announced plans for a new flagship location in NYC, along with a partnership with Hudson Group to bring stores into airports across the country. Now we know where the first location will be, and appropriately – it’s in New York’s LaGuardia airport in the redesigned Terminal B.
This will be the first FAO Schwarz airport and travel destination store of its kind, featuring signature FAO Schwarz toys and games along with candies from FAO Schweetz. No word yet on an opening date, but as someone who flies into NYC via LaGuardia pretty often, I’m looking forward to seeing this come to life.
As the FAO brand comes back to retail, I’m also curious about the FAO Schwarz-branded toys. I traditionally haven’t been a fan of what ThreeSixty Group has offered under their Discovery line (my opinion is that they’ve been low-quality and devoid of innovation), so I’d hope that they’ll be sourcing high-quality offerings that can live up to the legacy of the FAO brand. Stay tuned…
