Toys R Us bets on FAO Schwarz pop-up stores, plans broader selection of toys for holidays

Toys R Us will open temporary FAO Schwarz stores

NEW YORK — Toys R Us plans to open 10 FAO Schwarz pop-up stores, giving new life to a brand it recently acquired that was down to just two locations.

The move is latest piece of the toy retailer’s aggressive plan to gain market share in a weak economy. Toys R Us is also opening 600 Toys R Us pop-up stores and adding exclusive toys and its own “R” label toys.

Toys R Us, which bought the assets of the high-end retailer FAO Schwarz after it filed for bankruptcy protection in 2009, already has a separate area in all of its stores for FAO Schwarz-branded toys.

The pop-up stores will be at high-end malls such as Aventura Mall in Aventura, Fla. Two have already opened.

Toys R Us is based in Wayne, N.J.