FAO Schwarz

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F.A.O. Schwarz
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryRetail
Founded1862
HeadquartersNew York, New York
ProductsToys,Clothing
ParentD. E. Shaw & Co.
WebsiteF.A.O Schwarz.com

FAO Schwarz is the name of an upscale specialty toy retailer headquartered in New York City. FAO Schwarz was founded in 1862 under the name Toy Bazaar by German immigrant Frederick August Otto Schwarz, in Baltimore, where he and his brothers retailed toys from a fancy-goods store. Additional locations of Toy Bazaar followed in Philadelphia and Boston. However, it was the New York City location, where the name was changed to FAO Schwarz, that dominated the others in the family business after it was opened in 1870. The toy store became well-known for its unique plush toys and memorable environment that pioneered "entertainment retail," the philosophy that a store should be an experience for its attendees. In 1931 the New York location was moved to the southeast corner of 58th Street and Fifth Avenue (the site currently occupied by the Bergdorf Goodman Men's store).

File:2004-12-12 - New York (10).jpg
The FAO Schwarz bear sitting outside the flagship Fifth Avenue store.

Expansion and retreat

In 1963 the Schwarz family sold the business to Parent's Magazine. The business was subsequently sold to W.R. Grace in 1970, and to toy retailer Franz Carl Weber International of Zurich, Switzerland in 1974. Weber sold FAO Schwarz to the Christiana Companies in 1986, and the business was sold shortly afterward to Christiana Companies CEO Peter Harris and investor Peter C. Morse. In 1986 the New York Store was moved across 58th Street to its current location in the General Motors Building. FAO Schwarz was acquired by Dutch retail group KBB in 1990; Morse left the company, but Harris remained as CEO until 1992, when he was replaced by John Eyler. In 1998, KBB was acquired by Vendex NV, another Dutch retailer. Throughout the 1990s, FAO Schwarz opened new stores; the chain's peak occurred in 2000 when a total of 42 stores were located throughout the United States as KBB.

FAO Schweetz

In addition to FAO Schwarz toy stores, starting in 1996 standalone candy stores branded as "FAO Schweetz" were opened in Miami, at the Source Mall in Long Island, NY, at Old Orchard Shopping Center in Skokie, Illinois and at Water Tower Place in Chicago.

Bankruptcy

In 2001, The Right Start Company bought 23 of the 42 stores from Vendex, and the other nineteen unsold stores were immediately closed. In December 2003, Right Start, the parent of FAO Schwarz, filed for bankruptcy. They would emerge from bankruptcy in April 2004.

D. E. Shaw & Co.

In February 2004, investment firm D. E. Shaw & Co., L.P., acquired the FAO Schwarz brand, the FAO Schwarz stores in New York and Las Vegas, and FAO Schwarz's catalog and internet business. The New York and Las Vegas stores were reopened on Thanksgiving day 2004.

Macys

In October 2007, FAO Schwarz opened a 5,300 sq. ft store within the Macy's Chicago State Street flagship store (formerly Marshall Field's), which leaded to additional 275 F.A.O. Schwarz/Macy's locations opening up across the country in the 2008 Holiday Season. [1]

Best & Co

In November 2007, FAO Schwarz acquired premium children's clothing company Best & Co., which has plans to expand. [2]

New York City location

The New York City store, located in the General Motors Building at Fifth Avenue and 58th Street in Manhattan, is the most popular F.A.O. Schwarz store, and a famous destination in the city. The store was redesigned by architect David Rockwell of The Rockwell Group in collaboration with Paul Gregory of Focus Lighting in 2004. The Fifth Avenue flagship store now features a large open front area and award-winning lighting[1] which includes almost 80,000 LED lights mounted on the ceiling above the main atrium space.

Inside, the piano, as featured in Big.

The "Big" Piano

The New York store was featured in the 1988 Tom Hanks film Big, in which Hanks and Robert Loggia danced "Heart & Soul" and "Chopsticks" on the store's large floor piano. It is said that Robert Loggia's character is based on then-CEO Peter Harris.[2]

Locations

Flagship stores

Illinois

  • Chicago - State Street (Flagship location)

Nevada

  • Las Vegas - Forum Shops at Caesars Palace (Flagship location)

New York

  • New York City - Fifth Avenue at 58th Street (Flagship location)

Stores/Macys

Arizona

California

  • Concord - Sun Valley Mall
  • Daly City - Serramonte Center
  • Mission Viejo - Shops at Mission Viejo
  • Pleasanton - Stoneridge Shopping Center
  • Santa Ana - Westfield Main Place
  • San Francisco - Union Square
  • San Diego - Fashion Valley


Florida

Georgia

Hawaii

Illinois

Indiana

Kentucky

  • Florence - Florence Mall

Massachusetts


Minnesota

New Jersey

New York

Ohio

  • Cincinnati - Kenwood Towne Center

Oregon

  • Portland - Clackamus Town Center
  • Tigard - Washington Square

Pennsylvania

Texas

  • Houston - Memorial City Shopping Center

Wisconsin

Film references

References

  1. ^ "Lumen Award Winners 2005". IESNY. Retrieved 2007-06-02.
  2. ^ Big (1988) - Trivia
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