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NEW YORK – FAO Schwarz returns to New York three years after the closure of his beloved toy store, Fifth Avenue.
A new FAO opened Friday at Rockefeller Center in Manhattan, about 10 blocks from its former home near Central Park.
For more than 150 years, FAO Schwarz was famous in New York for its chic and sometimes extremely expensive toys. The fantasyland store opened on Fifth Avenue in 1986 was a tourist attraction, bursting with its own theme, porters resembling palace guards and a musical steeple. The financial problems of the parent company and rising rents closed the store in 2015, but FAO is pulling out of the worst financial precipice since it was established in 1862.
In recent weeks, at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, workers have drilled, hammered and sawed 24 hours a day to prepare the new store. Employees have filled shelves of hundreds of stuffed animals that have long defined the brand: bears, rabbits, elephants, chicks, etc. The big clock tower of entry is back. And at the second level of the 20,000 square foot space is a giant piano keyboard mat like the one Tom Hanks danced for "Heart and Soul" in the 1988 movie "Big"
The 20-foot-long instrument with 60 keys is visible on the ceiling for people in the downstairs place. Replicas for sale cost $ 128.
There is also a toy store where children can buy artificial products, small trolleys, a cash counter and kitchen utensils. For $ 75, another interactive station allows children to adopt dolls, while a 'nurse' gives lessons on how to take charge of them.
Live magic shows will be held nearby, next to a remote-controlled custom car assembly site. A 27-foot-tall rocket is teeming with teddy bear astronauts.
"We are about experiences. This is different from other toy stores, "said David Niggli, FAO's Derivatives Manager.
As part of a global marketing campaign, ephemeral FAO stores are also opening for holidays in England, Spain and Australia. A permanent rollout is planned for March in a store located in a shopping mall in Beijing, in addition to smaller outlets at airports and elsewhere in the United States and Canada.
FAO Schwarz has seen several business acquisitions in recent years as retailers struggled to adapt to online sales. It was bought in 2002 by Right Start Inc., which has filed for bankruptcy twice. Toys "R" Us was the next owner. She sold the FAO name to ThreeSixty Brands, a California-based company, in 2016 before declaring bankruptcy herself.
The FAO was founded in 1862 by Frederick August Otto Schwarz, a German immigrant, specializing in high-end toys, some imported from Europe.
In the 20th century, in stores across the country, fancy goods included a $ 1,500 Etch-A-Sketch with jewelry and a $ 25,000 Barbie-themed dark pink foosball table.
There are some extravagant items in the new store, but a lot of low-priced items, too.
"We have nice crafts here, like rocking horses, but we also have items that cost $ 10," Niggli said. "There will always be some of these superfluous elements. I think that's part of what you come to see at FAO. It's part of the magic. "
The most luxurious object on sale could be a child-sized Mercedes-Benz, drivable, encrusted with 44,000 Swarovski crystals. Base price: $ 25,000.
"This is the heart of FAO. These are the classics and "Oh, wow things" that you've never seen before, Niggli said.
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