WHP Global, which acquired the rights to the Toys R Us brand after the 2010s demise of that chain, is following through on a plan to open locations as stores-within-a-store in every Macy’s in the United States. There are nearly 450 Macy's department store locations.

The openings will begin this month and roll out through mid-October, with in-store shops that range from 1K SF to 10K SF in flagship locations in Atlanta, Chicago, Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York and San Francisco, according to Macy's.

The footprint of the stores may grow temporarily by 500 SF to 3K SF during the holiday season to offer an even wider assortment of products.

Since last August, Toys R Us-branded merchandise has been available not only at a Toys R Us website but also on a subpage of Macy's online store.

“The customer response to our partnership with Toys R Us has been incredible and our toy business has seen tremendous growth,” Macy's Chief Merchandising Officer Nata Dvir said in a statement.

The rollout follows the opening of a 20K SF experiential Toys R Us store, a two-floor location in the massive American Dream mall in New Jersey, ahead of the holiday season in 2021. That location features interactive experiences and product demonstrations, as well as a café, an ice cream shop and a two-story slide.

The store-within-a-store concept has been picking up in recent years. Macy’s has been experimenting with various concepts as a way to draw consumers in amid a softening in department stores, and Target has gotten in the game, too, notably with a partnership with Disney.