Babies "R" Us to return with store at American Dream mall

(Reuters) - Babies "R" Us will reopen its first store at New Jersey's American Dream Mall this summer, nearly five years after its parent Toys "R" Us closed shop across the country, the retailer's owner WHP Global said on Tuesday.

Babies "R" Us was the go-to destination for parents looking for cribs, pacifiers and diaper bags until stores were shut in June 2018. WHP Global said the new store in New Jersey sets the stage for a national rollout in the future.

Toys "R" Us filed for bankruptcy protection in late 2017, straining under a $2.5 billion debt pile. At the time, its bankruptcy was the biggest collapse of a U.S. retailer by assets since Kmart in 2002.

In late 2021, WHP Global also reopened the first Toys "R" Us store at the American Dream mall, while also expanding its partnership with Macy's Inc in 2022 to bring the brand to all of its department stores in the country.

WHP Global in 2021 had bought a controlling interest in Toys "R" Us parent Tru Kids Inc, which was owned by investment funds including Solus Alternative Asset Management.

(Reporting by Ananya Mariam Rajesh in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)