Toys "R" Us Canada first arrived in 1984 and had consisted of independent stores, seasonal businesses within department stores and one major toy-store chain, Toys & Wheels, which had later when defunct in 1995. These were massive destination stores that would carry everything in their particular niche category. The first store was opened in
Brampton, Ontario in 1978 followed by dozens of more. The stores were set up as massive, 50,000-square-foot, stand alone destination stores, such as the outlet that opened in 1990 on Lougheed Highway in Coquitlam. In September 2017, Toys "R" Us filed for
Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, and closed all U.S. locations in June 2018. Toys "R" Us pursued a sale of the Canadian division, including the possibility of bundling them with top-performing U.S. stores. The Canadian unit had annual sales of $1.08 billion at the time of the filing, and had to file for protection from its creditors due to the
default of its U.S.-based businesses. In April 2018, it was announced that
Fairfax Financial would acquire the 82 Toys "R" Us locations in Canada for $300 million, with the stores continuing to use the Toys "R" Us name. A couple of months later, the first Canadian store to close was in
Richmond Hill, Ontario. In 2021,
Sunrise Records owner
Doug Putman, through his Putman Investments, announced he would buy Toys "R" Us Canada (which now comprised 81 locations) from Fairfax Financial. In January 2024, the chain announced that it would revive the
HMV brand in Canada (which Putman had acquired via Sunrise in 2019) as a
store-within-a-store concept at Toys "R" Us Canada locations, stocking music, home video, and memorabilia such as books and clothing. The departments began to launch at selected locations in the Greater Toronto Area, and were expected to be deployed at other locations throughout the year. Later in 2024, large quantities of overstock from the failed
Rooms + Spaces chain was moved into Toys "R" Us Canada stores. In October 2025, the chain announced it had suffered a major data breach.
Creditor lawsuits and mass store closures On February 3, 2026, Toys "R" Us Canada filed for creditor protection. All Toys "R" Us stores will remain open during this process. Toronto court records show several parties, including landlords and suppliers, have filed more than 20 lawsuits seeking $31.8 million (CAD) against the Canadian chain of toy stores over property, mortgage, contract and debt disagreements in the past two years. The claims have not been tested in court. Toys "R" Us currently owes at least $120 million to its vendors Only 18 Canadian stores remain open - 10 in
Ontario, 2 in
Saskatchewan, 2 in
Manitoba, 3 in
Alberta and 1 in
Quebec. All of the Toys "R" Us locations within
British Columbia have shut down with the chain’s last outlet at the
Willowbrook Shopping Centre located in the
Vancouver suburb of
Langley closing its doors on January 15, 2026. In March 2026, it was announced that the chain is seeking permission from the court to be put up for sale. ==References==