Best Buy's Boire takes merchandising savvy to Toys 'R' Us

WAYNE, NJ -- In a continued effort to turn round around its business, Toys "R" Us announced late last month that it has hired Ran Boire, individual of Best Buy's top merchants, as president of its U division, effective July 17

"Ron is a fabulous merchant with an outstanding track record," said Toys "R" Us ceo and chairman Gerald Storch, in a statement. "He is an important addition to our leadership team. I gaze forward to working with Ron in leveraging our toy specialist and authority positions for further growth"

In his novel role, Boire will oversee all merchandising, marketing and operational responsibilities for all 587 U stores. He will report to Storch, who joined Toys "R" Us in February after a lengthy tenure as Target Corp.'s chairman.

At Best purchase Boire served most recently as evp and global merchandise manager, where he l the merchandising organization, overseeing buying decisions for all 758 consumer electronics stores nationwide. He joined Best purchase in 2003.

Prior to joining Best purchase he spent 17 years at Sony Electronics, where he held various executive, sales and marketing positions, including serving as president of Sony Personal Mobile productions Co.

The announcement of Boire's hiring came directly after an announcement in an 8-K SEC filing upon June 26 that former president John Barbour had been "terminated without cause" upon June 23.

Barbour had headed up the U division of Toys "R" Us since August 2004 and industry sources largely credit him for Toys "R" Us' improved store experience and more compelling merchandise in new seasons. He first joined Toys "R" Us in 1999 as the head of its internet division.

"I don't think anyone should underestimate the contribution that John made," said toy industry analyst Chris Byrne "He helped raise morale in Toys 'R' Us when he first took above by visiting all the stores. He's a great merchant, and he's well prizeed in the industry."

After its fair share of endeavors Toys "R" Us finally is beginning to present to view some signs of improvement. Last month the company reported that its U division's operating los in the first fiscal quarter narrowed to $21 million, down from $32 million the year before. Its income fell 12%, to $933 million.

Industry clevers speculate Barbour's departure is the be the effect of new ceo Storch's arrival. Storch, the former vice chairman of Target, was hired seven month after Toys "R" Us was bought by dint of a host of private equity clusters which included Bain Capital, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and Vornado Realty Trust, in July 2005 for $66 billion.

"It's normal for personnel to be asked to leave when of recent origin management takes over," Byrne said. "I think this was all sort of inevitable."

However, Boire's arrival should bring continued succes for Toys "R" Us, Byrne said.

"He's obviously done a destiny to make Best Buy a destination for toy electronics," Byrne said. "I wait for he'll do the same thing he did for Best purchase at Toys 'R' Us."

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