Evaluation Paper on Toy "R" Us Inc

Introduction and Organization

Toy "R" Us Inc., a child-oriented business, was founded by Charles Lazarus in 1948 in New Jersey (Toy "R" Us, 2018). Charles grew up helping his father to repair bicycles in his store; as a result, the youthful lad got motivated to operate his own business. The entrepreneur began his business as a baby furniture store selling cribs among other baby furniture. The business grew significantly from a single-person managed enterprise to a global retail shop. The two main segments facilitating the company's operations are domestically and internationally placed. In this regard, the firm offered a wide range of products operating in more than 1000 stores globally. The different type of stores Toy "R" Us operates are an indication of the organization of the firm. According to Bloomberg (2018), it is reported that as of 2017, Toy "R" Us had 358 and 574 traditional stores located in the United States and Guam respectively.

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Additionally, the company operated a total of 420 side by side stores, 64 long-term expression stores, 237 baby stores, and 38 outlet stores. The stores are an indication of how well the firm had geographically diversified. The organization's structure is made up of 18 executive directors who ran the day to day activities of the firm. The board of directors categorized into three main segments the principal directors, departmental directors, and directors based on geographical locations. In particular, there are seven main directors, legal, merchandise, supply chain officer, international director and chief technology officers, and directors based in different countries.

Business Model

Toy "R" Us is a retailer firm that purchases children products from wholesalers and sells these products directly to its customers. The firm has a large customer base with a primary focus on parents and guardians who have children aged below four years (Bloomberg, 2018). The global firm occupied a significant market niche and was very competitive before the technological innovations and realization of debt challenges. The company's value proposition was characterized by its broad portfolio, international reach, and brand strength. The organization operates two main online websites corporate and consumer websites. The corporate website gives corporate information to interested parties regarding its operations and general activities. By a different token, the consumer website provides the customers with a platform to view and make purchases of the available products. Additionally, the website gives consumers information regarding the outlet stores that are open and their location. Toy "R" Us. The business model was traditionally aligned through its significant store operations. The company utilized the brick and mortar location to run its daily activities since it had an extensive network of stores.

Toy "R" Us mainly relies on customers visiting their outlets to make purchases. The adoption of physical locations amongst retailers is a common approach. However, the rapid evolution of technological advancements that began in the mid-1800s has played a significant role in influencing the business operations of most retail firms (Christ & Anderson, 2011). As a result, retailers who gain a competitive advantage in the industry are those who aggressively adopt new mechanisms that adequately address the issue of change. Albeit the restriction that comes with adaptability rate, change is inevitable and organizations that positively respond to the dynamics increase their chance of survival in the business environment. Therefore, in this era, retail firms operate online or through the use of both online platforms and physical locations. Toy "R" Us had two websites, but they were both outdated; as a result, compromising its customer loyalty. The company claimed that online platforms would force them to slash their prices; as a result reducing their profitability levels. The toy firm under-invested in online sales resulting in the reduction of sales and decreased revenues. This state added to the financial problems experienced by Toy "R" Us. The firm was saddled with a massive debt load that demanded the closure of the business. This debt partially arose from the company's failure to transform its business operations to fit in the tech-savvy world.

By a different token, the firm has primarily partnered with suppliers, other retail operators, community, and alliances. Suppliers are a crucial part of the organization since they are responsible for the sourcing and delivery of merchandise sold in the stores. Retail partners are those charged with the responsibility of store management on behalf of the company. Corporate social responsibility is a critical element of an organization's operations about business and moral interests (Wihelm, 2010). In this regard, Toy "R" Us has partnered with charitable organizations and the community at large through collaborative projects. On the other hand, alliance partners comprise of companies that lead the retail space. Therefore, alliance partnerships are aimed at marketing and branding promotions. The company's resources include intellectual properties such as patents and trademarks that are crucial for the firm's operations.

Key Business Drivers

The consumer experience played a significant role in the growth of Toy "R" Us resulting in intense competition from companies like Amazon (Bhattarai, 2018). Retail shops were the latest trend at the time the company was formed; families found it exciting to visit the shops and walk up and down viewing items. The traditional families had the time to engage in the fulfilling experiences of exciting adventures that increased family bond. However, the same key driver that played a crucial role in the success of Toy "R" Us resulted in the fall of the firm in the present technologically advanced world. The demands for a consumer experience shifted. Modern families changed in the form of structure and family time. Families find it less attractive to shop for toys in stores due to time wastage and the presence of sufficient household staffs. As a result, family members prefer to purchase toy products on online platforms leading to a significant decline in the value proposition of products at Toy "R" Us.

Digital Experiences is an essential key driver in the modern world. However, Toy "R" Us failed to adapt to the changes effectively by operating outdated websites. The outdated websites did not meet the current demand for customer services, considering the customers focus on achieving instantaneous gratification through all service experiences. The digital experience cuts across both the buying and utilization of the product. Currently, online video games are the trend; as a result, Toy "R" Us does not adequately address the disrupted needs and expectations of its customers.

An additional key driver for achieving business success is product value proposition. High-quality products are likely to sustain the existing demand and stimulate further demand. In this regard, the strength of competitor products significantly reduced the demand for Toy "R" Us products. Therefore, to some extent, the importance of product value disposition surpasses the type of distribution channel used by a firm. Consumers could get similar products to Toy "R" Us from different online platforms at a lower price and faster (Bhattarai, 2018). As a result, no value proposition was lost by the customers; instead, they achieved customer satisfaction through a definite shift in buying experience.

Products and Services

The baby supply mega-chain firm serves its worldwide customers with a broad range of products that comprehensively covers a year-round selection. The firm services its products through its geographically distributed stores. In particular, Toy "R" Us offers products such as action figures, children's toys, clothing, and infant care products, accessories such as software for video games and portable electronics including tablets. Additionally, the firm diversified its products to include educational electronics, informative, and developmental toys. Creativity is at the heart of the company's goals; as a result, construction toys are readily available in Toy "R" Us stores. The firm further caters for seasonal needs based on holidays or climatic activities. For instance, during summer, products such as bikes and other outdoor games products can be purchased from the stores. Private labels and unique merchandise such as Babies R Us, sizzling cool and totally I played a critical role in increasing the value proposition of the company (Bloomberg, 2018).

Architecture

Toy "R" Us works on its architectural designs through established partnerships with CASCO + R/5 (Casco, 2013). The designs are aimed at increasing customer satisfaction; as a result, increasing consistent revenues through customer loyalty. CASCO + R/5 offers services such as architectural and interior designs to retailers. Toy "R" Us largely benefited from the CASCO's technical and creative expertise that allowed the company to seamlessly integrate the architectural services with the specific demands for Toy "R" US Company. Additionally, the partnership provides for a full and comprehensive individualized service that does not require any other outsourced service once the agreement is made. Most of the architectural designs created on the Toy R Us stores were aimed at renovating or converting the premises to give the stores unique features that rhyme with the customer demands.

The architectural designs contributed significantly to the booming of the business resulting in its domination in the market niche. At this point, Toy "R" Us had gained a strong competitive advantage. However, the digital changes brought by time challenged its technological architecture. The advancements in technology brought about new purchasing mechanisms which were exploited by companies such as Target and Amazon. Contrary, Toy "R" Us resisted change insisting on the use of an outdated website. As a result, customers were unsatisfied and decided to find fulfilling avenues resulting in lowered revenues. Eventually, the firm was declared bankrupt since it failed to pay its massive debt burden (The Business Journal, 2018). In a snapshot, Toys "R" Us was unable to meet customers' needs due to its failure to adjust its technological architecture. The company would have been in business and remain to be a strong competitor of firms such as Amazon if it responded to change by adjusting its website design.

Infrastructure

Toy "R" Us' infrastructure is defined by the components that make up the organization. In particular, the IT infrastructure entails a broad set of information technology tools such as networks, software, and computing models among others. The application of these resources in an organization allows the enterprise to monitor, control, and deliver information technology solutions to an organization. In this regard, network information technology infrastructure will be analyzed concerning Toy "R" Us. These elements include network applications such as the client/server system and database systems.

Network Applications

Devices that are interconnected form a network; as a result facilitate communication. Applications implemented in the IT infrastructure support the established communications. The applications are crucial for the transfer of information via a network (Almeida & Sequeira, 2018). Typical examples of network applications include e-mails and web browsing. In this regard, network applications two main forms either data-oriented or program oriented. The client/ server system describes the kind of architecture adopted by the network applications. Programming establishes the connection between the client and server over a network. Examples of clients in...