Child World was an American toy retailer founded in 1962. It grew to 182 sites and revenues of $830 million before failing in 1992. It was known for the distinctive stylised

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

store exterior adopted after its 1977 purchase of the Children's Palace store chain.

History

Beginnings and early expansion

Child World was founded by Sid Schneider and Joseph Arnesano in

Quincy, Massachusetts Quincy ( ) is a coastal U.S. city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the largest city in the county and a part of Greater Boston, Metropolitan Boston as one of Boston's immediate southern suburbs. Its population in 2020 was 1 ...

in 1962. It became a publicly-traded corporation in 1968, based in

Avon, Massachusetts Avon is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. History The first settler in the land that would become Avon was Moses Curtis (), a blacksmith from Braintree, Massachusetts. After its acquisition of Children's Palace, from Kobacker Stores in 1975,Alternate Link
via

ProQuest ProQuest LLC is an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based global information-content and technology company, founded in 1938 as University Microfilms by Eugene B. Power. ProQuest is known for its applications and information services for libraries, provid ...

. Child World became the second largest toy retailer in the United States after

Toys "R" Us Toys "R" Us is an American toy, clothing, and baby product retailer owned by Tru Kids (doing business as Tru Kids Brands) and various others. The company was founded in 1957; its first store was built in April 1948, with its headquarters loc ...

. In many areas Child World stores operated near Toys "R" Us locations. Post merger, Child World began incorporating the Children's Palace stylised castle decor into its new stores. The 1981 purchase of Child World by Cole National Corporation was followed by 1984's

Kohlberg Kravis Roberts KKR & Co. Inc., also known as Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., is an American global investment company that manages multiple alternative asset classes, including private equity, energy, infrastructure, real estate, credit, and, through its strate ...

takeover of Cole. Until 1990 under President Peter Hayes, Child World employed a warehouse merchandising style with long aisles and over-stock storage above selling shelves. Sales began to decline by the late 1980s, so in 1989 the chain announced a different store format. It was initially trialed in

Framingham, Massachusetts Framingham () is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. Incorporated in 1700, it is located in Middlesex County and the MetroWest subregion of the Greater Boston metropolitan area. The city proper covers with a popu ...

, near the Shoppers World mall with competitor Toys "R" Us a

block Block or blocked may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Block programming, the result of a programming strategy in broadcasting * W242BX, a radio station licensed to Greenville, South Carolina, United States known as ''96.3 ...

away. The new store had a strong first-day and performed well in the firm's critical Christmas selling season. Management announced 11 existing sites would be converted from 1990 through 1992 using the new design. That was not to be.

Downfall

In 1990, Peter Hayes and several fellow executives were sacked. Consumer confidence was generally low and there were no ''must have'' toys on the market to drive sales as they had done in the 1980s. Cole National began restricting the amount of money it provided to the subsidiary causing cash shortages. Vendors including

LEGO Lego ( , ; stylized as LEGO) is a line of plastic construction toys that are manufactured by The Lego Group, a privately held company based in Billund, Denmark. The company's flagship product, Lego, consists of variously colored interlocking ...

refused to extend credit which left stores with empty shelves. Meanwhile

continued to grow and Child World had to defend a lawsuit from the

Consumer Products Safety Commission The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (USCPSC, CPSC, or commission) is an independent agency of the United States government. The CPSC seeks to promote the safety of consumer products by addressing “unreasonable risks” of inj ...

. Child World ended 1990 with US$830 million in

assets In financial accountancy, financial accounting, an asset is any resource owned or controlled by a business or an economic entity. It is anything (tangible or intangible) that can be used to produce positive economic value. Assets represent value ...

but US$1 billion in liabilities. Cole National sought to sell the ailing chain. A US$157 million deal fell through and there were no other buyers. In 1991, it emerged senior executive James Maybury had been diverting revenue to fund a

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...

he intended to open in Dracut, MA. Cole National had to perform a debt trade with fellow venture capital firm Avon Investment Limited Partnership later that year in order to shed the business. Avon appointed former Toys "R" Us executives but results remained poor and in early 1992 Child World closed 26 stores.

Bankruptcy, failed merger, and liquidation

In April 1992, Child World applied for

Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wheth ...

causing former Child World managers and Cole National executives to file a

class-action lawsuit A class action, also known as a class-action lawsuit, class suit, or representative action, is a type of lawsuit where one of the parties is a group of people who are represented collectively by a member or members of that group. The class action ...

against Avon, accusing it of sabotaging the company so they could liquidate it and avoid payments to them. A further 54 stores were identified for closure as Child World focussed on 71 previously profitable Northeastern United States stores it sought funds to keep open. Lenders were not forthcoming and the business reported further losses. Avon sought a last ditch merger of Child World with

Lionel Corporation Lionel Corporation was an American toy manufacturer and holding company of retailers that had been in business for over 120 years. It was founded as an electrical novelties company. Lionel specialized in various products throughout its existence. ...

's also financially troubled

Lionel Kiddie City The Lionel toy stores (doing business as Lionel Kiddie City, Lionel Playworld, and, until 1990, Lionel Toy Warehouse) were American toy store chains under the ownership of Lionel Corp. History Kiddie City Toy Stores were started in the 1960s. By ...

but were ultimately unable to agree terms. An “inventory clearance" sale became a liquidation; most headquarters staff were sacked, and by mid September 1992 Child World ceased to exist. Lionel Kiddie City went out of business one year later.

Store design

Child World was known largely for making its stores resemble castles, complete with

turret Turret may refer to: * Turret (architecture), a small tower that projects above the wall of a building * Gun turret, a mechanism of a projectile-firing weapon * Objective turret, an indexable holder of multiple lenses in an optical microscope * Mi ...

battlements A battlement in defensive architecture, such as that of city walls or castles, comprises a parapet (i.e., a defensive low wall between chest-height and head-height), in which gaps or indentations, which are often rectangular, occur at interva ...

, and three

arch An arch is a vertical curved structure that spans an elevated space and may or may not support the weight above it, or in case of a horizontal arch like an arch dam, the hydrostatic pressure against it. Arches may be synonymous with vaul ...

es (two small, one large) in the front door. The corporate logo was written in a "

refrigerator magnet A refrigerator magnet or fridge magnet is a small magnet, often attached to an artistic or whimsical ornament, which may be used to post items such as shopping lists, Christmas cards, child art or reminders on a refrigerator door, or which simp ...

"-like typeface. The design started showing up in newer Child World stores after the 1977 acquisition of Children's Palace. After the company went out of business, some of the retailers that took over the Child World spaces retained the design, but most did not.

Mascot

The mascot for Child World was originally a cartoon

rabbit Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit speci ...

named Happy Rabbit who sported the words "I'm Happy" on his T-shirt. He was later replaced by a cartoon

panda The giant panda (''Ailuropoda melanoleuca''), also known as the panda bear (or simply the panda), is a bear species endemic to China. It is characterised by its bold black-and-white animal coat, coat and rotund body. The name "giant panda" is ...

bear named Peter Panda, often depicted wearing overalls with his name printed on them.

In popular culture

A Child World store that stood at 7600 West Roosevelt Road in

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(since demolished), was used in

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

's 1986 film ''

The Color of Money ''The Color of Money'' is a 1986 American sports drama film directed by Martin Scorsese and released by Touchstone Pictures. The film was created from a screenplay by Richard Price, based on the 1984 novel of the same name by Walter Tevis. The ...

'' as the place where Vincent Lauria (

Tom Cruise Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (born July 3, 1962), known professionally as Tom Cruise, is an American actor and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actors, he has received various accolades, including an Honorary Palme d'Or and three Gol ...

) worked as a toy-store clerk, and where retired

pool Pool may refer to: Water pool * Swimming pool, usually an artificial structure containing a large body of water intended for swimming * Reflecting pool, a shallow pool designed to reflect a structure and its surroundings * Tide pool, a rocky pool ...

hustler Hustler or hustlers may also refer to: Professions * Hustler, an American slang word, e.g., for a: ** Con man, a practitioner of confidence tricks ** Drug dealer, seller of illegal drugs ** Male prostitute ** Pimp ** Business man, more gener ...

Eddie 'Fast Eddie' Felson (

Paul Newman Paul Leonard Newman (January 26, 1925 – September 26, 2008) was an American actor, film director, race car driver, philanthropist, and entrepreneur. He was the recipient of numerous awards, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, three ...

) came to see him to convince him to be his protégé in pool.

Mark Wahlberg Mark Robert Michael Wahlberg (born June 5, 1971), former stage name Marky Mark, is an American actor, businessman, and former rapper. He has received multiple accolades, including a BAFTA Award, and nominations for two Academy Awards, three ...

mentions it in

Ted 2 ''Ted 2'' (stylized as ted2) is a 2015 American comedy film directed by Seth MacFarlane and written by MacFarlane, Alec Sulkin, and Wellesley Wild. The second installment in the ''Ted'' franchise, it serves as a sequel to the 2012 film of the ...

, as the place where Ted the foul-mouthed bear was purchased.

References

{{Portal bar, 1980s, 1990s Defunct retail companies of the United States Companies based in Massachusetts Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1992 Retail companies disestablished in 1993 Retail companies established in 1970 Defunct companies based in Massachusetts Toy retailers of the United States