Right Start is a retailer of children's products. They began in 1985 as a catalog company, based out of

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. The company was founded by Stan Fridstein, Lenny Targon, and Harry Rosenthal who identified a growing market in young, first time parents who were looking for expertise and guidance in choosing high quality baby products. The company opened its first retail store in 1991, in Westlake Village, CA. In 1992, they began expanding, opening up their first location in a Rich's department store in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

. The Right Start was majority owned by bowling center operator American Recreation Centers, Inc., before it was sold to Kayne Anderson, a Los Angeles-based investment firm, in 1995. In 2000, they withdrew from a proposed

initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investme ...

and began exploring merger possibilities. In 2001, they purchased

FAO Schwarz FAO Schwarz is an American toy brand and store. The company is known for its high-end toys, life-sized stuffed animals, interactive experiences, brand integrations, and games. FAO Schwarz claims to be the oldest toy store in the United States ...

from Royal Vendex KBB and

Zany Brainy Zany Brainy was a United States retail store chain owned by FAO Schwarz that sold educational toys and multi-media products aimed at children ages 4–13. Its merchandise included games and puzzles; infant development toys; books, audiocassette ...

. They changed their name in 2002 to FAO Inc. In 2003, they twice filed for bankruptcy and sold the FAO Schwarz stores in Manhattan and Las Vegas, along with their related internet and catalog businesses in December. In 2009, Right Start was purchased by Liberty Interactive Media and reopened 9 stores nationwide. Right Start was sold to competitor giggle in 2016.Baby products retailer giggle acquires Right Start
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References

External links

Home page
Toy retailers of the United States {{Toy-stub