The Final Goodbye(s) to Toys R Us- in Erie

There is no question that the demise of the last toy store of its kind hit many folks hard. It is sad to think that there is currently no chain toy store to fill the gap. Sure, we have independent toy stores and toy departments, but it isn't the same. There truly is nothing that can compare to the pure joy that children got from seeing aisles and aisles of toys under one roof. Sadly this has all to come an end - for the moment at least. While KB Toys is planning to make a comeback, it remains to be seen how it will play out and if it even will work out.

I've been out over the past few months going to various Toys R Us and Bon-Ton stores in the region to get one last look before they are gone forever. The final Toys R Us that stopped at was the location in Erie, one of my two childhood Toys R Us stores. It truly was a bittersweet experience, yet also a very fitting way to say goodbye. 

As you will see in the pictures below, this Toys R Us location set up a wall of memories for customers to put up their experiences. Fellow Flickr user justinthedog, Youtuber WallieB26, and of course myself all left notes to say goodbye. Sadly, I was unable to find Justin's among the thousands of notes left. This understandably felt like the best way for me to end my Toys R Us journey. 

I don't think 'Get Well Soon' will work here....

Electronics mostly emptied out

Toys R Us bags

The way to leave your message

My goodbye note. I signed it using my Flickr username.

As mentioned, hopefully KB can make a successful comeback. Only time will tell how the toy industry will adjust.

Kmart #4113

I saved the best (in my opinion) of the Erie Kmart locations for last. This location may be the oldest of the stores, but it seems to always be busy when I visit. Let's dive right into the pictures:

I love how the road leads to Kmart....

Helpful stoplights allowed me to take this picture.

Now for the closeup:

I noticed the bits of blue paint coming through on one of my visits. Perhaps scars from its earlier days?

The following find at this store is just plain out awesome.

Retro Kmart plaza sign still in use today.

Want to go for a spin in a Kmart kiddie ride?

Former Kmart Foods now occupied by Giant Eagle.

The store layout is typical for a store from the '60s and even early '70s stores. The one thing to note is that there was a separate detached auto center for this store which can be seen toward the end of this post. It is now used a doctor's clinic.

Alternate views of the checkout lanes.

Fitting Rooms

Mens department

Corner Lawaway and Restrooms

Back Actionway

Center Actionway

Home Decor & Cleaning Supplies

Pet Supplies

Starbucks at Kmart

Home Improvement

Garden shop entrance.

Inside the garden center.

Seasonal

Sporting Goods. Apparently someone wants to try out for the hockey team.

Toys in the bottom left corner of the store.

Tiles that can sometimes appear randomly at stores.

Electronics with the random appliances thrown in.

Mattresses and appliances now occupy half of electronics, but at least the electronics counter is still here:

Moving on from there, we capture the last remainder of the store:

Pharmacy

On one of my visits to this store, I was able to visit during a bluelight special. So that's a bonus.

This is actually a relatively smaller jewelry desk.

The entrance and exit doors.

Here's a pic of the old auto center turned urgent care and the former cafe area:

I accidentally skipped post this earlier and because Blogger doesn't like you adding pictures between already places pictures, I had have to it here.

Rating: 8 out of 10. I would probably give a higher score if some new paint and new signs were added here. 

In Danger of Closing? The only way I personally see this store closing is if it is a leased location and the lease runs out or if a major snowstorm dumps heavy snow on its roof.1 Otherwise, I think this store will continue to operate despite being over 50 years old with no major remodel.

Footnote: Although even if weather were to make an impact in the form of heavy snow here, there is still no guarantee that it would close. It would depend on how the landlord would react to the problem. The former Kmart in Conneaut, OH closed back in 2014 due to a lack of action from a landlord that refused to fix the roof of its anchor tenant. That store was profitable, but the landlord pretty much kicked it out.