"Toys R Us is built into the fabric of childhood and for more than 70 years has been the most trusted source for toys and play," Barry said in a news release.
The new store has about 1,500 products for sale. Other items can be ordered on in-store touchscreens and fulfilled online by discount retailer Target, thanks to a partnership announced in October.
Saddled with debt, Toys R Us operated more than 700 stores before filing for bankruptcy protection in 2017. It was forced into liquidation the following year, laying off tens of thousands of workers.
The store's collapse is often cited as the prime example of what can go wrong when private equity enters the picture. The retailer's slide came after it was purchased in 2005 for $6.6 billion by PE firms KKR, Bain Capital and Vornado. The firms used $5 billion of debt to finance the deal, yet only the retail chain was liable for paying it back.
Still, Toys R Us is not alone. A slew of PE-owned retail chains have closed shop in recent years and laid off thousands of workers: Shopko (owned by Sun Capital); Payless ShoeSource (Alden Global Capital and Invesco); Gymboree (Bain); Sports Authority (Leonard Green); and Mervins Department Store (Cerberus Capital Management), among others.
