KB Toys, also known as K·B Toys, was an American company that owned toy stores in shopping malls. The company was started in 1922 as Kaufman Brothers, a business that sold candy in large amounts. In 1946, the company opened a store that sold toys in bulk and stopped selling candy two years later to focus on toys. The company began selling toys directly to customers in the 1970s, using the name Kay-Bee Toy & Hobby.

In 1999, KB Toys had 1,324 stores across the United States and was the second-largest toy store company in the country. However, the company faced difficulties in the early 2000s and declared bankruptcy in 2004 and again in 2008. It closed all its stores on February 9, 2009, with 461 stores still open at that time.

The international toy company Toys "R" Us bought the remaining parts of KB Toys, including its website, brand name, and rights to use its logos. In 2016, a company called Strategic Marks purchased the brand and planned to open new stores using the name starting in 2019. These plans were canceled because the company did not have enough money to proceed.

History

Brothers Harry and Joseph Kaufman started a wholesale candy store called Kaufman Brothers in Pittsfield, Massachusetts on April 1, 1922. In the 1940s, the brothers bought a wholesale toy company from a candy customer who owed them money for unpaid debts. On September 21, 1946, Kaufman Brothers opened a wholesale toy store at 70 Columbus Avenue in Pittsfield, beginning the company's work in the wholesale toy industry. In 1948, Kaufman Brothers Inc. stopped selling candy to focus only on the toy business, which was growing quickly at that time.

In 1973, the company stopped selling toys wholesale and became a toy retailer that operated in shopping malls, named Kay-Bee Toy & Hobby. The name "Kay-Bee" came from the initials of "Kaufman Brothers." At that time, the company had 26 stores. In 1977, the company's name changed to Kay-Bee Toy and Hobby Shops Inc. By 1979, the company was based in Lee, Massachusetts. That year, the company opened 40 new stores and claimed to be the fastest-growing toy store chain in the nation, with 170 locations in the Midwestern and Eastern United States.

Timeline

In 1922: On April 1, 1922, brothers Joseph and Harry Kaufman started a business that sold candy and soda fountain supplies. The business was located at 16 Gamwell Court, Pittsfield. (Berkshire Eagle, April 1, 1952.)

In the 1940s: The business moved to 70 Columbus Avenue, Pittsfield. (Berkshire Eagle, Sept. 21, 1946, at 9.) The brothers operated in the wholesale candy business for 25 years. In 1946, they entered the wholesale toy business by accident when a client gave them a toy company to pay off a debt. They also made a deal with Louis Marx and Co. to sell a line of toy trains. This was a good time to expand because during World War II, there was a shortage of sugar, a key ingredient in candy. As wholesalers, they supplied 400 stores within 150 miles of their offices.

In 1948: The toy business was growing, so the brothers decided to focus only on toys. They sold their candy business to Giftos Brothers.

In 1955: Joseph died, and Harry became President. Other family members working in the business included Harry’s sons Richard and Donald, Joseph’s son Howard, and Joseph’s son-in-law Harry (Buddy) Baker.

In 1960: The business opened its first retail toy store in Winsted, CT. This store was also given to the business to pay off a debt.

In 1961: The business opened its first toy store in New Hartford, NY. They moved their offices to 125 Pecks Road, Pittsfield.

In 1963: The business opened a retail toy store called Playworld in the Allendale Shopping Center, Pittsfield.

In 1968: The business opened its first mall store in Eastfield Mall, Springfield, MA.

In 1970: The business moved its headquarters to Route 102, Lee, MA.

In 1973: The business stopped selling toys wholesale and focused only on selling toys in stores. It changed its name to Kay-Bee Toy & Hobby Shops, Inc. At this time, it had 26 stores. Howard became President in February and held this role until retiring in 1986. (Berkshire Eagle, Dec. 17, 2006.)

In 1976: The business had 65 stores in New England, New York, and New Jersey.

In 1977: The business changed its name to K-B Toys.

In 1981: The business operated 250 stores in over 40 states, with sales of more than $140 million. On August 1, the business was bought by Melville Corp., and the stores were renamed Kay-Bee Toy Stores. Richard and Donald Kaufman retired.

From 1981 to 1986: Kay-Bee acquired 19 Kids Toy Stores, 52 Toy World Stores, 13 Toy Fair Stores, 2 Toy Kingdom Stores, 5 Macs Toys, 11 Rizzi Toys, and 330 Circus World stores. This made Kay-Bee the largest toy retailer in the United States. The company employed nearly 7,000 people, opened 330 more Kay-Bee and Toy Works stores, and added $260 million in sales. By the end of 1985, Kay-Bee had 585 stores and sales of over $400 million.

In 1986: On March 31, Howard retired. Work began on a new headquarters at 100 West St., Pittsfield, MA. Saul Rubenstein, a long-time buyer and executive, became President.

In 1981, the Melville Corporation bought the company from the Kaufman family for $64.2 million (~$187 million in 2024). At the time, the company had 210 stores. Richard Kaufman, son of Harry Kaufman, retired that year as company president. Donald Kaufman, Richard’s brother, had once been a vice president. In 1983, the bankrupt Wickes Companies sold 37 of its 45 Toy World stores to Kay-Bee for $5.5 million. By 1990, the company advertised itself as "The Toy Store in the Mall." That year, Melville bought Circus World’s 330 stores for $95 million, which became part of the Kay-Bee division. In 1991, Kay-Bee bought K&K Toys’ 136 stores, which were converted to Kay-Bee stores the next year. Between 1993 and 1994, Kay-Bee closed about 250 underperforming stores.

In 1994: Kay-Bee became a direct competitor to Toys "R" Us by expanding its mall locations and opening KB Toy Works stores in strip malls. These stores sold current and closeout toys and were larger than regular Kay-Bee stores. The company also operated KB Toy Outlet stores in outlet malls and KB Toy Express temporary stores in malls during the holidays.

In 1996: Kay-Bee had sales of $1.1 billion and was sold to Consolidated Stores Corporation for $315 million. Sales reached $1.6 billion in 1998, the same year the company launched its merchandise website. The store logo was changed to "KB" that year. By May 1999, KB Toys operated 1,324 stores. Consolidated Stores partnered with the company to improve

Lawsuits

In December 1999, The Equal Rights Center (TERC) and two Black customers filed a federal lawsuit against KB Toys. The lawsuit was about a company policy that banned personal checks at certain stores where many checks were returned. TERC claimed the policy unfairly treated Black people, as it was used in eight stores located in areas where many Black people live in the Baltimore–Washington region. KB Toys denied the claim, saying the policy was not based on race and had been created 13 years earlier. The company also said that stores affected by the policy did not accept checks from white customers either. By March 2000, the lawsuit added three more Black plaintiffs and asked for money and an end to the check policy. In January 2001, a U.S. District judge removed TERC from the case because it was not harmed by the policy. The lawsuit was decided in favor of KB Toys in 2003.

In 2001, the district attorney for Napa County, California, filed a lawsuit against KB Toys, saying the company falsely advertised sale prices and sold returned items as new. The case was settled in August 2003 for $1.2 million (~$1.96 million in 2024). In 2003, a class action lawsuit was filed in Chicago, claiming that KB Toys used misleading price tags to trick customers into thinking they were buying items at a discount. The lawsuit was settled with KB Toys offering a one-week 30 percent discount on purchases of $30 or more.