Iconic FAO Schwarz to close due to rising rents

FAO Schwarz’s Humpty Dumpty clock counting down to the store’s closure. Image by frankieleon / CC BY 2.0

Iconic New York toy store FAO Schwarz will be closing its store on Fifth Avenue by July it has been announced. The store is most famous for its giant piano keyboard that featured in the Tom Hanks film Big, and has been in its current location since 1986. Toys ‘R’ Us, which owns the store has quoted the rising rents on Fifth Avenue as a reason for closing; they hope to open a new store by late 2016. Until then, the 153-year-old FAO Schwarz brand will have no physical retail outlet. Read more: bloomberg.com