FAO Schwarz to return as an interactive experience

NEW YORK (FOX5NY.COM) - After 30 years at a famous Fifth Avenue location, FAO Schwarz closed in 2015 because of rising rents.

But FAO Schwarz is coming back—this time in Rockefeller Center. It won't be a typical toy store. It will be about interactive experiences that people will want to post on social media.

At 65,000 square feet, the store was monstrous. The new location will be much smaller; about 20,000 square feet. To get shoppers in the door, the store will feature interactive experiences that you'll be dying to post on Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook.

Jeanette Settembre of Dow Jones Moneyish said that the location, with tourists on every corner, is a money-maker. She also said customers will be willing to pay an entry fee, perhaps as much as $30, for their experiences and their coveted selfies.

While online shopping helped to drive Toys R Us out of business, FAO Schwarz is counting on a new strategy—social media. And at the end of the interactive experience, attendees will find the retail part—the gift shop, Settembre predicted.