Legacy Toys closes in the Mall of America

Minnesota-based toy company Legacy Toys has closed its location in the Mall of America .

The shuttered storefront on the mall's third floor appears to be the end of a long legal battle between the state's largest tourist destination and Legacy Toys, which opened the flagship location at the mall in 2019.

The Mall began legal action against Legacy Toys earlier this year over a violation of a lease agreement. The initial court filings alleged that the company owed back rent and had violated the lease by opening another location near the mall, the latter being the result of Legacy closing in the Galleria "due to circumstances beyond our control" and moving across the street into the Southdale Center .

The mall pulled back in an effort to renegotiate, but those talks appear to have not been fruitful, as MOAC Mall Holdings LLC, the Mall of America's parent company, proceeded with a suit in July .

In late July, a Hennepin County judge sided with the mall in its eviction suit and the mall dropped the breach of contract suit, the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal reported at the time.

The Mall of America and its legal representatives did not respond to a request for comment.

Last month, Legacy Toys owner Brad Ruoho told the Journal he'd been battling inflation to keep the chain's five area stores afloat. “Our costs are going up. We’re trying to stay competitive and not to raise prices,” he said. “And at the same time, you have customers who are wanting to be smarter about how they spend money on things like toys and games, so we're trying to accommodate that while we're absorbing higher costs on our end.”

The company has felt additional financial stress, he says, due to malls not reaching the same kind of foot traffic they had prior to the pandemic.

The company faced a similar battle at its Miller Hall Mall location in Duluth. However, Ruoho told the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal that the two sides worked out an agreement outside of court.

Legacy Toys did not respond to a request for comment.

Legacy Toys continues to operate in Duluth, as well as Edina's Southdale Center, Minnetonka's Ridgedale Center , Roseville's Rosedale Center, Rochester's Miracle Mile Center, and Fargo's West Acres Mall.