Melville Agrees to Buy Chain of Toy Stores

Melville Corp said it has signed an agreement to buy Circus World Toy Stores Inc. for about $95 million in an all-cash transaction.

Circus World, a wholly owned subsidiary of Greenman Bros, Inc., based in Farmingdale, N.Y., operates 330 retail toy stores in 32 states and reported sales of $177.6 million in 1989.

The acquisition is to be completed this August, and the Circus World stores will become part of Melville’s Kay-Bee division.

Melville, with corporate headquarters in Harrison, N.Y., is one of the largest U.S. specialty retailers, with sales of $7.6 billion in 1989.