A few weeks ago I pointed out a real estate auction that’s coming up for a Cape Cod estate called Idlewild, valued at over ten million dollars. I said “I’d love to know what the story is behind this property. I assume that a fantastically rich person had a phenomenal fall,” but reportedly “This is not a distressed sale.” The story is at this link.
“This is not a distressed sale,” said Mark Troen, Sheldon’s chief operating officer. “There’s no mortgage on the property. An auction is another and very good way of selling real estate when the conventional means is unsuccessful… This is a lifestyle choice at this stage in their lives,” he said. “The couple is purchasing a home in Charleston, South Carolina”… The home will be sold furnished.
So who is selling this fabulous piece of real estate? James Feldt, the former president of marketing at Toys R Us. (They had more than one President in the company?)
James Feldt purchased the land for the estate in 2004 by for $1.55 million. Feldt, the former executive vice president of marketing at Toys R Us, and his wife, Rosanne, spent $9.5 million to build the four-bedroom, seven-bath home and another $1 million on landscaping, Troen said. “This is a lifestyle choice at this stage in their lives,” he said. “The couple is purchasing a home in Charleston, South Carolina.”
The Feldts spent over $10 million on the property and yet it has no mortgage. I can’t find any information on why or when Feldt left Toys R Us, but maybe it had something to do with the takeover of the company in 2005 by Bain Capital — yes, Mitt Romney’s Bain Capital. Here’s Feldt’s resume prior to his departure from Toys R Us.
James E. Feldt
President – Merchandising and Marketing, Toys”R”Us, U.S
James E. Feldt was named Executive Vice President and President of Merchandising and Marketing for Toys”R”Us, U.S. in March 2000. He is responsible for procurement, pricing, merchandising, promoting and presentation techniques to sell product at Toys”R”Us stores across the country. Mr. Feldt serves as a member of the Executive Committee for Toys”R”Us, Inc.Prior to this appointment, Mr. Feldt served as Executive Vice President of Merchandising since 1999.
Mr. Feldt brings more than 20 years of retail experience to his post at Toys”R”Us U.S. Prior to joining the company, he was Executive Vice President, Merchandise and Marketing at Value City Department Stores in Columbus, OH. Prior to that, Mr. Feldt was Executive Vice President, Merchandising, Marketing, Allocation and Merchandise Distribution with Hills Department Stores in Canton, MA.
He also has extensive experience in merchandising toys, electronics, candy, sporting goods, wheel goods, seasonal and other hard line areas. In addition, he has considerable experience in apparel and the off-price industry.
Mr. Feldt graduated from Northeastern University with a degree in Business Administration.
What could Feldt have done that made him so valuable to Toys R Us, especially considering that when Bain took it over they were losing the merchandising and marketing war to Wal*Mart? It must have cost the Feldts another small fortune to furnish and decorate Idlewild, and yet it’s being sold furnished, so presumably the buyer will be getting a very big freebie thrown into the deal. The Feldts are merely making a “lifestyle choice?” It seems to me that they’ve vacated the premises and my guess is they need to get their money out of the place in order to buy or build their new home.