Dive Brief:

• Wayne, NJ-based Toys R Us last week disclosed in a regulatory filing that it has let go its chief financial officer F. Clay Creasey Jr. The company didn’t state a reason for Creasey’s firing.

• Michael J. Short, who recently left AutoNation as chief financial officer, replaced Creasey effective Monday.

• The toy retailer is in the midst of taking steps to make its operations more efficient in the face of losses and falling sales due to heavy competition from Amazon and other online retailers.

Dive Insight:

Toys R Us, which has said it is struggling due to intense competition from online retailers as well as a slowing birth rate, is keen on stemming its losses and returning to profitably. Q1 sales were up, mostly due to heavy promotions, and the retailer will have to do more than cut prices and hold sales to complete a successful turnaround. No word on why CFO F. Clay Creasey Jr. is abruptly out after eight years at the company. But the hiring of Michael J. Short is no doubt part of Toys R Us chairman and CEO Antonio Urcelay’s stated strategy to streamline the company’s operations. Urcelay became CEO in October.