• by Sarah Mahoney  @mahoney_sarah, October 31, 2011

Call it a throwback kind of Christmas: Toys R Us has kicked off its holiday ad campaign with two commercials from the ’80s, which it says leverages nostalgia for both the brand and Geoffrey, its spokes-giraffe.

The Wayne, N.J.-based chain, which also just mailed its holiday catalog, says it is also running spots that feature exclusive toys. Ads kicked off on network TV over Halloween weekend.

"We believe our holiday marketing campaign speaks strongly to our toy authority position today and with the generations of kids who grew up with the Toys R Us brand," Greg Ahearn, CMO, says in its release.

One retro spot features kids singing the familiar "I'm a Toys R Us Kid" jingle, playing with timeless toys like trains, bikes, and dolls and more, tagged with its new theme, "Still the World's Greatest Toy Store."  In another, Geoffrey the Giraffe takes his family through a snowy, animated world of holiday lights and overflowing toy boxes.

The company says the campaign, running on ABC, CBS, CW and NBC, as well as Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, Nick Toons, Disney XD, ABC Family, Bravo, Hallmark Channel, Lifetime Network, TBS, TLC, TNT and USA Network, also includes more than a dozen spots featuring its exclusive brands.

The ad blitz coincides with the release of its annual catalog, The Great Big Toys R Us Book, which it says this year boasts a record-breaking $8,000 in savings, including 50 free gift-with-purchase offers.

While the print catalog is 80 pages, the company says this year it has made an expanded digital version using QR codes available at Toysrus.com/HolidayBook. And members of the company’s official Facebook fan page at can browse through the catalog and share items they “like” with Facebook friends and family.

The ads are also running on its Facebook and You Tube pages.