TORONTO -- Toys "R" Us Canada has started bankruptcy proceedings north of the border a day after it filed in the U.S.

The Canadian arm says it has filed for creditor protection in an Ontario court.

Toys "R" Us says its 82 Canadian stores will continue to operate as usual during the process.

The company filed Chapter 11 documents late Monday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Richmond, Virginia.

Toys "R" Us said its approximately 1,600 Toys "R" Us and Babies "R" Us stores around the world - the "vast majority of which are profitable" - and its web portals continue to operate as usual.

Toys "R" Us is the latest brick-and-mortar retailer to struggle amid growing competition from online merchants and changing consumer preferences, with Sears Canada filing for CCAA protection this past June.