When I was a kid in the UK of the Sixties several shops were THE business when it came to getting my toys. All of them were toy shops in Preston were I lived and all were in the town centre:
In order of importance they were:
1. Thomas Mears - fab independent toy shop and the number one for many
2. Zodiac Toys - brill chain of superb toy stores
3. British Home Stores [BHS]/ Woolworths - classic department stores
Sadly every one of these shops has since closed, the last one, BHS, shutting its doors nationally this summer.
But not everyone went into the town. My Mum worked in the town centre so my parents were often 'up town', but there were of course countless corner shops around the city selling toys.
These corner shops probably stocked more toys than all the big stores put together and their racks were bursting with carded pocket money gems.
So where did you get your toys readers? Big stores, corner shops, newsagents or somewhere else? Maybe catalogues?
I grew up in Hammonton, New Jersey U.S A.We had 2 small 5&10 stores,Furlow's and The National.5&10 originally meant everything cost either 5 or 10 cents but by the 70's 5&10 just meant a small store with cheap goods.They were great for Aurora model kits.I got King Kong at Furlow's and both Dracula and Creature from the Black Lagoon at The National.The cost for each:2 dollars and 10 cents,compared to about 35 dollars for modern Moebius re-issues.These place were also great for rubber snakes,spiders,bats,dinosaurs and sharks.Also available was a variety of water pistols,cap guns,and plastic swords and daggers,Ben Hur style.In 1974 we got a big department store called Jamesway.Toy wise,it was pretty cool.Over the years I acquired Shogun Warriors,Micronauts, and Star Wars toys there before growing up and migrating to the electronics section for Metal records and tapes,also video games like Atari and Colecovision.All 3 stores were gone by 1985 and not long after that I went to live on my own in another town.
ReplyDeleteThose 5and10 stores sound ace Brian. Are they the same as a mom 'n' pop store? Lovely memories. The last bit sounds quite sad though. I suppose when the toy shops close we all grow up worst luck.
Delete5&10's could be part of a chain but the 2 I mentioned were independently owned and operated.Definitely akin to a Mom 'n' Pop.Well, to be honest,I was back to collecting toys again in the 90's, only this time I had a great paying job, a large shopping mall nearby and no one to spend it on but myself,so went the rest of the decade.
DeleteYour Nineties sounds like great fun Brian! I used to love the Toys R Us clearance shelf in the Nineties! I even had a store gold card! So much mint boxed stuff from the late Eighties for the taking! What treasures did you find in the mall?
DeleteAs a growing nipper between the 60s-70s, catalogues played a but role in my choice of toys for Christmas. But if I went into town with dear old mum I stood a good chance of a visit to either Walkers or Frosts, both small family business's long since gone. Walkers had huge glass cabinet doors, which showed keen eyed kids shelves packed with row upon row of carefully arranged Timpo and Britain's toy soldiers, knights, cowboys, indians, tanks, cannons and farming toys. Frosts on the other hand was the place to go for Airfix, Action Man, Mego and Marx. Wonderful days and wonderful old shops, Woodsy.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful vision of childhood Tony! Everything you needed! Wish I'd been there!
DeleteSmall department stores, especially at Christmas, small shops particularly on holiday, such as newsagents, and occasionally market stalls. I have a fond memory of seaside shops with their 'rack toys', and I even got my smaller SWORD toys there. Think I grew up before the mega-toy stores appeared in my area.
ReplyDeleteYes Andy, seaside shops and holiday shops! I'd forgotten those! Treasure troves every one. I still check out the tat in seaside shops just in case there's some fab plastic with some age. Holoday shops, especially on sites like Butlins, always had the comics that kept the holiday sweet like Sad Sack, the Archies and Casper the Friendly Ghost!
DeleteWhile my Mom was a big catalog person (Sears, Monkey Wards, JC Penney, Spiegel) I remember going with her on the bus to downtown Milwaukee. There we would go to The Boston Store, Gimbels, Woolworth's, and WT Grant dimestore. I believe a lot of my stuff was cheap bin toys from the department stores. However, my Deluxe Reading Operation X-500 playset came right from across the street from our house were there was a Roundy's supermarket. Not big by today's standard's but it had everything a kid needed - like toys!
ReplyDeleteWonderful memories Ed. Do you think today's kids will recall their stores as fondly?
DeleteI think so. Of course, their memories will be different than ours but if they enjoyed their toys they'll remember the trips with mom, dad, or whoever to places like Wal-Mart, Target, Toys R Us, the stores kids of today will identify with. I know the small store hominess might not be there any more but today's kids won't miss it because they'll never know it unless the stories are passed on to them in a nostalgic reminiscing by Opa's and Oma's
DeleteI reckon the kids of the Eighties and Nineties will definately have toy memories. He-Man, Turtles, Tamagotchies and the like. But today's kids seem seem to live life wholly online. Will they be nostalgic about their Xboxes and Playstations in the same way I wonder?
DeleteIt would interesting to hear what today's kids will reminisce about"I sure do miss my Samsung pad with built-in Wi-fi stereo speakers with subwoofer, quadruple X-box inputs, and dual carb semi-automatic blue-tooth enabled triple DRAM, multi-function, user interface" or some junk like that hahahaha
DeleteI got my toys in Woolworth's, R.S. McColl's, Glasgow's Barrowland (The Barras), Chambers Newsagent (local shop), Lewis's, Goldberg's, Safeway, and the like. And, of course, jumble sales. (You may not have heard of some of these places.)
ReplyDeleteA good selection there Kid. I know Safeways as a supermarket. Not sure of its still around. Us Lewis's John Lewis the Department Store?
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