‘THESE THINGS ARE TIMELESS’
Independent toy store owners say pandemic helped in battle vs. screens
The closure of Toy Chest in West Hartford Center is the end of an era. The independent toy shop delighted local children for 66 years, at a time when Toys R Us, Disney Store, Build-a-Bear and Lego expanded nationwide and Amazon and Walmart aggressively lured customers away from the little guys.
With its departure, there are only a handful of independent toy stores left in the greater Hartford area. These few holdouts are rare, little gems in the midst of their communities. They offer a local, personal touch to toy shopping, serving parents whose own parents may have bought toys there.
Amato’s in Middletown is one of those stores. It opened in 1940 and is now owned by Diane Gervais, the daughter of the store’s founder. “I got my first paycheck here when I was 5. I continued the tradition. My daughter got her first paycheck when she was 5, too,” Gervais said.
Gervais said though times are changing, with kids increasingly fascinated by video games, Amato’s succeeds by keeping focus on old-fashioned play.
“There’s always things competing for attention. Children still want to build a puzzle, play a game, read a good book, be read to, hug a wonderful stuffed animal, dress up in a princess gown or a dragon cape,” Gervais said. “These things are timeless. We are seriously busier than ever.”
Deb Necker, who owns Necker’s in Simsbury, said competing with electronic gaming, which Necker’s does not sell, has been a challenge “seemingly forever.” But she looks to her own childhood, and the childhood of her
adult customers, for inspiration.
“My philosophy is that if it’s something you as an adult enjoyed playing with as a kid, that you can create that excitement with your child or grandchild by participating with them to initiate them into these more traditional experiences, whether building blocks or drawing a picture with crayons and markers. Get their hands involved with things,” said Necker, whose shop opened for business in 1948.
Siobhan Covill, general manager of Time Machine in Manchester, which has operated in Manchester for 50 years, has the same philosophy as Necker.
“One of the things we try to do is demos of the toys. If kids come in with their parents and play with something and get intrigued by it ... it teaches them that there is more than just a screen in front of them,” Covill said. “We sell a lot of the classic standbys, Wiffle balls, Wiffle bats, Little Tikes cozy coupes, Barbie dolls, action figures. Those things will never die.”
Kimberly Reid, who opened Pinwheels in Glastonbury eight years ago, said if a family came into her store looking for a toy for a video game-loving child, she might help them think in relation to that video game.
“If they were into Roblox, or Minecraft, those are huge, those game are all about building worlds and towns and cities. If they enjoy
that, they probably will enjoy Lego,” Reid said. “It’s hands-on rather than looking at a screen.”
Reid’s store specializes in toys for younger children, and she said that is a good thing. “Once they get into their teens, it’s very hard. They’re so into the video games and the iPads,” she said.
Necker isn’t worried about kids’ interest. “I’d say at least 90% of kids who come here get excited about the things we sell. Every now and then a kid comes in with his face down in his game unable to look away but most kids get excited to be in here,” she said.
The women all agree that the market for old-fashioned family-oriented communal play was boosted by an unexpected factor: the coronavirus pandemic.
“The pause in the world gave people the chance to realize again that playing a game, building a puzzle, building extravagant Lego sets, those things are a lot of fun,” Gervais said.
Necker said in addition to the rising popularity of games, the craving for variety drove business. “It’s fun to play Monopoly after dinner. Even if kids want to play games again and again, after a while they’re saying, ‘Can we try another game?’ ” Necker said.
Covill said puzzles, especially, spiked in sales when COVID bore down, and their sales are still high.
“When you’re at home they keep kids busy when parks and schools are closed,” she said.
Reid suggested that the difficult time when families couldn’t go anywhere, not even to school, has had a lasting effect.
“I feel that in general parents and grandparents wanted to spoil their children because it was such a hard time,” she said. “I thought it was going to be short-lived and everybody would get back to regular life. But it didn’t change. People changed.”
Pam Clarke, who opened Valley Kids in Canton in 2018 with her sister, Kristen Clarke, agreed that the focus on family is a lasting thing.
“People got to reprioritize a lot. Now people are leaving work at 5 instead of staying until 6 or 7 or 8 because they want to spend time with their kids,” she said.
That change extended to the adults themselves. “We sell tons of jigsaw puzzles for adults, buying them for themselves,” Necker said.
Covill said another factor bringing people into the stores is the rising awareness of and variety of toys designed for neurodivergent kids. They don’t just want play, they need it to be something stimulating to the senses, something interesting to touch.
“ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) has become a huge thing. People want to play with really tactile toys, slime, bubble poppers, fidget spinners, all that fidgety stuff. Kids need an outlet for their bodies while their minds are racing,” she said.