The Toy Shop Turns 100

In a world where independent retailers are so regularly tossed aside for branches of deeper-pocketed chains, it's heartening to find that, yes, there are still long-lived specialty toy retailers out there. The Toy Shop is one of them. In 2008, the Toronto retailer will celebrate 100 years of making children's toy wishes come true.

“I think [the store's] longevity is partly due to the fact that it's always been a family owned company. Over all that time, I believe we're only the fourth of fifth owner,” says Chuck Gutelius, who purchased The Toy Shop with his wife Laurie in 2004. “Over the years, it's stayed true to its core presentation of toys. It hasn't gotten side tracked by fads. And there's always been a heavy emphasis on customer service.”

The store, with 5,000 square feet of retail space on two floors, has been in its current home for 30 years. A decade ago the store was redesigned. “The store isn't vintage looking,” Gutelius says. “It was redone with a lot of bright white tile. It's not a lot of creaky hardwood; it's well lit and welcoming in that regard. But a lot of the product is [vintage-looking], though.”

The Toy Store's bread and butter, according to Gutelius, “are things that have a brand identification, not just a couple of SKUs—Brio and Thomas the Tank Engine trains, Lamaze baby toys, Playmobil … Basically, lines you can do some width and some depth in.” Being located in Toronto's upscale shopping neighborhood, the store also stocks some appropriately luxurious merchandise, like $1,000 rocking horses and a “top end” selection of plush.

To play off its age, The Toy Store began this summer to “subtly” tout its pending anniversary, Gutelius says, with a sign in the window that says “since 1908” and a display of antique toys. “It's more of a feeling in the background than hitting people over the head with it,” he says, but that could change as the calendar moves closer to the official date.