
Putting the Industry
in Specialty Toys
by Tina Manzer
Twenty years ago, Chris Wass, a retailer from Des Moines, Iowa, “reasoned it was time that specialty toy retailers stop distrusting one another and join together to stand against the real competition, the mass marketers,” said a 1996 ASTRA recruitment document. “When asked then how many members ASTRA could claim, Chris always answered, ‘About 100’ with a straight face.”. Read More
ASTRA Marketplace & Academy
June 10 through 13
Schedule
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Always Aiming for More
Forward-thinking merchandising and a unique pricing strategy keep Concord’s landmark toy shop right on target.
by Anya Harris
Concord, Massachusetts, was the home of Ralph Waldo Emerson and Louisa May Alcott. Walden Pond with Thoreau’s famous cabin is located nearby. The old North Bridge, where the Revolutionary War began, is there off of Monument Street, and Paul Revere’s famous ride ended about two miles from The Toy Shop of Concord, the oldest specialty toy store in the nation. Read More
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