The scenic neighborhood is overlooked by the king of the jungle and his long in the tooth neighbor, the elephant.
Gepetto’s Workshop: Best downtown shop
The Pointer
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She wanted to give children the experience she had as a child. After spending endless hours researching toy companies and their products, in 1981 she was ready to put her knowledge to the test. Bonnie Brown’s dream of opening Gepetto’s Workshop, “kinda started on a hope and a prayer,” she said.
Upon entering the shop, it’s quite easy to become enraptured by the array of unique toys. The display cases, on each side of the center aisle, glow with globe-style lights casting a pastel hue throughout the doorway. An urge to venture deeper into the store brings back a nostalgic feeling of youth as the vivid colors beyond the display cases seize attention.
In a world full of Wal-Mart and Toys ‘R’ Us stores, it’s quite remarkable that a small downtown toy shop like Gepetto’s remains unbeaten by the current economic downfall.
“We’re holding our own, which is really good in this time,” said Brown. “I think the big ‘box stores’ are feeling it more than we do.”
Brown and manager Karen Pawelski take the time to carefully consider the best interest of the children for whom they are supplying toys. Instead of providing cheaply made toys, they hunt for something special that will make a difference in a child’s life. Toys that combine the qualities of fun, education and safety can be found throughout the store.
“I’d say one -third of our product is made in the U.S. or Europe,” said Pawelski.
The reason behind purchasing toys from these two continents is because of their strict safety rules and higher quality products.
“Really, we’ve had no recalls ... Nothing compared to the mass market, and you can go to K-Mart or Wal-mart and they have a wall just filled with recalls,” Pawelski said.
Brown and Pawelski have also noticed a trend of interests shifting back to more traditional toys, as opposed to the newer technological toys such as Wii and PlayStation.
This could be due to companies going “green” with eco-friendly products and stricter safety guidelines, or kids needing more interactive toys to broaden their minds, said Brown and Pawelski.
Brown went on a whim to open the toy store that she had always imagined. With one step into Gepetto’s Workshop, anyone can experience what it’s like to be a kid again.
