Pippin Toy Co: A Toy Store Journey in Old Town, Part One
Obviously, I’m a huge fan of independent businesses. But I’m the biggest fan of independent toy stores. When my kids were growing up, I relied on them to help me find the best. What would excite them? Help them grow into prosperous and contributing members of society? I get it, that’s a lot of pressure to put on the shoulders of an independent business, but they were a resource in my parenting toolkit. One, Two, Kangaroo in Shirlington, Kinderhaus in Clarendon, and the mother of them all, Why Not? in Old Town. They were my go-to experts for the tools my kids needed to be a kid.
Why Not? in Old Town Alexandria (2016/Yelp)
It was a dark day in Alexandria when Why Not? announced their closure. For a good hot minute, I considered pivoting Penny Post to become a toy store. I mean, what is Old Town without a toy store? Who would fill that hole in the market and - yes, it’s a bit cliché - the hole in our hearts? In the end we decided to stay the course (and are glad we did!) and do what we could at Red Barn Mercantile to fill the void Why Not? left.
One of the best things I ever did for my business was ask Lesley McGrew to be our kids’ buyer. She took a sad little corner of our store and grew it to half of the back room. Her enthusiasm for children and what they love was instrumental in bringing Pippin Toy Co. to life. Without her, I can safely say Pippin would not be here. Just as we incubated a paper store at Red Barn Mercantile we were incubating a toy store. There was a revenue threshold, that once we crossed it, we believed we could make an entire store out of that category. For Pippin Toy Co. that threshold came during the pandemic.
We had hoped to get Penny Post on solid footing within three years and then we could open the toy store. The pandemic hit in year two. We had to pivot away from any growth just to stay alive. Then we had to recover. Thanks to all of you, we were able to do that. As soon as we felt confident that we could continue to grow we started in earnest to open the toy store.
For me, it always starts with a business plan. I did the research. Who is buying toys? I believed there was a market for a brick and mortar, but was there really? What was my vision for it? What would the product mix look like? What would happen to Red Barn Mercantile if we removed the toys? What would we replace them with? All the questions needed answers before we could start. The research was good and showed there was a need, so we leapt!
The first thing I did was find a commercial real estate agent. I had done the other two deals on my own, but I didn’t want to do the third one myself. It was time to call in the experts and I’m SO glad I did. Melissa Webb from Rappaport Co. was my guide and guardian angel through the process. She was knowledgeable, well-connected, and most of all, patient. She was also an amazing advocate. When she saw that the costs were going to be more than I wanted, she went back to the negotiating table. I got what felt like a great deal on a wonderful space that worked in my budget/comfort zone, with incredible new neighbors.
It was pre-pandemic when I first heard about the new project on the 1300 block. We had luck with new construction at Penny Post (Ian, our landlord, did a masterful job of gutting and rebuilding a wonderful old building) so I was extremely intrigued by the new project. I also figured that a developer would be looking for and could attract really good tenants. Even though it was farther away from the waterfront where all the action is (and where Why Not? was), it was closer to my local customers who really are the backbone of our business. Plus, I liked the idea that it would be closer to the other two stores.
I watched and waited. When Melissa and I started working together we investigated several possibilities, but nothing panned out. Then, the 1300 project fell into our laps. It was the right timing, just like Penny Post and Red Barn Mercantile were when we found them.
The deal took nearly a year to complete. Melissa was by my side the entire time. And, again, very patient. At one point, the landlords wanted to meet me. Which was a little off-putting, but I thought, Ok. I’ll play along. So, Melissa and I invited them to Red Barn Mercantile to see what we had created. Three of them showed up and the five of us met in the back room where all the kids were. While we were back there another woman was shopping. I didn’t recognize her because I was so focused on the meeting.
Melissa kicked it off by telling them about Why Not? and how wonderful it was, how essential it was to the community, and how we have been sorely missing them since they left. The woman who was shopping was on her way up front, but then turned around and came back to us. She said, “I’m Kate. I’m Why Not?” There she was— the owner of our beloved toy store. I told her what I was doing and asked her what she thought. She gave us her blessing and told the landlords how wonderful our kids' selection was (Thanks, Lesley!).
Call it fate, divine intervention, luck or coincidence if you like. I call it magic.
Between Kate, Melissa, and the numbers to support the deal, we signed on the dotted line four months later. We were off to the races. In part two, I’ll talk about how we got from there to our Grand Opening (save the date four our celebration: April 27th). Until next time!
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