Seller: LA TOYS ETCETERA;
Rating: 4.9;
Total Feedback: 2412
No Fun & Games / Business off for big toy chains and independents heading into make-or-break season.
: Where the Toys Are - Online
By James T. Madore. STAFF WRITER NEWSDAY
AMID THE BUSTLE of his small toy store, Jerry Bloomberg took his wife aside on a recent Sunday afternoon to report that he had just saved a sale by lowering the price of wooden blocks by 20 percent after a shopper balked at paying $90 for them. Nancy Bloomberg nodded her approval, and then began suggesting alternative gifts to a mother and daughter seeking a sold-out toy. Fifteen minutes later, they walked out of La Toys Etcetera in Cedarhurst with a $35 Gund stuffed bear. It was wrapped in brightly colored paper with the recipient's name in calligraphy, at no extra charge. "We will do what it takes to complete the sale," said Nancy Bloomberg, who handles toy buying and marketing for the family business and also works the floor when it's busy. "Our customers know they are paying a little more because we cannot compete pricewise" with larger toy stores and discounters nearby. "But we have customer service," she said, noting store clerks routinely quiz shoppers in an attempt to make a perfect match between child and toy. Started 25 years ago, La Toys is among several dozen small, independent stores on Long Island and in Queens that have managed to survive, and in some cases, thrive in a marketplace dominated by the Toys "R" Us and KB Toys chains and discounters like. and Kmart Corp. Bloomberg, who works for Avis Rent A Car Inc. in Garden City, began hawking toys part-time in the early 1980s on the Long Beach boardwalk. His first wife, Helen, soon suggested they open a 755-square-foot store on Columbia Avenue adjacent to a Cedarhurst fixture, Mother Kelly's Pizza and Restaurant. By 1990, La Toys had moved up the block to a former bakery, which over time was converted by Bloomberg and his son, Seth, into 2,800 square feet of toys and games.
Rating: 5
Date: 2009-01-08T05:25+0000
Comments: Excellent.
Rating: 5
Date: 2009-01-08T04:57+0000
Comments: Received item quickly and in good condition
Rating: 5
Date: 2009-01-08T03:42+0000
Comments: Very prompt delivery, item as described and in good condition. Delighted to have an outlet that markets for Amazon directly so that "Prime" may be used.
Rating: 5
Date: 2009-01-08T02:47+0000
Comments: Kids loved the items
Rating: 5
Date: 2009-01-08T01:58+0000
Comments: Nothing more to add.
