LONGMEADOW – Kiddly Winks, a local children’s toy store that specializes in learning toys, is celebrating its 30th anniversary at its 801 Williams St. location.

Joy Leavitt, the store’s owner, told Reminder Publications she started the business in 1986 with 750 square feet and it has since “slowly, but surely grown” to 6,000 square feet.

“Throughout the years, we have searched for the best products for children, for gift givers, for families,” she added. “We are truly passionate about the power of play. We really believe in three-dimensional play and certainly our store provides that for children of all ages. We really feel it is so important to engage children and empower them with toys that really provide good play. We’re known for our great games.”

Leavitt said the store has 700 square feet dedicated to children’s’ books and gift-wrapping is done in-store.

“We spend a lot of time personalizing gifts … sometimes they’re personalized with children’s names on them,” she noted. “We’ve been doing all those things for a really long time.”

She added she’s seen a lot of support from the local community.

“You couldn’t be a 6,000 square foot unless you had Springfield and East Longmeadow, and Longmeadow and Agawam and Feeding Hills, Forest Park, Enfield, and Somers,” she noted. “We really feel that we’re a community-based store for the community at large and we are truly honored to be serving the communities for that long.”

Leavitt said she considers one of the most “poignant” aspects of her business to be in servicing children across generations – some people who frequented the stores decades ago now, as adults, bring their children to Kiddly Winks.

She said 35 years ago she and a friend started a toy party business.

“We explained the attributes of the toys that we were carrying and again provided this service of finding the best of the best toys for kids,” Leavitt noted. “We’d load up bags of it and deliver it back to someone’s home. We did that for five years and then decided that it was really time for retail instead of home shopping.”

Leavitt said during the past three decades there’s been a shift in the toy industry towards electronic toys, but added the “quintessential toys” such as blocks, easels, and puzzles, still remain popular.

“Some of the things I was selling 30 years ago, like a Brio train set, I’m still selling today,” she added. “But we have definitely seen the surge of electronic toys and things that are connected to iPads. That’s been the largest change. Getting kids off of electronics and onto three-dimensional play is my mantra. It is so important for children to develop skills that are not computer-based … Children need to use their imaginations. Children need to build three dimensionally. They don’t get the same value from TV sets and iPads.”

Leavitt said the store has continually renovated during the past three decades and she considers it “up to date.”

She added, “The carpeting is rather new. We put in lots of new displays recently.”

For more information visit www.kiddlywinks.com.

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