Nostalgic toys a hit for Toy FanAddict

Helping to revive the old Roberds shopping center on Dixie Drive in West Carrollton is a store full of nostalgia called Toy FanAddict.

Springboro resident Tony Bolling, a retired GM employee and youth minister of 30 years, started collecting Disney memorabilia and toys over 20 years ago. He began getting doubles of some items and decided to try to sell them.

“I try to do just about every genre of toy there is from the 1940’s to present,” said Bolling, who is a Moraine native.

Starting out small doing flea markets, Bolling has followed his dream and now has thousands of vintage toys in his wonderland of a shop.

“They have the best selection in town,” said Jim Brooks, a customer. “They’ve always got something you want there. Even if you go in for something and they don’t have it, they will have something you want. He’s got every single toy line that I’ve ever liked. A lot of variety. You know — He-Man, Transformers, ThunderCats, Hot Wheels and Mutant Ninja Turtles. They’ve got everything.”

Those are just a few of the collections that can be found at Toy FanAddict. There are also dolls, pedal cars, vintage cars, wrestling figures and thousands of others. The prices at the store range from $1 to several hundred dollars. Bolling once sold a mechanical MARX Frankenstein for $800.

Besides selling toys, Bolling also buys and trades. He looks for anything that might add to his selection, even going so far as to have a list by the register for those wondering just what he is in the market for at any given time.

The most popular toys right now are Star Wars, GI Joe and super heroes, with the majority of his clientele being “people in their 30’s trying to relive their childhood in the 80’s,” he said.

Bolling has customers that just come in to look and reminisce and he greets every one of them with a smile and a friendly hello. Some have spent two hours shopping for just the perfect thing.

Looking to start your own collection. Bolling says the rule of thumb is “What’s hot today will be hot 30 years from now.”

Find the store on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ToyFanaddict?ref=br_tf.

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