A new toy store is opening on Woodward Ave. in Detroit next week. It'll be the first toy store in downtown Detroit since the Hudson's department store closed almost 30 years ago.
Spielhaus Toys will be a pop-up specialty store in D:hive's retail space from Oct. 25 to Christmas Eve. D:hive is an organization in downtown Detroit that allows local entrepreneurs to test out their ideas in their retail space for two months.
Kurt Spieles is the owner of Spielhaus Toys. He says the store will focus on specialty toys -- things you might not find at national toy store chains.
"It's not about what the toy can do," he said. "It's about what the child can do with the toy."
Spieles says specialty toy companies are focused on making high-quality, safe products for kids.
"They're unique toys. They're educationally based. They definitely encourage creative and imaginative play, which is one of the most important aspects of childhood," he said.
Spieles and his wife have lived in Detroit for 12 years. He says he got interested in specialty toys while shopping online for his three daughters -- ages 3, 5 and 7.
Spieles says other parents were interested in the toys he was buying for his kids, but they didn't know where to find them.
"There are a few other specialty toy stores in the area, but there's nothing like it in the city of Detroit," he said. "We try to shop locally and support local retailers, and I said, 'Wow, we could do this in Detroit.' "
Spielhaus Toys will host a grand opening on Oct. 25.
-Sarah Kerson, Michigan Radio Newsroom
