Iconic California Toy Store, Inspiration for Beloved Kids' Movie, Permanently Closes Due to 'Perils and Violence'
A retail icon that was born during the Great Depression couldn’t survive the reign of modern Democrats or the Joe Biden presidency.
San Francisco’s oldest toy store — a mainstay of the city for more than eight decades and the inspiration for Hollywood’s “Toy Story” franchise — will be closing its doors within weeks, citing the changing economy, inflation and the sheer dangers of running a business in the Democratic city.
Does the country need more lessons in ways things are going wrong?
News that Jeffrey’s Toy Store would be ending its run soon was first reported Friday by the San Francisco Business Times.
“We’re heartbroken,” a member of the Luhn family, which owns the business, told the publication.
“We held on until we can’t anymore. Everyone left the city. San Francisco always comes back but it will probably take another three years.”
A statement to the San Francisco Chronicle by a family attorney came across as considerably less optimistic.
“The store has been struggling for a number of years, due to the perils and violence of the downtown environment, inflation, the decrease in consumer spending and the demise of retail across the world,” the statement from attorney Ken Sterling said, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
“The family is saddened it has come to this and we’ve explored all other options to try and keep the business going. The leadership of the City of San Francisco and the Downtown Association have their work cut out for them on how to revitalize what was once a vibrant and fun downtown experience.”
No official closing date has been set yet, but note the order Sterling used in the reasons for the move. First came the “perils and violence” of San Francisco’s downtown, then came inflation, then came the “demise of retail.”
In other words, the top two of the three reasons an iconic business is closing is directly attributable to the execrable governance of Democrats on a local level and the party’s disgracefully inept approach to government at the national level.
Anyone who has visited the city — or even seen it on a movie screen — knows San Francisco is heartbreakingly a combination of natural beauty and human ingenuity that makes for a postcard-worthy vista in pretty much every direction.
But thanks to decades of Democratic misrule, particularly in recent years, it’s become a cesspool — sometimes literally — of crime and homelessness.
The inflation that’s ravaged American consumers, meanwhile, is a direct result of the Biden presidency and its floodgates of federal money — and wasn’t hindered in the least by the cynically dishonest “Inflation Reduction Act,” that had zilch to do with inflation and everything to do with Democrats stroking their activist base.
So, did the changing retail environment and increase in online shopping hurt Jeffrey’s? Probably. But business is business, and adapting to changing conditions is part of succeeding in the business world.
“Perils and violence,” however, as well as runaway inflation, are beyond the control of any business.
The news about Jeffrey’s Toy Store is just the latest in a long line of business horror stories from the City by the Bay, but attracted more than its share of interest on social media. And almost no one commenting on social media had a problem pinpointing the cause.
“Nice work,” wrote one user, in a post tagged to California Gov. Gavin Newsom and San Francisco Mayor London Breed.
Wow #california @GavinNewsom @LondonBreed Nice work! San Francisco toy store, Jeffrey’s Toys, inspiration for ‘Toy Story,’ closing after 86 years over ‘perils and violence’ in city https://t.co/5tCOi1uIPk
— Siewell TX (@JoeSiewell) January 27, 2024
Other posts were less pointed, but made the same point.
Francisco’s Jeffrey’s Toys, oldest toy store which inspired Toy Story blockbuster movies shuts down after 86 YEARS due to the ‘perils and violence’ of the downtown – as it becomes latest victim of zombie city awash with drugs, homelessness and crime. https://t.co/p3sB2M7X0p
— Judy (@judytgolf) January 27, 2024
My mom used to take me to Jeffrey’s Toys when I was a kid. They site “the violence of downtown” as part of their reasons for closing. Another gut punch for San Francisco. Damn. https://t.co/9y9J4duQW1
— T Wolf (@Twolfrecovery) January 26, 2024
😢Another business closure hits San Francisco — as the oldest toy store announced it is closing for good.
Jeffrey’s Toys at Kearny Street between Post and Geary opened in 1938 and launched four stores in San Francisco in 1966, but a lawyer for the fourth-generation family… pic.twitter.com/9nRs7Grvew
— 📺 Adore MIRANDA Hu$tle (@sweetvarietytv) January 28, 2024
According to KRON-TV in San Francisco, the business originally opened in 1938 as Birdie’s Variety, after Birdie Luhn, who co-founded the store with husband Morton Luhn. It switched to Birdie’s Toy House in 1953, then became Jeffrey’s Toy Store in 1966.
Under any name, it was a part of the fabric of the city. But the social fabric of San Francisco is unraveling under the assault of criminals empowered by socially conscious Democrats and their toothless prosecutors — just as it is in Chicago, New York, Philadelphia and other once-great cities across the country.
In San Francisco, the damage is simply more evident.
“Add Jeffrey’s Toys to the list of retailers closing in the downtown San Francisco/Union Square area. At least six stores have closed in the San Francisco Centre mall alone since the new year,” KRON reported. “Major retailers, such as Old Navy and Nordstrom, closed their respective Union Square locations last year.”
So, the sad fact is that the only thing that’s surprising about the latest blow to San Francisco’s image might be that it’s taken so long.
The city is a basket case, notwithstanding the tarted-up makeover it got when Chinese President Xi Jinping came to town in November.
Like the rest of the Democratic-run once-Golden State, it’s a victim of its Democratic rulers — rapacious incompetents who would like nothing better than to export their brand of failure across the rest of the United States.
The Jeffrey’s Toy Store story is just the latest lesson for the country in the “violence and perils” of Democratic misrule.
The rest of the country should be learning it.
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