The Historic San Fransisco Toy Story That Inspired ‘Toy Story’ Is Closing After 86 Years
After 86 years in business, San Francisco’s iconic Jeffrey’s Toys is finally closing its doors.
The oldest toy store in the city, Jeffery’s, says that it is closing due to the perils and violence of the downtown environment, among other factors.
“After 75 years of gratefully serving the San Francisco community, the store will be closing next month. 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,” Sterling said in a statement.
An Historic Piece of San Franciso
The story initially opened as Birdies Variety in 1938 when it was opened by Morton and Birdie Luhn.
After World War 2, the shop evolved into a toy story, eventually being renamed Jeffrey’s Toys.
Inspiring ‘Toy Stoy’
Outside of its importance to San Franciso, the store also gained cultural significance as an inspiration for Pixar’s 1995 film Toy Story.
Co-owner Matthew Luhn worked on the film as a story artist and writer, drawing direct inspiration from the store.
“During ‘Toy Story,’ we would have my dad come to give us ideas,” Luhn told SF Gate. “And when we did reference for almost all the ‘Toy Story’ films, we always went to Jeffrey’s Toys. My dad just closed up the store and said, ‘Just play, have fun and let me know if you need anything.’”
The End of an Era
Despite the significant financial burden that Jeffrey’s Toys faced, Luhn and his father did their best to keep the store open.
“My dad and I, we’re not quitters — we just don’t come from a quitter family,” Luhn told SF Gate. “Every year we say we’ll hold on one more year and then we keep taking money out of our own retirement accounts.”
Now, however, the time has come. When Jeffery’s Toys closes its doors at the end of February, it will be a loss not just for San Franciso but for Disney fans everywhere.
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