Group turns memorabilia into money
Local residents are being urged to rummage through their attics, basements and garages in search of old toys that they can sell to the International Toy Collectors Association (ITCA) this week. The association is bringing its Toy Roadshow to the Fairfield Inn on Route 21 across from the Super Kmart in South Union Township. The show will be held Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m.
Since it was founded in 1995, the ITCA has sent its team of certified research experts and associates to more than 400 cities across the United States, evaluating toys and purchasing them for their network of over 5,400 collectors.
“Toy collecting has never been hotter,” said George McCurley, vice president of the ITCA. “Our three-day visit to Uniontown is a great opportunity for area residents to sell entire collections or accumulations of toys right on the spot.”
Some of the prices McCurley cites as examples of what toy collectors are paying these days is downright mind boggling. He said a single tin robot sold for $2,000, a rare Barbie doll earned $10,000, and the owner of a Hot Wheel collection went home with $20,000 in his pocket.
“So far, the highest price we’ve paid was over $326,000 for a cast iron Lady in the Shoe mechanical bank, purchased by an investment banker in Pennsylvania,” said McCurley, himself a toy collector/enthusiast.
“The seller was issued a check for that amount that very same day.”
Admission to the Roadshow is free and all toys will be considered for evaluation and purchase. Although owners are under no obligation to sell, McCurley said the great majority of Roadshow patrons take the offer suggested by the evaluator.
There is no limit to the number of toys a patron may bring in for evaluation, and everyone who agrees to sell will be issued a corporate-sponsored check right on the spot.
During the Roadshow, the ITCA sets up its teams in major hotel conference rooms and asks local people who have old toys to bring them in for an expert evaluation. Many times, patrons simply just want to get an idea of what their toys are worth and are not really interested in selling. Other times, the value of the piece and what the ITCA is willing to pay for them is such a surprise that they quickly decide that the extra cash is very appealing.
“Every person on our evaluation team will be certified by the ITCA, which has the toughest certification process of any organization that deals with toys as a hobby,” said McCurley.
Although the Roadshow team is especially interested in toys made before 1970, they will also purchase rarer toys on a selective basis from the ’80s and ’90s, such as the 1988 Holiday Barbie.
“The number one reason for a toy getting a high price is desirability, followed closely by its rarity,” said McCurley. “If an owner has a toy in mint condition that’s enclosed in an original package that’s never been opened, you can throw away logic, price guides and the records of what a similar toy brought at previous auction sales. Prices for these extremely valuable toys often go off the chart.”
Some of today’s most sought after toys include robots, space toys, tin wind ups, Barbie dolls and accessories, dolls, old bears, GI Joe dolls and accessories, cast iron toys, pedal cars, battery operated toys, race cars, Tonka trucks, Smith Miller toys, toy trains from Lionel and American Flyer, and, of course, mechanical banks. ITCA is also buying vintage musical instruments and music boxes.
“We encourage antique dealers to come in to the Roadshow,” said Jeff Parson, president of the ITCA. “Sometimes they feel threatened by us until they realize that we’re a good outlet for the toys they have, and we end up having a good long-term relationship with most of them.”
As far as McCurley can remember, this is the first ITCA Toy Roadshow to come to the Uniontown area. Sometimes the ITCA is invited in by people interested in selling their collections.
McCurley said, however, that choosing the Uniontown area was pretty much like throwing a dart at a map rather than according to some preconceived marketing plan.
Organizers expect the three-day Roadshow will draw between 500 and 900 people each day and say that demographic indicators project a total purchase amount of between $50,000 and $100,000, which is pretty average for a typical ITCA Toy Roadshow.
To beat the rush, the best time for patrons to arrive is early in the morning before the doors open at 10 a.m.
Usually, however, sellers can show their toys and leave with a check in their hands within 20 to 45 minutes after arriving.
McCurley expects to find some items in the Uniontown area almost impossible to find elsewhere in the country. Because many antique toys were made regionally at a time when the transportation infrastructure wasn’t as extensive as today, markets tended to be localized to some extent. Of course, the rarity of such locally made toys is what drives the desirability and price upwards.
“Because lots of collectors are looking for pieces to repair toys they already have, we also purchase items that might need to be restored, toys that some people might just throw away in the Dumpster,” said McCurley.
The ITCA sells nothing at the Roadshow and charges no admission fee.
McCurley said its sole purpose is to connect toy collectors directly with the owners of the toys they’re looking for.
Although the bulk of the association’s collector members are from the United States, some reside in far off places such as Australia, Europe and Japan.
The ITCA has a detailed database of the toy items its members want. If they find, say, a Marx wind-up from the 1950s and think it’s worth something, they phone a list of members who want such an item and tell them about the toy. If the collector wants it, he or she has one chance – and one chance only – to make a line bid on it, knowing that other members also want the same toy.
“If they really want it, they’re probably going to make a handsome bid first,” said McCurley. “The association will then make an immediate offer to purchase the item. The seller, of course, doesn’t have to let go of the toy if he doesn’t want to.”
“As you can see, the Roadshow is a rare opportunity for local residents to cash in on today’s hottest collectible phenomena – vintage toys.”