80's babies, rejoice! There's an entire store in Denver dedicated to your childhood.
Do you miss wearing neon and listening to Thriller on repeat? Reminisce at Fifty-Two 80's A Totally Awesome Shop! This store is packed with vintage toys, apparel, and accessories that were on the market between 1975 and 1995. The collection of more than 6,000 items was curated by shop owners Dede Thompson and Tony Vecchio, who travel to find items from thrift stores and local sellers.
The store, which recently celebrated its fifth anniversary, was the first retailer of its kind in the nation. “There was nothing like it at the time. Five years ago there was nothing in the country that was dedicated to the ’80s the way this store is. Now there are a handful of stores throughout the country. There’s one in New York. There’s one in California and Florida kind of doing what we do, but this is a really a unique situation. Although Dede and I grew up in the ’80s, we certainly weren’t collectors, but we felt that there was nostalgia about opening a shop like this," Vecchio told 303 Magazine.
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Thompson and Vecchio envisioned their shop as a place where parents could share memories of play time with their kids. Thompson remembers playing with items like Strawberry Shortcake dolls and My Little Pony toys as a child, and Vecchio noted that 80's toys inspired more imaginative play than modern toys. “Play has changed so much over the last 30 to 40 years, so we thought it’d be a good opportunity for parents to bring their kids in and kind of show them what we had to contend with," Vecchio said.
Though they wanted the shop to be nostalgic, Thompson and Vecchio were surprised by the emotional impact their store had on customers. They're not short of heartfelt stories from customers. “We had this guy come in and he was kind of like this tough looking guy — all tatted up with piercings. He comes up with a Cabbage Patch Kid. And I said kind of jokingly ‘Did you have a Cabbage Patch Kid?’ and he said, ‘Aw, no, my sister did. And I destroyed it. I’m going to get this for her since I owe her one,’” Thompson said.
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So whether you're in the market for a costume, a vintage arcade game, or Star Wars merchandise, you'll probably find what you're looking for (and items you never expected to find) at Fifty-Two 80's. And, if you have any nostalgic items you'd like to get rid of, the shop owners love to buy locally and also accept donations.
What were your favorite toys from the 1980s? Let us know in the comments.
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