Fun ‘Factory’: A new toy store has opened in Columbia. Check out where it is

Columbia’s Main Street just got a little bit more fun for kids and those who are young at heart.

Perfect Storm Bear Factory, a store that sells toys, games and customizable stuffed animals, has opened at 1426 Main St. in the heart of downtown. It is on the street-level floor of The Hub student apartment building, near East Bay Deli. The shop opened in June.

The toy store is the latest edition to a section of Main Street, north of the State House, that has seen continued revitalization and growth in the last decade, as new restaurants, bars and stores have set up shop along the street. It’s also where the weekly Soda City Market continues to be wildly popular on Saturday mornings.

Perfect Storm Bear Factory is owned by husband-and-wife duo Allen and Jenny Franklin. For more than a decade, they have operated a seasonal store in the Columbiana Centre mall during the holidays that sells calendars, toys and games. Allen Franklin, who also is the director of operations for the City Center Partnership organization that advocates for property owners in the Main Street District, said he and Jenny saw a need for a toy and game store downtown.

“It’s kind of been a thing that Main Street has been missing,” Allen said. “My wife and I, we always go to the Soda City Market, and she said, ‘It really does miss a toy and game type of feel.’ So, it’s something we kind of developed, a small concept store.”

A main draw at the shop is the opportunity for customers to select a Teddy bear or other plush animal and help build it and customize it. It also has a host of classic and modern toys — Allen Franklin said Star Wars lightsabers are a consistently hot seller so far — and board games and puzzles, including games that can be enjoyed by adults and college students.

“We have games for little kids all the way up to adults,” Allen said. “Some of the games in there are the kinds of games that Hub students would really come in and purchase.”

The Franklins are excited about getting started at the Main Street shop.

“We waited for a spot that felt like it was the right size,” Allen said. “We didn’t want to get into a huge location. We wanted to get into a spot spot that we could grow out of, rather than grow into.”