Just as the name implies, as soon as you walk through the door at Time Travel Toys, you’re
transported to the past, to a simpler time before the days of streaming, smartphones and
online shopping.

A time when comic books were bought off a spinner rack, video games came on cartridges, and
all your favorite action figures could be found in the pages of a JC Penny Christmas catalog.

“I have a passion for collecting toys,” explains Shawn Robinette, the owner of Time Travel Toys.
“I like the history of toys and in my pursuit of completing my own personal toy collection, I
started selling off the extra toys I had, and it’s grown into more than I could ever imagine.”
Robinette, who hails from Southwest Virginia, started seriously collecting toys about six years
ago, right before the COVID-19 pandemic. Many toy collectors are motivated by a desire to
relive happy childhood memories or to acquire the toys they wished they had as children.

As such, Robinette started with the toys he most remembered having when he was a kid - G.I.
Joe and Transformers.

From there, Robinette started selling at toy shows and online the duplicate items from
collections he purchased. This side hustle continued for a few years and eventually, a friend
encouraged him to open his own store.

“I chose downtown because of the proximity to Dewayne’s World of Comics and Games (on
Sullivan Street),” Robinette explained. “I wanted to co-locate with a like-minded business, who
has a 30-year history with customers, many of whom naturally like toys too. It just made good
sense.”

While collecting began with just vintage G.I. Joe and Transformers, Time Travel Toys has grown
to include a wide variety of toy lines, including Star Wars, TMNT, He-Man, Hot Wheels, Funko
Pops, Marvel and DC.

LEGOs, horror action figures and videos games have been added to the shelves, as well as toys
for girls, such as Barbie, Rainbow Bright, Monster High and My Little Ponies.

“Toys collecting is more male dominated, but don’t count out the women. There are a good
amount of female customers who love Transformers and horror toys,” Robinette said. “I would
have more girl centric toys and items if the girls would give up their collections. Once they get
their collections, they are less likely to give them up and sell them.”

In less than 18 months, Time Travel Toys has grown not just in physical space (it moved down
the street this past fall to a larger location), but also in the size of its selection. Almost every square foot in the store is filled with action figures, playsets, video games and vintage collectables.

Toy-loving shoppers from North Carolina, Kentucky and Virginia regularly visit the store and one
traveler, who hailed from New York City, looked up “toy stores in our region” and made a point
to pay Time Travel Toys a visit as he was passing through.

Much of this growth and success, Robinette attributes to the power of social media. Almost
daily, he makes a Facebook post or funny TikTok video about the latest, vintage toy to come
walking through his door.

“I get told quite often customers are glad I’m here and I’m providing a product and a service
that Kingsport didn’t have before,” Robinette said. “So far, I’ve been successful, more than I
could have imagined and I hope the store continues to grow.”