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ed, please let me know. i havent been to hk in a while so a bit out of touch. planning to go soon.
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$80? WOW! Very Cool find! The pics are awesome! Serious Optimus Prime store sign! I was picturing a small Mom & Pop store boy was I wrong
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Most of the dozens and dozens of stores are kind of mom and pop, but you also have more substantial retailers like Toyzone with a very deep stock and specialized staff in each "department" (which means a small computer workstation crammed into various corners of the maze that is their retail space... I think they are majorly an online retailer via ebay and yahoo Japan). Certainly space is limited in Hong Kong, but I've never seen such an incredible selection of boxed vintage within phone booth sized spaces this side of the big toy mall in Toyko with the Mandrake. Like that particular Mandrake, you might have a more major retailer dividing their stock up into a few smaller stores in lui of one big space like the Mandrake in Shiboya or Akihabara.
I still have piles of photographs, business cards/flyers and scribbled notes to go through, but off the top of my head, here is my coles notes version of Toy shopping in Hong Kong for those heading there for the holiday season.
If you only have one afternoon/evening to toy shop, focus on Mong Kok in Kowloon side. The four major buildings are Ins Point, CMTA Centre, 911 Richmond and Sino Centre within a few blocks of each other. Between those four and the additional high profile toy/hobby shops like Animote nearby, you have all your geeky bases covered. 1/6 contemporary action figures and customs, Vintage, scale models, cosplay, military, anime, asian manga/comics, lego, disney, hello kitty, dolls, video games, mecha, kaiju, western toys and pron. The Hot Toys showroom is in the CMTA Centre.
Usually it takes a Ouiji board to figure out when individual stores are open, don't go before noon, and dinner time is usually a good bet, although it might not give you enough time to check out everything. There are museums and galleries nearby, so if you want to maximize your time, go check those out in the morning early afternoon and then go toy shopping in the late afternoon and evening. Don't underestimate the side market streets for interesting conversation piece bootleg toys at dirt cheap prices.
Over on the Island, 188 Wan Chai Road is actually closer to Causaway Bay, near Times Square than the Wan Chai station itself. The second best assortment of toy stores concentrated in this building, with the added bonus of video games and electronics accessories to pimp out your iphone and such. My favourite vintage store is not actually in this building, but in the shopping arcade next door. It's a rather hidden gem towards the back. You know you are in the right building by the Mochichi store. They were the most accommodating and most willing to bridge the language gap with me. When I went back, they knew I was into Mego and Gatchaman and had pulled a bunch of stuff from their warehouse and the other store to show me. They were also the most willing to cut me deals without any haggling about (which seems to be a way of life in Hong Kong).
In Causaway Bay itself (where there is plenty to eat and shop), hit the Causaway Bay Centre basement where they have their North American comic shops, another Animote location, a very good 1/6th scale action figure shop. Back in the day, there were many more stores upstairs, but this is not longer the case. All the action seems to have moved over to Mong Kok. Make sure you hit Toyzone next door to the Causaway Bay centre. It's hidden up on the 16th floor. By far the biggest and most jam packed store in Hong kong. Prices are a bit more expensive, but their selection is pretty impressive in terms of a representative coverage of the toy and model hobby. You can also hit the Toys R Us if you are into Kamen Rider, Ultraman, Power Rangers or Disney. Don't forget the toy section of the Japanese department store Sogo as well, just a block over from the Causaway Bay Centre.
In the Wan Chai district closer to Central, there are a cluster of four stores with more contemporary items and many bargains. Hopefully I have the name of the side street they are on in my notes somewhere. It's a street market district, and I had been identifying it as the one with the Christmas stalls, but that won't help people traveling there at other times of the year. I'd recommend these ones if you do have kids to shop for, or are into Gundam, capsule/boxed toys, Star Wars, cars or dolls.Last edited by samurainoir; Dec 15, '10, 12:30 PM.Comment
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EXCELLENT post sir, VERY cool!
I bet you saw a lot of THESE guys, eh?
I have Ultra characters from the 70s, and a ton of early 80s Bandais! 
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I love hearing about your trip! I am blown away at how many stores you visted. Hardcore Toy Fan! Sounds like you are having a great time toy hunting!Comment
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Reviving this old thread for my upcoming trip to Hong Kong on Tuesday. Just refreshing myself with what stores to hit up. It will be interesting to see what has changed in six years.
It's a HUGE family reunion, followed by a tour of China, so I likely won't get to explore so much on my own this time, particularly with my wife coming along.
Kinda bummed that I won't be joining Cjefferys for some more Tokyo Toy shopping this year, but happy that i'll at least get to squeeze some Asian Toy hunting in Hong Kong.Comment
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Toy zone will be my first stop in Causeway Bay (my grandmother used to live in this neighbourhood). By far the largest shop with the deepest selection.
found this video...
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Yikes! glad I started clicking around on the internet... Toy zone has moved! I have no idea where TAI KOO is, so off to google maps.
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just posting this here for my own reference (and your enjoyment)
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Holy crap, you're leaving Tuesday, it seems just the other day when you were talking about the trip and it was still months away. I'm bummed that you won't be making it to Japan this time too, but I'm sure you'll find some great stuff in HK. And you're a wizard with Google Maps, you should be able to find lots of stores.
When I was in Hong Kong back in 1997 I managed to stumble upon a few really cool toy stores, but at this point I don't remember what they were called or where they were. We were staying at a hotel on Nathan Road in Kowloon, so it must have been around that area perhaps, they were within walking distance from the hotel.Comment
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I bet it must be sensory overload. I love toyhunting in Japan, but I cant imagine what it must be like in Hong Kong. Are you going to check out any factories? The funny thing is that in Japan so many of the store signs look like they could be for toy shops, but end up being pachinko palaces!Comment
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Yeah, it is sensory overload, but the feeling of being overwhelmed by it all is trying to sneak this all in during a huge week long family reunion, and also dragging my poor wife, and my brother's girlfriend along on these side-trips between dinners, sightseeing, and visiting the final resting places of my forebearers.
I really truly am longing for the dedicated toy shopping excursions in Tokyo with Cjefferys. Japan seems like an oasis by comparison, while Hong Kong toy shopping does really seem to be impacted by online retail, having both access to yahoo Japan and western eBay as marketplaces over brick and mortar relative to the outrageous real estate prices in HK. The landscape has really changed in the last half decade... the 1/6th custom hobby in particular, which was huge, has given way to the official releases from Hot Toys and Enterbay and others. Quickly finding parts to Kit bash cool 12" custom figures isn't as cheap and easy as it once was.
The high prices and exchange rate also means I've done a great deal of window shopping and no actual purchasing (unheard of for me). Not even the five and ten dollar trinkets I often pick up on whim. My general thoughts are that I can find move variety of things that are less expensive and in better condition in Tokyo.
Funny you should mention factories... had an interesting discussion with my uncle who used to oversee factories producing Teddy Ruxpin and Game/Watches way back in the day. It's all moved to mainland China, and the few factories that remain here are dedicated to expensive high end/high tech computer/electronics components.
I also have a friend that does work for two japanese toy companies in HK, but they only have small satellite offices and showrooms here, not any kind of real presence, so we'll see.
I've got some cool pics of great vintage stuff in Wan Cha today, which I will hopefully have time to post shortly.Comment
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