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Before I knew what a WalMart was, we had these. I was pretty young, but remember always going there for a toy if I had a decent report card.

Posted by theHollowTarnished@reddit | GenX | View on Reddit | 302 comments

Before I knew what a WalMart was, we had these. I was pretty young, but remember always going there for a toy if I had a decent report card.
I remember when it was just K Mart and TG&Y. Then Walmart showed up and everyone else shut down

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302 Comments

deerheadlights_@reddit

We lived down the street from one in Houston. The only time I ever had candy was when my best friend and I walked down there with our small change.
View on Reddit #71703404

Apprehensive-Line279@reddit

Yes! Walmart! I worked there as a teenager and through College. They really took care of their employees with health insurance, full day off with pay for your birthday, time and a half overtime pay on Sundays. Very cool people worked there from all walks of life.
View on Reddit #71558403

theHollowTarnished@reddit (OP)

Useful information for the people that never heard of Wal Mart. Im sure they appreciate that. Not hard to guess where you're employed. Especially if you took this offensively. If not, apologies, it really seems like you feel the need to stick up for Wally world as if I was saying something insulting or made up.
View on Reddit #71562033

Apprehensive-Line279@reddit

Kmart was what I was referring to.🙂
View on Reddit #71640392

Apprehensive-Line279@reddit

No offense at all! Just took a walk down memory lane there for a minute.
View on Reddit #71640340

NotARobotDefACyborg@reddit

I don’t think we had those in New England, but we had Toy City and Ben Franklin (imho, the best craft and hobby store there ever was).
View on Reddit #71631495

theHollowTarnished@reddit (OP)

In Texas our toy store was Children's Palace and of course toys are us. Parents never took us. Children's palace was in the shape of a castle. How do you not take your kids there once. Lol. No hard feelings. Great parents
View on Reddit #71631753

Legitimate_Zone1449@reddit

Anyone in Ohio remember Buckeye Mart?
View on Reddit #71610771

WesternPancake@reddit

And Ben Franklins
View on Reddit #71387416

Majic1959@reddit

Five & Dime stores.
View on Reddit #71397033

radiowave911@reddit

We had a McCrory's 5 and 10.
View on Reddit #71411614

Coup-de-Glass@reddit

Anyone else have a Pamida?
View on Reddit #71431467

yeswab@reddit

Not sure but if you hum a few bars, I’ll try to pick it up on the harmonium…
View on Reddit #71596952

hells_cowbells@reddit

My grandmother worked for McCrory's for a couple of decades. I spent a lot of time there, and got a lot of toys from there.
View on Reddit #71458998

tremendousbrunette@reddit

When I went to college in mid 2000’s (I was an old college student) they had a Ben Franklin’s and I went in there every week! They shut down about a decade ago and I was pretty bummed when I found out!
View on Reddit #71566694

Objective_Watch3097@reddit

Sam Walton owned a Ben Franklin's variety store before he started Walmart.
View on Reddit #71555444

Remarkable-Front-551@reddit

Our senior class in high had our graduation registry at the Ben Franklins in Merkel, Tx. I didn’t know it was a chain store.
View on Reddit #71493609

Boring_Blood4603@reddit

There is a Ben Franklin's in Fayetteville, WV or there was three years ago.
View on Reddit #71406905

4Q69freak@reddit

There is still one in Macon, Mo.
View on Reddit #71482514

imscruffythejanitor@reddit

Came here to say Ben Franklins too
View on Reddit #71420019

Weird-Girl-675@reddit

I loved Ben’s! Got my first CD stereo there.
View on Reddit #71417757

Ok-Dragonfruit-715@reddit

And Woolco.
View on Reddit #71588826

Robinhood6996@reddit

TG&Y 5¢ and Dime store before there was 99 cent stores now I guess there is $5 and below - probably in a few more months there’s going to the $10 and below stores lol - but yah I remember going to TG&Y in my hometown awesome memories
View on Reddit #71390769

Money-Ad7257@reddit

Oh yeah, Five Below started a "Ten Below" shelf a couple years ago, and Dollar Tree followed suit shortly after, which sucked because DT sold excellent type C phone cords for a dollar until then, made in Vietnam just like the OEMs. Now they shove them in the upmarket category.
View on Reddit #71539152

Robinhood6996@reddit

Wow Bummer - inflation is definitely speeding way too fast now
View on Reddit #71578482

Hairy_Yam_3360@reddit

Pamida and shop-ok
View on Reddit #71577952

dras333@reddit

Ben Franklins, Yellow Front, Biggs. I’m from Colorado
View on Reddit #71575014

the_drum_doctor@reddit

We had a place in Tacoma called The Giant T. They had a little ice cream counter up front that sold black licorice ice cream.
View on Reddit #71572095

ChiliSama@reddit

“Your Best Buy is at TG&Y”
View on Reddit #71571288

AcrobaticTrouble3563@reddit

Yessss, I remember thise as well. It's crazy how many things have come and gone in our lifetime.
View on Reddit #71567363

MLUTEHEA@reddit

We had Gold Circle before Walmart
View on Reddit #71567120

OolongGeer@reddit

That was before Sears shut everyone before THEM down!
View on Reddit #71564273

Lumpy_Ad_1581@reddit

Bradley's. Two Guys.
View on Reddit #71556091

Dry-Luck-8336@reddit

I only remember KMart and Woolworth. There probably wasn't a TG&Y where I lived (central valley California). There might have been one in a larger city. I just asked my 80 year mom, she said she heard of it, but we didn't have one.
View on Reddit #71386747

Medical-Hurry-4093@reddit

There was one in Sonoma County(Rohnert Park) for years, but I never heard of any others in the Bay Area.
View on Reddit #71425349

Unique-Fan-3042@reddit

Pretty sure one in Santa Rosa? or maybe Sebastopol or Calistoga. Places I lived as a kid and I don’t remember which store was where. I liked K-mart because of distinctive smelling popcorn, sub sandwiches and slurpees.
View on Reddit #71514484

Medical-Hurry-4093@reddit

I lived in San Carlos, so 'non-supermarket' shopping trips meant Redwood City(which had K-Mart and Ben Franklin), or up to Hillsdale for the 'good stuff'.
View on Reddit #71547450

BluePosey@reddit

Kmart and Woolworths for this San Francisco girl. Never heard of nor seen a TG&Y
View on Reddit #71388700

LondonIsMyHeart@reddit

San Jose area had them.
View on Reddit #71397463

Unique-Fan-3042@reddit

Sonoma County also
View on Reddit #71514262

elspotto@reddit

Yes we did.
View on Reddit #71412579

PeterMahogany@reddit

I just remember the Gemco in Mountain View very vividly.
View on Reddit #71401978

LondonIsMyHeart@reddit

Oh, I loved that store!
View on Reddit #71402291

bene_gesserit_mitch@reddit

I think TG&Y was Midwest. We also had Shopper’s Faire and Zayer.
View on Reddit #71388914

Unique-Fan-3042@reddit

Had em in CA. Also Woolworths, Five and Dime, Thrifty’s, K-Mart, Sprouse-Reitz, and of course TG & Y
View on Reddit #71513916

hells_cowbells@reddit

According to Wikipedia, it was founded in Oklahoma City. It also had over 900 stores in 29 states. I never realized they were that big.
View on Reddit #71459674

Illustrious-Tap8069@reddit

I remember Zayres
View on Reddit #71447320

Boring_Blood4603@reddit

Gold Circle is one I remember that went out of business.
View on Reddit #71406979

violetleia@reddit

I grew up in Los Angeles. We had them.
View on Reddit #71396716

TheMightyPushmataha@reddit

There was plenty of them in the Deep South.
View on Reddit #71395948

Texas_Mike_CowboyFan@reddit

We had one in Abilene, TX in the 70s.
View on Reddit #71389828

ahutapoo@reddit

Could have been Coronet, Sprouse-Reitz 
View on Reddit #71387478

Dry-Luck-8336@reddit

Now I do remember Cornet, it was in the local mall next to Thrifty. And when I was a bit older, they opened up a Sprouse-Reitz. I spent most of the time trying to figure out how to pronounce the name. 😄
View on Reddit #71388608

Bama275@reddit

They had a TG&Y in Wetumpka, AL until the late 1980’s. When I was 9-10 I bought an entire sea monkey set there. It had the sea monkeys and a small aquarium with a built-in magnifying glass. Never have brine shrimp been more disappointing.
View on Reddit #71395312

Brilliant_Test_3045@reddit

I couldn’t WAIT to get my Sea Monkeys, and yes, the brine shrimp were very disappointing.
View on Reddit #71494693

ahutapoo@reddit

We said "ritz"
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RandyRhoadsLives@reddit

OMG..Sprouse Ritz! I remember in the far back corner, they had tropical fish. Such a funky little store. In the 70’s, my Mom would take me there. Back then, you couldn’t buy deodorant or tampons at a grocery store. SP had a quirky little toy section…cheap model airplanes and puzzles. Damn. Good times.
View on Reddit #71493866

Taira_Mai@reddit

Grew up in a town that had Sprouse-Reitz, TG&Y and Yellow Front (kind of a dollar store). All are gone now. I loved Sprouse-Reitz because they had popcorn - I'd get a bag everytime I was dragged for clothes shopping by Mom.
View on Reddit #71422309

implicate@reddit

My weird grandma would call it "Sprouse Ritz Cracker" and thought she was the pinnacle of comedy.
View on Reddit #71388214

ahutapoo@reddit

At least she was laughing, right?
View on Reddit #71392436

implicate@reddit

Eh, she was also pretty abusive.
View on Reddit #71392967

ahutapoo@reddit

Who's laughin' now, GTFOH granny
View on Reddit #71393207

leeloocal@reddit

Sprouse-Reitz was the BEST.
View on Reddit #71388451

ahutapoo@reddit

JJ Newbury and I spelled Cornet wrong '
View on Reddit #71387580

ahutapoo@reddit

No way! Did you ever got to this? Five & Dime Antique Mall in Bakersfield
View on Reddit #71387709

Desperate_Gold6670@reddit

Yeap, Sprouse-Reitz and we had a Jolly Five and Dime.
View on Reddit #71387581

gridironsmom@reddit

TG&Y was in the Bay area.
View on Reddit #71492057

mayura376@reddit

Woolworth was awesome 😎
View on Reddit #71446538

Dry-Luck-8336@reddit

One that was in a nearby city still had a small lunch counter.
View on Reddit #71452045

Blazenkks@reddit

We had a TG&Y in Sac, in the Central Valley. Right next door to a Lucky’s, and a few doors down from a Thrifties. All in the same strip mall.
View on Reddit #71423985

Dry-Luck-8336@reddit

I was in high school before I encountered a Walmart and we had moved out of state. There probably was a TG&Y somewhere in one of the neighboring small cities around us, but we just never shopped at one. Mom preferred KMart, Woolworth, Sears, JCPenney.
View on Reddit #71451341

I_Dont_Answer@reddit

Bakersfield had one on Airport drive near Beardsley Elementary.
View on Reddit #71388143

Illustrious-Maybe924@reddit

In Ohio we had a store called Gold Circle which I remember as being just like Target!
View on Reddit #71544606

Confident-Daikon-451@reddit

Yeah! I used to get those iron-filing guy-with-a-beard "toys" and the water-filled things where you would push the buttons and try to get the rings in the targets. If you know TG&Y I assume you know what those things are.
View on Reddit #71541127

Ok-Chain8552@reddit

We had Bradlee's. I hated it because we shopped there while everyone else shopped at places like the Gap
View on Reddit #71386753

Impure_guava@reddit

I had never heard of Bradlees. I bought an old 80’s Transformer with a Bradlees sticker on the box and had to look it up.
View on Reddit #71403403

Ok-Chain8552@reddit

Ha well ! It was like a run down Wal mart . Dark lighting very poor quality . It was in New Jersey .. not sure if other places ! Clearly I have feelings lol
View on Reddit #71403855

Money-Ad7257@reddit

I think it was Bradlee's where I got my first real baseball glove, a Ryne Sandberg model. Or maybe it was Lechmere, I dunno. Anyway, it was a thrill when some twenty years later I was at a AAA game and here's Sandberg right in front of me coaching third base! I did a double take and was reminded of the happy memories with that glove.
View on Reddit #71539505

Intelligent-Art-5000@reddit

Woolworth's, Benny's, and the Ocean State Job Lot. Only one remains.
View on Reddit #71390665

Money-Ad7257@reddit

Job Lots! There's still a few things I have that my folks got there in the 80s, including a wicker bathroom shelf.
View on Reddit #71539014

Lanky-Antelope7006@reddit

My great aunt was always getting names wrong. She would say "I'm going to the T and G Y. Anyone need anything?" 
View on Reddit #71390353

Money-Ad7257@reddit

There's also "the TT&A", but you can't say that to your great aunt, probably.
View on Reddit #71538918

2buckbill@reddit

We had a couple of those around here. Venture too.
View on Reddit #71386476

Money-Ad7257@reddit

At least one TG&Y became Venture in Oklahoma City (which was the home of the headquarters incidentally). I never went there, as we were K-Mart shoppers, but I'd see the price tags on classroom supplies for up to a decade after their closing. Venture's another story with its alternative-universe Target feel.
View on Reddit #71388597

what_the_fuckin_fuck@reddit

Blue light special!
View on Reddit #71537593

Money-Ad7257@reddit

They had JUST brought the Blue Light back when Venture changed over to Kmart. Looked a little like the frame of the hanging scoreboard you'd see in a well to do high school gym. I never was present during one, though.
View on Reddit #71538535

what_the_fuckin_fuck@reddit

I never saw a Venture, but in my hometown (southern Oklahoma) Kmart had blue lights pretty much all the time
View on Reddit #71538763

cyphertext71@reddit

It has been a minute, but are you talking about the Venture store that was on Shields... there was a movie theater in that same strip mall if I remember correctly.
View on Reddit #71395636

Money-Ad7257@reddit

This one was Rockwell Plaza, Expressway and Rockwell.
View on Reddit #71396276

2buckbill@reddit

There was a K-Mart within very easy walking distance when I was a kid. For several years they would set up a big screen TV in their K-Cafe and put on movies for kids while their parents went Christmas shopping. It was like $2 or $3 and you'd get a couple of cokes, a hot dog or hamburger, some fries, and some popcorn.
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Money-Ad7257@reddit

Aw that's neat! I don't remember such a thing, but the cafes I remember well, and sort of miss. The Venture near me as I grew up was walkable without crossing the streets (which I wasn't permitted to do), so I'd go there and eat in the cafe before buying whatever, instead of going to the numerous fast and fast casual restaurants just across the thoroughfare. The popcorn was legit, too. It scratched an itch that a microwaved bag wouldn't scratch, and I'd get a bag here and there.
View on Reddit #71391661

Impossible-Company78@reddit

Venture. Worked there in high school.
View on Reddit #71393065

foetusized@reddit

We had a McCrorys five & dime in the local mall, but no TG&Ys around here.
View on Reddit #71387207

Money-Ad7257@reddit

There was a McCrorys for some time here after TG&Y folded. I was into marbles as a kid, and I was overwhelmed with the huge display there of all varieties and sizes.
View on Reddit #71538712

TypicalDaydreem@reddit

Sprouse Reitz anyone?
View on Reddit #71537412

chavjinx@reddit

We had Woolworth & Newberry’s around here (PNW). Fred Meyer was fairly new when I was a kid and the one near my grandmother’s house still had a cafeteria in the basement.
View on Reddit #71537268

Time_Savings3365@reddit

There is still a Gibsons in kerrville TX, we go there when we're in town
View on Reddit #71533144

Ok-Kangaroo-4048@reddit

Wasn’t Otasco similar? I have a Matchbox/hotwheels style hello pickup truck that someone who worked there gave me while we were shopping. I only remember the name bc it’s written on the door of the truck.
View on Reddit #71532956

BeyondExcess@reddit

We had Pay ‘n Save in the PNW. Very similar to Kmart.
View on Reddit #71531374

DunkinEgg@reddit

We had a TG&Y and Gibson’s before Walmart.
View on Reddit #71386848

6ifted1@reddit

And Western Auto for bicycles and bicycle accessories. They must have sold car stuff too, but I spent all my time with the bikes I guess.
View on Reddit #71397718

DunkinEgg@reddit

Wow, I completely forgot about Western Auto until now. I used to go there with my dad so I could check out the bicycle stuff.
View on Reddit #71398069

stableos@reddit

What was the jingle? Western Auto, We’ll be . . . Good to you???
View on Reddit #71529798

what_the_fuckin_fuck@reddit

In Oklahoma, there were Otasco stores. Oklahoma Tire and Supply Company. We had western auto as well, but not in my hometown.
View on Reddit #71398651

Ryokurin@reddit

They were in several states. I grew up in Alabama and I remember that 1st bike came from there. It was gone by the late 80s however.
View on Reddit #71405513

hells_cowbells@reddit

They were in Mississippi, as well.
View on Reddit #71459058

Away_Bit_3382@reddit

Got my first bicycle there. Years later when I started smoking, WA had the cheapest per carton cigarettes. 
View on Reddit #71433273

LayerNo3634@reddit

My husband bought his first shotgun at Western Auto. I think he was 15.
View on Reddit #71402084

IRingTwyce@reddit

Gibson's - The Best For Less!
View on Reddit #71391555

edgarecayce@reddit

Used to go to the Gibsons in Garland TX to buy my cheap crap as a kid all the time
View on Reddit #71419427

IRingTwyce@reddit

Denton for me!
View on Reddit #71419746

snow1868@reddit

I got a LOT of toys from TG&Y and Gibson's in the early 90s. They always seemed to have a good selection for most toys.
View on Reddit #71401584

what_the_fuckin_fuck@reddit

My cousin and I used to ride our bicycles a few miles to Gibsons and change price tags on stuff. I got one of those huge black Frisbees for 15 cents.
View on Reddit #71398524

Augusts_Mom@reddit

I remember these, we would get white knock off Keds tennis shoes here and they would have the school supplies bundled together by school.
View on Reddit #71525322

stormin1970@reddit

I never heard of most of these. We had Kmart, Murphy Mart and Hill's in Pittsburgh.
View on Reddit #71522165

NewRecommendation287@reddit

Murphys five & dime 3D Big Wheel Schultz
View on Reddit #71388356

Resident_Ofhome@reddit

Where were you?
View on Reddit #71410239

NewRecommendation287@reddit

Indiana
View on Reddit #71429865

Resident_Ofhome@reddit

Same! I thought maybe so
View on Reddit #71434844

NewRecommendation287@reddit

That's awesome! I'm wabash valley, how about you?
View on Reddit #71493403

Resident_Ofhome@reddit

SW Indiana by Evansville so close!!
View on Reddit #71516355

Efficient-Tart456@reddit

Town & Country, Woolworth’s & Tally Mart here in Central PA (1970’s)
View on Reddit #71397472

Unique-Fan-3042@reddit

I recall a store called Town and Country in California but seems like it was fancier than TG & Y.
View on Reddit #71515136

ComfortableOkra1697@reddit

In Orlando we had TG&Y as well as Woolworths, Woolco, Zayres (then Ames) & Roses. Also catalog showrooms; Luria’s, Service Merchandise, Leeds & Golden Triangle. Maybe there were more, those are the names that I remember.
View on Reddit #71388779

Unique-Fan-3042@reddit

There’s a Roses down the street from me. Decatur, GA
View on Reddit #71514823

jcostello50@reddit

Roses still exists, barely. There's one about 45 minutes away; I'm tempted to visit for old times sake
View on Reddit #71410322

ComfortableOkra1697@reddit

What area?
View on Reddit #71415882

jcostello50@reddit

The two I've seen are in Kentucky, Henderson and Bowling Green.
View on Reddit #71428315

Tejanisima@reddit

Gosh, I'd forgotten about Rose's, which I went to in North carolina.
View on Reddit #71415481

Mamagogo3@reddit

Oh yes - I remember TG&Y!
View on Reddit #71510663

buckbuckmow@reddit

https://preview.redd.it/5q2rdzlvip1g1.jpeg?width=1206&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fc644f247543ca2d18aceef81067e85b9872f837 We had Zody’s in California. As a small child, I called it Zody’s Junk Box.
View on Reddit #71404930

False_Risk296@reddit

I remember both in southern California
View on Reddit #71502825

Vegetable_Owl995@reddit

Your best buy is at TG & Y
View on Reddit #71497487

HypnoFrog27@reddit

Definitely had a TG&Y and Zodys here in So Cal. And Gemco later on.
View on Reddit #71497306

Brilliant_Test_3045@reddit

Woolworth in California. McCrory's in Florida.
View on Reddit #71494599

olskooldj@reddit

TG & Y in Milpitas CA in the 70s. Used to go there to get Micro-nauts
View on Reddit #71493656

fantix01@reddit

Anyone recall 3-D stores?
View on Reddit #71493272

Befuddled_GenXer@reddit

Does anyone remember Big K? I pretty sure it wasn't related to K-Mart even though they did use the name later.
View on Reddit #71488217

frozen_charlotte@reddit

And Zody’s!
View on Reddit #71487615

Gweedo1967@reddit

Had that and Woolworths.
View on Reddit #71487516

mehfinder@reddit

Fond memories of these in Oklahoma in the 70s&80s
View on Reddit #71487494

HotnPerkyAZ1@reddit

Where middle school me scored the ultra super cool, black lung fu shoes…in my attempt to be ultra super cool myself! Southeast corner of Scottsdale road & Thomas 🩷🤩
View on Reddit #71483667

classicsat@reddit

Rural Canada, it as Zeller's and Bi-Way. Some cities had Bargin Harold's, and Tower's. A lot of Tower's became Zeller's except actually changing the name. The flyers each week were practically the same for both stores. Saan was around later, and also closed. Peoples was a small department store chain, that closed down years ago. Steadman's, maybe a decade ago.
View on Reddit #71480916

Extension_Case3722@reddit

We had Gemco- sounds similar
View on Reddit #71387062

TacoDeliDonaSauce@reddit

Gemco and Fedco.
View on Reddit #71387625

classicsat@reddit

Weren't these like club store, buy you had to be a federal government employee to join?
View on Reddit #71480356

TacoDeliDonaSauce@reddit

Yeah, Fedco for Fed employees. Gemco for… gemstone employees? (Nah, it was membership but like Costco - no rules). It eventually got sold to Target.
View on Reddit #71480771

TheClearcoatKid@reddit

My first bike came from Gemco, first baseball glove and pool cue from Fedco.
View on Reddit #71397976

Extension_Case3722@reddit

My mom would leave me in the book section while she did her shopping
View on Reddit #71398423

First-Ad-7960@reddit

Around here it was Caldor and Ames.
View on Reddit #71388604

classicsat@reddit

I seen Ames ads and stuff. That store almost looks like Zeller's in Canada, except the green theme, rather than Zeller's red.
View on Reddit #71480468

McVinney512@reddit

Was looking for Caldor. I loved that store as a kid
View on Reddit #71388872

Adventurous-Win8275@reddit

I gasped when I saw this! Loved our local TG&Y!
View on Reddit #71475532

Designing1166@reddit

We also had Gibson's in Oklahoma.
View on Reddit #71463139

ColonelBourbon@reddit

Used to get my Star Wars figures here. Bardstown, Kentucky.
View on Reddit #71456031

j2142b@reddit

Mom used to sew so we spent hours in there as kids (sister & I)
View on Reddit #71455915

writerlady6@reddit

My hometown had a Murphy's Mart, which was basically a Kmart copycat. Little cafe/restaurant inside too. Walking into the place, all you could smell was cherry pie, fresh coffee and hot grease that was about to yield a fresh batch of fries. All the clothing you bought there also smelled like fries when you got it home. That place was my first out-of-high-school, full-time job. It's also the reason I would rather take a board to the face than enter a retail store between November 20th and January 6th.
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Aggravating-Loss1805@reddit

I was 5 in kindergarten and this was first place I ever shoplifted lol, just a pack of crayons. I was also taken back and had to apologize to all the store workers. Thanks for the memory jog.
View on Reddit #71444022

theHollowTarnished@reddit (OP)

My mom made me do the same thing. It was candy and I had to go back in, tell them I stole it, snd apologize. Good parenting, but that was humiliating
View on Reddit #71452323

SJB3717@reddit

Must be regional. I never heard of this in the NorthEast, but I remember Hills before ever hearing about Walmart.
View on Reddit #71397801

Illustrious-Tap8069@reddit

That is where the toys are
View on Reddit #71447739

SJB3717@reddit

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=w4Qjzwd7NAw
View on Reddit #71448254

Wise_Quality_5083@reddit

Gold Circle? Anybody?
View on Reddit #71435351

Illustrious-Tap8069@reddit

I remember the plastic bags hanging from the ceiling to catch the leaks.
View on Reddit #71447892

epicenter69@reddit

We had K-Mart and Zayre.
View on Reddit #71388403

Illustrious-Tap8069@reddit

And bEST
View on Reddit #71447449

dajacketfanOG@reddit

Holy crap, had totally blanked this out until I just said it 5 times in a row. Was THE non-mall store in my middle Tennessee burb in the 70’s-early 80’s
View on Reddit #71386956

cakevictim@reddit

We had Big K and Fred’s in my middle TN area
View on Reddit #71444090

mommacat94@reddit

Tennessee burbs same time, and we went all the time.
View on Reddit #71389305

dajacketfanOG@reddit

Cool! Mine was Tullahoma - born, came back from 75-82, then just visited from time to time since
View on Reddit #71391490

omhound@reddit

Strange. I'm from Memphis and mine was on Tchulahoma rd.
View on Reddit #71406356

BottleAgreeable7981@reddit

We had Kiddie World here.
View on Reddit #71443732

OptiGuy4u@reddit

TG&Y was a staple of my childhood! Also Payless (not the shoe store) it was very similar.
View on Reddit #71440395

thechervil@reddit

We had Moses Five and Dime and Woolworths.
View on Reddit #71388497

Tejanisima@reddit

Where were you living? Here in Dallas we had M.E. Moses, which I assume is the same.
View on Reddit #71415444

thechervil@reddit

Grew up in Arlington!
View on Reddit #71416779

Tejanisima@reddit

Did y'all have a Crystal's Pizza & Spaghetti also, or is that Irving I'm thinking of? I know one or the other still had theirs after our one in North Dallas had closed...
View on Reddit #71427945

thechervil@reddit

Pretty sure that’s Irving. We never had one of those.
View on Reddit #71438455

DeepRoot@reddit

We had Memco!
View on Reddit #71438318

Open_Mortgage_4645@reddit

I don't recognize this one, but we had K-Mart, Jamesway, and Caldor.
View on Reddit #71431971

Oldebookworm@reddit

And Yellowfront
View on Reddit #71430689

DDlg72@reddit

Oh my gosh I forgot about this store! Remember Gibson's?
View on Reddit #71429715

Big-Adamsid@reddit

Had a T G & Y two blocks from my house when I was a kid.
View on Reddit #71429494

needlenozened@reddit

When I was a kid and my dad was away for work, Mom would take us out to dinner on Fridays. (Pizza Hut placemat games!) After dinner we would go to TG&Y and Mom would look at sewing patterns for about half an hour, while my brother and I wandered.
View on Reddit #71426027

Blazenkks@reddit

Best selection of GI Joes that was closer than Toys r Us.
View on Reddit #71423821

Jettcat-@reddit

It was Gemco for us
View on Reddit #71420517

heidi_abromowitz@reddit

Turtles, girdles, and yarn
View on Reddit #71386593

aberfoyle496@reddit

I always heard it Turtles, Girdles and Yo-Yos.
View on Reddit #71386946

bene_gesserit_mitch@reddit

Toys, games, & Yo-yos here.
View on Reddit #71388816

Original-Dinner-435@reddit

We called it Toys Guns and Yoyos
View on Reddit #71396982

ClassicOutrageous447@reddit

Small town Indiana. That's what we called ours, too.
View on Reddit #71418248

gdubh@reddit

That’s what we would say.
View on Reddit #71389645

Dalmatian_Carl@reddit

It’s crazy how we all heard the same type things before internet. I heard it like this too.
View on Reddit #71387946

Commander-of-ducks@reddit

And Winn's
View on Reddit #71417991

Weird-Girl-675@reddit

We had Janesway in NOVA. Got some great deals when they went out of business.
View on Reddit #71417775

Crazy-Project3858@reddit

Only place in our small town that sold top forty vinyl and cassettes
View on Reddit #71417472

Previous_Wedding_577@reddit

We had Woolco and Zellers in Canada.
View on Reddit #71416690

becuzofgrace@reddit

And Yellow Front
View on Reddit #71416395

Independent-Monk5064@reddit

Me too!
View on Reddit #71415790

Tejanisima@reddit

In Texas, we had M. E. Moses 5&10 and in small towns, Ben Franklin. The M. E. Moses was not only a place for me to get toys, but also after my Baba died and I inherited her old 1920s scrapbooks, it was the only place I knew that I could find those little photo corners that were no longer a thing in the 1980s thanks to the wonderful new technology of sticky photo album pages... which we did not yet know was bad for the photos, unlike the corners.
View on Reddit #71415204

RepairmanJackX@reddit

It was Woolworths for me.
View on Reddit #71414132

ExcellentOriginal321@reddit

Duke and Ayer’s!!
View on Reddit #71413789

No_Contest_4830@reddit

Thank god its yesterday
View on Reddit #71413274

WillNotSeeReply@reddit

https://preview.redd.it/ti9jzjrx4q1g1.png?width=1008&format=png&auto=webp&s=93088e4ac97cd515b19f8ae059209aad8608f31c G.L. Perry -- This location, seen years after shutting down.
View on Reddit #71411620

radiowave911@reddit

We had K-Mart and Kresge's - the latter like a low-end K-Mart, as I recall. Both were owned by the same company - the K in K-Mart stood for Kresge, as in S. S. Kresge - the company that owned the stores.
View on Reddit #71411596

Papichuloft@reddit

My local one closed around 89 or 90. One of my aunt's favorite store to buy and to browse. She was the only one to make it to 90 and passed away about 6 years ago.
View on Reddit #71411595

Fire_Doc2017@reddit

We had Grants and Jamesway.
View on Reddit #71411429

Biofred@reddit

Definitely remember going there as a kid . Always got a Hot Wheels car when we went.
View on Reddit #71411196

Resident_Ofhome@reddit

We had 3-D and Hills as well as KMart and Big Wheel
View on Reddit #71410153

LetheSystem@reddit

You could get models there! Snap together ships, but also cars and planes you had to glue together - the real deal models. They eventually put the model glue in a cabinet, I think? That's where the phrase "huffing glue" entered my consciousness. You could also get cap guns - the kind with the paper scroll and the stupid plastic wheel kind that ran out in no time.
View on Reddit #71408671

Zpgrl@reddit

I’ll never forget my first trip to a super Walmart in the early 90’s- I was thinking, “It’s going to take some getting used to buying my meat and my underwear at the same place!”
View on Reddit #71408543

4lug39@reddit

Here in Texas we had Winns and Gibsons.
View on Reddit #71404037

Gullible-Apricot3379@reddit

We had a TG&Y in Abilene. If we had a Gibson, I don't remember it, though I do remember the one in Lawton, OK when I want to visit family.
View on Reddit #71407787

Ghostrecon3068@reddit

Omg...now that's a flash back. I remember them, Wool Worth, Kmart...which most of my clothes came from. Or Montgomery Ward
View on Reddit #71407498

Gullible-Apricot3379@reddit

I'd honestly forgotten TG&Y. I was pretty young when it closed, but not so young that I don't remember it (maybe 10 or so?). I remember when the first Walmart opened in my hometown and how cool it was (it was also really close to where we lived).
View on Reddit #71407323

CourageFamiliar8506@reddit

Oh my gosh… I have not even thought about TG & Y in years!!!
View on Reddit #71406529

smalltalk2k@reddit

TG&Y ruled.  I loved that store. 
View on Reddit #71406218

capthazelwoodsflask@reddit

Oh wow, I completely forgot that name. That was the store next to the dance studio my older sister went to. My mom would buy me a Sgt. Rock figure there while we waited for her to be done with dance class. It later became an Odd Lots then a Big Lots. I think it’s a Planet Fitness now.
View on Reddit #71405301

iknownothingbutpaint@reddit

We had K-mart
View on Reddit #71404479

CynicalOptimistSF@reddit

I remember going to TG&Y with my mom. I'd look through their book racks while she shopped for yarn or crafting and sewing supplies. If I didn't pester her while she shopped, I could usually talk her into buying me a paperback. My mom liked to craft, so I ended up with quite the paperback collection of Peanuts, Heathcliff, BC, and various other comic strips. And so many trivia books, like the Book of Lists.
View on Reddit #71403908

daniegirl21@reddit

What about the five and dime stores. I remember going to those as a kid. Ben Franklin Stores were popular too, but I think they were more for crafts.
View on Reddit #71403054

GratefulDad73@reddit

Hell yes! I loved visiting our local TG&Y as young kid.
View on Reddit #71402686

GratefulDad73@reddit

All my baseball cards, Matchbox, Hot Wheels and GI Joes came from TG&Y. A lot of model cars too.
View on Reddit #71402910

drifter3026@reddit

Two Guys, Caldor and KMart were my stores as a kid.
View on Reddit #71402787

BlueProcess@reddit

My internet-ruin brain read that as: "teh gay".
View on Reddit #71400263

thai-stik-admin@reddit

We had Kmart and Skycity
View on Reddit #71400080

Remarkable_Salad_250@reddit

Don’t remember this store, though we did have a Woolworth, a Service Merchandise, and an S&H Greenstamps store
View on Reddit #71399648

Badfish1060@reddit

core memory unlocked
View on Reddit #71399488

Jew-zilla@reddit

Zayre
View on Reddit #71399378

holidayoffools@reddit

Loved this place as a kid.  Still remember the smell of the rubber masks at Halloween...so nostalgic.
View on Reddit #71399312

Katerinaxoxo@reddit

California here we had a TG&Y!
View on Reddit #71399069

MrMcGibblets86@reddit

Wow, I totally forgot about this place. What about Zodys? (ORANGE COUNTY, SO CAL)
View on Reddit #71398944

what_the_fuckin_fuck@reddit

Toys, Games, & Yoyos.
View on Reddit #71398781

oops_all_baphomets@reddit

TG &Y and Woolco’s in Central Florida they both had great toy sections. Also had the Woolworth’s with lunch counter. And the K-Mart of course.
View on Reddit #71398588

Hortn8r@reddit

We had one in Phoenix,Az. I would always get my little league baseball gear from there.
View on Reddit #71398467

TopicalTimmy@reddit

Your Best Buy is at T G and Y
View on Reddit #71397738

yahoosadu@reddit

We had Jamesway
View on Reddit #71387413

meat_sack@reddit

Yeah, Jamesway was what I remember in NJ. And before Home Depot and Lowes, there was Channel Home Centers.
View on Reddit #71390687

Efficient-Tart456@reddit

Hechinger’s here in PA
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Dead_Is_Better@reddit

And Rickles in my part of NJ.
View on Reddit #71392187

cowboygwe@reddit

They also had the best candy selection, one whole row left to right!!
View on Reddit #71397374

10202632@reddit

🎶Your Best Buy is at TG&Y 🎶
View on Reddit #71397328

Konorlc@reddit

Turtles, girdles and yoyos.
View on Reddit #71396908

violetleia@reddit

I will forever miss TG&Y. Also, Woolworth's and Kmart.
View on Reddit #71396662

innernerdgirl@reddit

Your best buy at TG&Y
View on Reddit #71396561

charliefoxtrot9@reddit

These and A&P
View on Reddit #71396526

Grunge4U@reddit

We had these, Zayre's and GC Murphy.
View on Reddit #71395639

wieldymouse@reddit

And Zayre
View on Reddit #71394448

Viking_Cowboy5005@reddit

We had TG&Y, Perry's (where I got my first Halloween costume), and there was even a store called AIM, where I conned my mom into buying me my first He-Man figure! 
View on Reddit #71393431

notfromhere007@reddit

That and the Winn Dixie were where we shopped... I think we had a Barneys too.. for shoes maybe...
View on Reddit #71393143

StrikingTradition75@reddit

It was McCrory in my area, but all of the little price stickers on all of the merchandise for sale in the stores said "TG&Y".
View on Reddit #71392712

mp3bear@reddit

These as well as McCrory's...
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Dead_Is_Better@reddit

I loved our McCrory's. Where else could you get baby painted turtles that carried salmonella and a banana split for a penny at their food counter if you popped the right balloon with a dart. That store was awesome.
View on Reddit #71392484

lawstandaloan@reddit

Remember Grant's?
View on Reddit #71386356

Dead_Is_Better@reddit

My Mom worked in one when I was a little kid, so late 60's early 70's. I remember when they went out of business and what a madhouse the store was on the final day. I got a cool mesh shirt with the #12 on it that day.
View on Reddit #71392137

SlideItIn100@reddit

Yes, and they’re restaurant!
View on Reddit #71388463

seasarahsss@reddit

We had Caldors, Bradlees and Zayre. New England.
View on Reddit #71391347

Curious_Catlady1@reddit

TG&Y here in KC, along with Venture!
View on Reddit #71391300

DidelphisGinny@reddit

Fabrics and patterns! Live frogs and turtles and fish!
View on Reddit #71391107

BonesCrosby@reddit

College friend of mine had a tv from there
View on Reddit #71391101

Fitz_2112b@reddit

We had TSS (Times Square Stores) long before we had a Walmart or Kmart in my area
View on Reddit #71391085

aogamerdude@reddit

It was either that or Pamida, at least a couple towns 30ish miles from where I was growing up had those. 
View on Reddit #71390808

hellomodern@reddit

Where I lived (WA/OR) we had variety stores called Yard Birds. I remember spending maybe an hour (hard to be sure on kid-time) ogling the Darci fashion dolls in the toy dept once there.
View on Reddit #71390539

jdragun2@reddit

We had Jamesway in NY.
View on Reddit #71389961

earthtobobby@reddit

Wow yeah, TG&Y, that’s a buried memory.
View on Reddit #71389637

SummerBirdsong@reddit

Toys, Guns, & Yarn
View on Reddit #71389613

XerTrekker@reddit

I was barely old enough to remember going in there, I don’t even remember what we bought. It closed and we got a Target closer to home, so I mainly remember going there.
View on Reddit #71389487

Tomatillo-5276@reddit

We had Thrifty's (California)
View on Reddit #71387689

some_one_234@reddit

And Zodys
View on Reddit #71388830

Tomatillo-5276@reddit

I've never heard of Zody's... Where was that.
View on Reddit #71388903

some_one_234@reddit

In SoCal
View on Reddit #71388982

Tomatillo-5276@reddit

Ok... I was in Nor Cal
View on Reddit #71389218

froction@reddit

Our TG&Ys got replaced with K-Marts some time in the 80s.
View on Reddit #71389188

Mission-Seesaw5689@reddit

We went there all the time in Liberty MO and also Venture was big around here.
View on Reddit #71389018

Extreme-Expression59@reddit

I remember going to Fisher Big wheel and McCrory’s five & dime
View on Reddit #71388928

qgecko@reddit

Toys, Gifts, and Yes (I have no idea why “yes” but it’s what we called it).
View on Reddit #71387652

Money-Ad7257@reddit

Probably, "do we need this? 'yes'".
View on Reddit #71388730

ZweitenMal@reddit

My dad called it “toys, games, and yo-yos”.
View on Reddit #71388633

rcreames@reddit

My hometown was too small for a T-GandY. We had a Duckwall's which was part of ALCO.
View on Reddit #71388523

Beautiful-Low9454@reddit

I had to do good at the doctors office getting a shot and then I get to get a toy matchbox car
View on Reddit #71388508

SlideItIn100@reddit

We had Two Guys, Zayre and Bradlee’s
View on Reddit #71388444

Objective_Site3528@reddit

I remember how upset my mom was when our TG&Y store was turned into a Sears. From then on we had to go to Kmart.
View on Reddit #71388435

ShelbyDriver@reddit

Back when they were called dime stores.
View on Reddit #71388315

Ancient_Seat_7456@reddit

We had a Perry's before TG&Y!
View on Reddit #71388051

I_Dont_Answer@reddit

I (50M) recall getting a single scoop cone for $0.10, $0.15 if I wanted the taster sugar cone instead of the flavorless cardboard one from the TG&Y just down the street from my childhood home.
View on Reddit #71388041

Illustrious-Grl-7979@reddit

Yes, I was in high school before my small town had access to a Walmart or McDonalds, lol.
View on Reddit #71388037

Authentic_chop_suey@reddit

I remember the 10 cent boxes of candy and the taiyma military miniatures.
View on Reddit #71387988

FlopShanoobie@reddit

I found a book on the shelf at my mom’s house just yesterday that still had a TG&Y price tag on it ($.77) that had to have been from 1977-1983 when we lived in that market.
View on Reddit #71387913

Warhammer517@reddit

🎶 Time To Save High At TG&Y 🎶
View on Reddit #71387792

ststaro@reddit

I loved the ice-cream cones. That was our treat
View on Reddit #71387231

skippy_smooth@reddit

Thriftys were the bomb.
View on Reddit #71387727

TheFoxsWeddingTarot@reddit

We had this… Toys, Gifts & Yarn.
View on Reddit #71387719

skippy_smooth@reddit

Remember mom getting clothes patterns from there, the little paper packs
View on Reddit #71387678

apoptyGin69@reddit

Has this store in Santa Cruz, ca. 70s - mid 80s.
View on Reddit #71387607

Yukon-Lizard@reddit

Toys, games, and yo-yos!
View on Reddit #71387517

SWNMAZporvida@reddit

Yellow Front
View on Reddit #71387430

rameyrat@reddit

I remember that store well. My mom was a frequent visitor.
View on Reddit #71387358

PlasticWentech@reddit

We had a couple of TG&Ys, Gaylords, and Woolworths here.
View on Reddit #71387229

Super_Ad4363@reddit

We had one in my hometown. We also had a Rinks on the opposite end of town.
View on Reddit #71387080

Schyznik@reddit

I’d buy a 45 there when I accumulated enough coin.
View on Reddit #71386920

VanillaCola79@reddit

My mom worked there until they went out of business.
View on Reddit #71386741

Username__-__@reddit

Yup. I remember these well!
View on Reddit #71386208