3 minute read
Retail Interview - with MIDCO Toymaster managing director David Middleton
TnP catches up with David Middleton, managing director of MIDCO Toymaster in Derby and Burton Upon Trent, winner of the Independent Multi-Store Toy Retailer of the Year award
How did you feel when you heard the news of your win?
It’s always nice to be nominated for an award. We work extremely hard: our stores are open seven days a week and late nights. We are based in the Midlands, which must be the most denselypopulated sea of national chains in the country. So, we always need to be on our game in regard to the latest crazes, keeping stocks right, and customer service, along with shop presentation and marketing.
It was a great honour to win the Independent Multi-Store Toy Retailer of the Year category and I want to thank all the suppliers who have looked after us, especially the ones who go above and beyond. I also want to thank [buying group] Toymaster for their support - not just this year but dating right back to when I first joined them. Finally, I want to thank Alan Caswell who taught me more about trading than any university course taught me about business - and it was far more useful. He deserves more than one Golden Teddy!
Tell us a bit about MIDCO Toymaster.
I was 14 years-old when I started buying and selling toys: I bought and sold a Star Wars figure I got from a car boot sale (I paid 10p for £80). I’m 41 now and more enthusiastic than ever. I founded MIDCO in 2002. The first store was only about 200sq ft and located in Burton Upon Trent. The money to start the store was earned by buying and selling toys from car boot sales and other ‘flipping’ avenues. In 2007 we opened in the Westfield shopping centre in Derby, which at the time was a massive step. In 2010 we moved our Burton store into a bigger unit on the high street, allowing us to stock much bigger ranges. Last year we moved the Burton store again, into The Octagon shopping centre, allowing us again to expand our ranges. This year we are looking to move in Derby to a much bigger store, still located in the same centre, which is now called Derbion.
What sets you apart from other toy retailers?
MIDCO Toymaster is a regular well-rounded toy store with a difference. We sell all the big brands - LEGO, Sylvanian Families, Funko and so on - but we also like to venture into different items you can’t find anywhere else.
If there is a craze or trend, we are always all over it and make ourselves a destination for whatever it is.
I think having this point of difference is what sets us apart from others. We aim to bring customers in and have exactly what they want but, while in-store, wow them with something they have never seen before.
How has the pandemic affected your business?
The pandemic took a lot of the fun out of toy retailing, but we are all still here. It was tough initially, but we battened down the hatches and focused on online sales. We cleared through stock and, when we reopened, we did so with a new store and brand-new fresh stock, with very little carry over. Since reopening, the business is 70% up on 2019.
What’s selling well?
At the moment, Lego and Funko are extremely steady for us with sales. Pokémon has had a phenomenal year, and we do well with smaller brands that you won’t find elsewhere: on-trend items that haven’t quite hit mass retailers yet.
What’s your biggest challenge right now?
Getting the new store in Derby ready to go, and just maintaining stock of those key items that drive the turnover.
