Doctor hopes the Force is with his toy shop

Jason Domagalski’s early memories revolve, as is typical with many, around toys.

His favorites, he said, were classic toys such as G.I. Joes and Star Wars figurines and games.

But unlike many men, Domagalski never quite grew out of that mindset. He collected classic toys throughout his life, recalling the day he brought his then-girlfriend, now wife, Jennifer home.

“Her test was coming up to my room, where every inch was covered in Star Wars  toys,” Domagalski said.

It didn’t scare her off, and he’s continued to collect toys — although he’s learned one simple lesson.

“You can’t have everything,” Domagalski said.

Today he and his family are preparing for the Aug. 29 grand opening of their store, G.I. Jason’s Toy Bunker, at 411 Falls Rd. in Grafton.

“It’s been a long-time dream, definitely,” Domagalski said. “I think kids of the ’80s grew up in the golden age of toys. Now that we’re adults, I think we’re looking back on that as a happy time.”

But his store won’t just appeal to men looking back on their childhood, Domagalski said. The shop will also have an assortment of classic girls toys, and in addition to vintage toys will also have playthings that are popular today, such as He-Man, ThunderCats and Monster High dolls.

And a friend of his also plans to offer comic books at the shop, Domagalski said.

“This will be a place for the young and the young at heart,” he said, adding that today there are few true toy stores left.

The shop will feature toys at prices “that are for collectors looking for that grail piece to those that are affordable for kids,” Domagalski said.

Domagalski has spent a lifetime gathering information about the toys he loved and collecting them.

But as he and his wife, who as a girl collected Barbie dolls, Care Bears and My Little Pony, raised their four children, they came to realize something sad, Domagalski said.

“Kids don’t play with toys as much as they once did,” he said.

The average child today stops playing with toys when they are 9, he said, replacing them with video games and social media.

His children, who are ages 12 to 17, will still occasionally play with Legos, but not the way they once did, Domagalski said.

Toys are essential, he said, teaching children how to use their imagination as they create stories and scenes with them.

Domagalski never lost his love for toys, although there were times when he didn’t indulge in it as much as he once did. He continued collecting toys through years spent in the Army and medical school, though his collection dwindled a bit as he moved around the country.

About eight years ago he got back into the hobby a little more heavily, he said. He also learned that if he bought up other people’s collections when they sold them, he could keep the toys he wanted and sell the rest to pay for his hobby.

For the last five or six years, he said, he’s been attending toy shows as well, buying and selling toys to collectors. He goes to about eight shows a year.

Through that, he said, he’s seen two sides of collecting.

He said it  breaks his heart when families come to his table at the show and parents tell children not to touch the toys they see, but he’s also seen the excitement in children’s eyes when they get to buy something they cherish.

He recalled an 8-year-old boy who bought a classic G.I. Joe at the Georgia toy show to add to his collection.

“It was fun to see the excitement in his eyes,” Domagalski said.

Domagalski, a physician at the Clement J. Zablocki Veterans Administration Hospital in Milwaukee, said he wanted to bring that excitement home to people by opening his own store.

“When I was a kid, it was my dream,” he said. “It’s always been in the back of my head.”

He thought about opening a toy shop in retirement, but as his personal collection grew to fill every spare inch of space in his Mequon home, he began thinking about it more seriously.

He surveyed people at the toy shows he attends to see if they would be willing to travel to a Milwaukee area toy shop and asked what sorts of things they would want to see there.

The results were so positive he began seriously exploring the idea. He contacted a real estate agent, and the first space he looked at was a corner storefront near the Pick ’n Save grocery store on Falls Road in Grafton. He signed the lease in late June.

Domagalski has been busy picking up inventory and setting up the storefront.

“I think it’ll be a lot of fun,” he said. “I’m excited for it to open, and I’m thankful I have a really supportive wife.”

The business, he added, is a family operation. His children — 17-year-old twins Dale and Noah, 14-year-old Luke and 12-year-old Kalina — and his niece Katie McClellan will help staff the shop.

“They’re really excited about it,” he said of his children. “They’re getting into it.”

G.I. Jason’s Toy Bunker will be open from noon to 7 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays.