“I’ve been collecting at all since I’ve been 7 or 8, but collecting seriously since I was about 10,” said Schwartz. “My father pretty much started me out with baseball cards and other trading cards, coins, stamps, things like that.”
Now Schwartz owns Star Pop Vintage and Modern, located at 15813 Waterloo Road in Cleveland.
It’s a store filled with every child’s dream–or better yet, adult’s dream.
“I like the store for its variety,” said Cleveland resident John Grogan. “Honestly, every direction you look at, there’s something that could catch your attention, something that might have some kind of meaning.”
Though Star Pop opened in the Waterloo Arts District a year-and-a-half ago, Schwartz said stores like this have been in his blood.
“I’m actually the fourth generation in my family to either own or work in a toy store,” he said.
But Schwartz isn’t the only one cashing in on vintage goods. He also buys items from customers.
“A big part of the business for me is about sustainability,” he said. “A lot of stuff that comes in the store is second-hand, whether its from a defunct business in town that no longer in operation or from a local family.”
From Care Bears to Ninja Turtles to video games, Schwartz said each piece has a place in someone’s heart.
“A customer sold me this 1940’s piece. I have this wind up toy that’s USO German, so just post-war,” he said. “Just wind it up. It’s a boxing match.”
It’s a local bit of nostalgia becoming a beloved treasure of the community.
“I just think it’s one of those little hidden gems,” said Hollis Geary of Lyndhurst. “You could be having a rotten day, and you just walk in here. It’s so uplifting. Just being here is medicine by itself.”
For more information on Star Pop, click here.