A Kid At Heart

25 May 2011,
Wind koh tells us that there’s nothing wrong with enjoying playing with toys, irregardless of your age, and exposes us to the vast world of collectible toys available in his ever popular action city, including the recently wildly crazed for be@rbrick bears.


As a little girl growing up, my mother constantly bombarded me with Barbie Dolls, teddy bears and play cooking sets, even though I preferred more boyish toys like Lego and Hot Wheels racing cars. During high school, the dolls were kept away but the teddy bears have remained until today. There’s something about toys that makes a bad day okay, replaces frowns with smiles. Although toys are generally made to be enjoyed by toddlers and children, there is no reason why adults shouldn’t be able to enjoy them as well!

A self proclaimed kidult, Wind Koh, Creative Director of Action City, has been sharing the joys of collectible toy figures and soft toys that can be enjoyed by both adults and children alike. Wind’s humble childhood in Melaka was spent with almost no toys hence all he had to depend on was his vivid imagination which proved to be a trait that would deem him success in the future. His passion for toys began like any other boy in primary school, being exposed to cartoons like Thundercats.


“I treasure all of my toys, and I’ve kept the all the toys I’ve ever received in my life up until today! My very first toy was this yellow apple with strings you can pull. It’s funny, to have a yellow apple, but it holds many memories for me. Back home in Melaka, I’ve about 100 toy pieces in my own personal collection,” explained Wind.

In 2000, Wind started an online community doxob with two of his friends in the creative field where he first introduced Be@rbrick after its launch in 2001. “I was surprised yet pleased to see that the good response we received from the public, and so I started play.com.my, a forum where people could talk about toys.

Initially, collectors for Be@rbrick were a very niche market. Celebrities like Danny Wan, Manhand, Shaine Wong, Saimon Yong, Stephen Lau and Melvin Sia were my loyal customers. Up to date, Be@rbrick’s sales are one of the highest in the world including Taiwan & Hong Kong. But not as high as Japan.

In 2006, the very first Action City store opened in One Utama, followed by the opening of the second store in 2007 in The Gardens; carrying toy brands like Be@rbrick, Kubrick, Uglydoll, Domo-kun, Care Bears, Re-ment, Mediacom Toy, Gloomy, Kokusai Lucky Cat, Action City manufactured and produced toys and many more. When asked about the selection of brands carried, “I carry toys that I like. Toys that I find cute and attractive, and not usually found easily. Although I am a huge Toy Story fan, I don’t carry the franchise as I stay away from the mainstream brands. What you will find at Action City are unique and imported brands.”

Be@rbrick has quickly become a favorite worldwide. Designed and produced by the Japanese company MediCom Toy Incorporated,
Be@rbrick is known for collaborating with the best of the best brands around the world, only the number 1’s from every creative field such as Nike, Pepsi, Barbie, visual artists such as H. R. Giger, illustrators such as Pushead and even fashion designers such as Karl Lagerfield and Vivienne Westwood. If you are the crème de la crème of the creative expertise, then you would have had a collaborated designer toy edition with Be@rbrick.

When asked which Be@rbrick is his favorite, he enthusiastically explains, “My favorite, hands down, is the International Love Hearts Be@rbrick by Alexander Girard, a very American textile designer. It was also the first ever Be@rbrick that is available in all the sizes; the 7cm high 100%, 14cm high 200%, 28cm high 400% and the largest 1000% which stands at 70cm high.

But due to all things that are popular, the fake edition will eventually swarm the streets, making it difficult for newbies to differentiate between the originals and the knock offs. “There are several ways to tell which is the fake Be@rbricks, but the easier solution will be to come to Action City and purchase them. Here, originality, uniqueness and collector value is guaranteed.” smiles Wind with just.

INFO
ACTION CITY THE GARDENS
T205, 3rd Floor, The Gardens
Mid Valley City, Lingkaran Syed Putra
59200 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
TEL
+603-2282 9998
EMAIL
info@actioncity.my
WEBSITE
www.a.com.my