Tony and Elle Spare have parlayed their individual childhood passions into a full-time family business. Tony Spare grew up loving and collecting action figures such as GI Joe, Transformers, Ninja Turtles, Star Wars characters, and more. He also was, and still is, passionate about early video games, which he continues to collect. He got into vintage comic books, a passion he shared with his father who, incidentally, owned a collectibles business.
Elle Spare was equally entranced with Strawberry Shortcake memorabilia. For over 15 years,  until the pandemic, the couple had been buying and selling toys at shows held in the tri-state area. Three years ago, the couple opened Sylvania Toy Store, at 5929 Sylvania Ave., where they continue to buy, sell and collect their favorite toys. Less than a year after opening they were able to double the space they had, allowing them to feature even more toys. “We have a warehouse and four storage units full of toys that we have been acquiring over the years. We hand-pick and bring new toys in each week from those facilities so there is always something fresh and a reason for our customers to stop back,” Spare pointed out.
“Now we have room to highlight and showcase our extensive collection of Legos, which we think is the largest display in the area. We have new along with vintage Lego sets from all eras. We also have a large number of used Lego sets that Elle takes apart, sanitizes, and inventories. She puts all of the pieces in bags and verifies each set. We have thousands of pounds of Lego pieces, as well,” he noted.
In addition to a large inventory of retired Lego sets, the Spares have a sizable collection of Lego Mini Figs (mini figures).
The expansion has allowed the Spares to display their collection of vintage comic books, featuring primarily the Super Heros of the 1960s. The vintage video game selection, including Super Nintendo and PlayStation, is displayed near the comic book section. Spare admits he is sad to see it go when a customer buys one of the games.
The additional space allows the Spares to display their Pokemon cards as well, which they sell individually or in a mystery pack of 20 cards.
The store features a variety of collectibles, primarily from the 1970s and the 1980s along with vintage toys dating back to the 1960s. Boys and girls can also find a myriad of new toys, games, and more filling the shelves of the shop. One area is filled with GI Joe action figures while another boasts Star Wars and yet another has Ninja Turtles, Strawberry Shortcake, and My Little Pony memorabilia.
There are baskets of action figures that might have a missing sword or another weapon that are sold, as is, for very reasonable prices. “Kids can buy these figures and have a great time playing with them,” Spare offered.  
“While our market had been buying and selling collectibles to adults, with the store, it is great fun to watch children come in and explore all that we have to offer. Unfortunately, so many toy stores have closed and children do not have that opportunity,” he said. “It’s also fun to watch moms and dads show their kids the favorite toys they played with growing up and be able to buy those same toys for them.”
In addition to operating the new store,  the Spares continue to seek out toy collections to acquire. “We think of ourselves as Ohio’s original toy pickers,” Spare chuckled. “We go to people’s homes and buy toys that are in basements or garages. We do all the work sorting, packing, and taking them away after negotiating fair prices for the collections,” he said.The Sylvania Toy Company is open Friday through Sunday from 1 to 6 pm.