World 4 Kids?

[Paul Agnew]

Alright, let's test a few memories around here: Who among us remembers the local toy chain World 4 Kids? It was essentially Coles' local answer to the new kid on the block (at the time), Toys R Us. As with retrospect on our sides, we know that it didn't quite go as planned, and the chain was absorbed by K-Mart in the early 2000's.

In fact, for quite some time, you could find 'World 4 Kids' rack toppers in some K-Mart stores. Or at least could, as all of the ones I've seen have since disappeared to be replaced by bland generic racks. Yuck.

So the question of the day is, who can recall seeing/shopping at World 4 Kids? As something of an archivist, I am quite interested in hearing what others have to say, and am myself on the lookout for any surviving evidence of its existence.

Such as a 1993 catalogue, maybe?

[VERT]

Was at that place all the time. Best part was you could lay buy at world 4 kids.

[Paulbot]

Such as a 1993 catalogue, maybe?

Damn, I had one for years! It was a big book catalogue. But I think all that remains of it now is the Transformers page (with the Euro-exclusives). 'Who would ever want it?' I thought.

I recall shopping at World 4 Kids stores at Southland, Fountain Gate (where I got the Robotech figures I'm getting rid of) and Clayton (the only place I recall ever seeing the G2 Powermasters).

I can't remember exactly if there was one at Chadstone before Toys R Us (or if that was a Toys R Us store that just moved locations).

[1orion2many]

I used to go to my local one all the time and then one day it just wasn't there. Sort of Like Wonderland for kids which disappeared about the time the world 4 kids started popping up. It's a vicious circle

[blackie]

i remember getting an action man from world 4 kids when i was a hell of a lot younger haha

[CBratron]

I just remember the TV ad.
Nothing more.

[Lint]

I remember lining up at World 4 Kids with my mum early in the morning for a catalogue sale to buy the SNES game Street Racer at the bargain basement price of $15, only to find that adult scalpers had pretty much cleaned the shelves of them by going straight to the front desk and putting all the stock on lay buy.

I think all the W4K's in Perth became Toys R Us's when they started to show up in WA.

[llamatron]

Oh wow world 4 kids was awesome, used to make special trips out to mirrabooka to go there. I remember getting my g2 Megatron from that place. The building actually sat unoccupied for a good 10+ years before some new tenant moved in recently... I think an iceskating joint? Sad really, I still liked driving past the abandonded tomb of W4K.

Now wonderland, that really takes me back too...

[Tetsuwan Convoy]

I think all the W4K's in Perth became Toys R Us's when they started to show up in WA.

Mirrabooka stayed vacant for years, as Llama says, it's an Ice skating rink now. I quite liked World 4 kids, I lived near that one in Mirrabooka for a while and thought it was pretty cool. After all it was a MASSIVE warehouse of toys. Although I used to go there scouring the place for Saturn games and stuff. I remember buying EarthWorm Jim and a controller pack for my MD for like $20 back in the day.

Super goodies. I still remember seeing the W4K toppers in Kmart for a while after W4K closed down. Shame that there was never quite the same amount of Mas toy goodness.

Wonderland... that wasn't that place in Perth city was it?

[Omega Metro]

Well, I was in my teens in the 90s and for the life of me cannot remember World4Kids.
The majority of my late 80s/early 90s Transformers purchases came from Kmart Armadale or Woolies Kelmscott (when they had the variety section).