From a small corner shop in Republic Street, Kingsway Store cultivated a history of making magic.

Despite being a small property, its large windows twink-ling under gentle lights could sell the promise of never ending play: for children a journey of imagination and joyful adventure, and for generations of parents and grandparents the prospect of a quiet afternoon.

With its doors now boarded up, Kingsway Store has closed its chapter in history but will long live on in memories.

Felix Rizzo, who started working at Kingsway Store in the 1990s, told Times of Malta that when his family acquired the shop in the early 1970s, it came with another moniker.

“When we first bought the shop, people used to call it l-isptar tal-pupi (the doll hospital).

“The previous owners used to sell dolls and doll accessories. Back then, when a child was gifted a doll it had to last for a long time and sometimes dolls had mishaps. When they did, children brought in their dolls, likely their most prized possessions, to Kingsway Store where they would be repaired and made all better again.”

Now 67 and enjoying his retirement, Rizzo says it makes him happy to recall seeing the joy on children’s faces when visiting the shop.

“I think a lot of children will remember the shop because it tied in with some of their happiest memories,” he said.

“In the 80s and 90s especially, toys went from being basic to incorporating more technology and creativity. It makes me happy to think our shop was part of a good experience for many children.

Kingsway Store is no more. Photo: Duška Malešević

When we first bought the shop, people used to call it the doll hospital

“I still feel nostalgic for the shop. When I walk past it nowadays and see it boarded up I think to myself ‘Miskin il-Kingsway’, but like everything in life you have to know when it’s time to move on.”

Kingsway Store also had its own breakout celebrity, a bright yellow mechanical donkey ride, which sat outside the shop and carried many children on brief yet thrilling adventures throughout its tenure.

Rizzo tells us that while the donkey is also enjoying its retirement in the family business office, in its heyday it was something of a television star.

“Once they were filming a local television show at the shop, which involved a child getting abducted while riding the donkey,” Rizzo says.

“Well, the little actress was very good, and she screamed so convincingly that many passers-by thought she was really being abducted.

“Needless to say, the donkey was very crowded that day.”

Despite being a humble little shop, Kingsway Store also saw its fair share of celebrity shoppers, drawing the likes of football stars like David Beckham and Gennaro Gattuso and actors Norman Wisdom, Oliver Reed and Lello Arena, to name a few.

“Politicians, the man in the street... everyone wants toys for their children,” Rizzo said.

In its prime, Kingsway Store was also a haven for Subbuteo enthusiasts, being the sole distributor for the table-top football game for many years.

“Post-World War II there was a lot of suffering, there wasn’t really an appetite to innovate toys, especially if people could not afford them,” Rizzo recalls.

“But in the 60s there was a boom in board games, and Subbuteo was one of them. Malta was the first country that the game makers decided to export to, so we have very strong ties with it. In many ways, Kingsway Store and Subbuteo went hand in hand for many years.”

Valletta local councillor Mark Spiteri Lucas told Times of Malta that Kingsway Store became a landmark for his childhood, partially through his passion for Subbuteo.

“As a child I was literally mesmerized with the toys, board games and above all the choice of Subbuteo sets, In fact my first team, Brazil, was purchased from Kingsway Store,” Spiteri Lucas said.

“I remember being excited about visiting the toyshop with my parents. Kingsway Store was one of my preferred places. It was a landmark in the city, especially with the young clients and those who, although past their childhood years, were still young at heart.

“Although I am not a child anymore, Kingsway Store and its toys will remain in my memories, and the memories will linger on.”