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June 29, 2009
Playing Mantis toy
stores sell simple, handmade
toys that promote an interest in
the global community.
Heather Salerno
hsalerno@lohud.com
Walk into Nyack's Playing Mantis
toy store, and you get an
immediate feeling of Zen.
That's not a feeling associated
with big-box retailers, which
are dominated by aisles of
manufactured plastic playthings
that honk, beep, flash, bang,
clang and cry.
Make no mistake: Playing Mantis
has its fair share of cars,
trucks, trains, dolls and games.
But not a single toy there
requires batteries or an
electrical outlet - and all
still manage to inspire lots of
fun.
"I call it an
imagination-powered store," says
owner Imelda McCain.
McCain, a former oncology nurse
who opened her shop in the fall
of 2006, moved last month to a
new storefront on Nyack's North
Broadway. At the same time, she
opened a second outpost in
Tribeca.
These moves haven't led to a
shift away from McCain's
original vision, though. She
still believes in simple,
handmade toys that promote an
interest in the global
community.
That means Playing Mantis is
stocked with eco-friendly
products like books printed on
recycled paper and dollhouses
made out of reclaimed trees.
Scattered throughout the shop
are teddy bears stitched from
secondhand fur coats, wooden
airplanes propelled by solar
panels, and puzzles painted with
non-toxic watercolors.
McCain also makes a point of
carrying products made by
artisans from around the world,
many of whom are poor or
disabled. So shelves are lined
with dolls and stuffed animals
sewn by impoverished women in
Kenya, Peru, Nepal and
Argentina; the sale of these
toys enables them to support
their families and improve their
villages.
"If you're going to buy
something, it's not just
senseless buying," says McCain
of her merchandise. "When you
buy something, somehow it makes
ripples, either in the
environment, the community, or
to yourself."
It's not as if McCain is
anti-Toys "R" Us. As a baby, her
son, Lucas, who's now 9, loved
Elmo and
happily watched Baby Einstein
videos.
But by the time Lucas was in
preschool, McCain had developed
concerns about an overabundance
of electronics. She also wanted
toys that would teach Lucas
about other countries and
cultures, but found her choices
limited. "I just thought there
must be other options," she
says. "This is America, after
all."
A native of the Philippines and
one of nine children, McCain
came to the U.S. when she was
21. After arriving in New York,
she worked at Mount Sinai
Medical Center as a
cardiothoracic nurse before
moving on to Memorial
Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.
There, she met her husband,
Donald, who is now chief of
surgical oncology at Hackensack
University Medical Center, close
to where the family lives in
Montvale, N.J.
McCain says she loved her job,
but acknowledges that caring for
the sick took a toll.
"When you come home, you're
emotional," she says. "You know
that [some patients] are going
to die…and it's very hard
because you can't do anything
about it."
After giving birth to Lucas, she
decided not to return to the
hospital and became a full-time
mom. Yet once Lucas started
kindergarten, she felt a desire
to work again and played with
the notion of a socially
conscious toy store.
Her husband was the one who
spurred McCain into action: He
surprised her in 2006 by renting
a retail space on Nyack's Main
Street and giving it to her as a
Mother's Day gift. She opened
the shop the following September
- on her 40th birthday.
With Playing Mantis, McCain is
trying to better the lives of
others, but she says the store
has changed her own life. "I
feel good because I love what I
do," she says. "And I make a
difference, a little bit every
day."
One recent afternoon at the
shop's new Rockland location,
which is near the Runcible
Spoon, McCain cheerfully surveys
the soft, freshly painted murals
on the walls and stretches to
reach a sweet, handmade stuffed
monkey placed on a high shelf. A
local restaurateur stops in to
say hello, thrilled that she's
kept the store in the
neighborhood. Meanwhile, Lucas
plays quietly at a child-sized
wooden table, twirling a top
shaped like a globe.
"And the world comes tumbling
down," says McCain with a laugh,
as Lucas accidentally flips the
top across the room.
"This," she adds, "is my own
definition of happiness."
McCain's customers are pretty
pleased, too.
Suffern's Karin Gabai is a
frequent shopper, having bought
blocks, dolls, dollhouses and
more as gifts for her five
grandchildren. She not only
admires McCain's humanitarian
efforts, she thinks that the
bell-and-whistle-free toys at
Playing Mantis are more likely
to spark a child's ingenuity.
"Her store is alive," says Gabai.
"I get the unusual, I get the
creative."
McCain's relationship with her
vendors isn't a typical one,
either. Once she finds an artist
she likes, she's totally
committed.
After discovering the work of
David Palhegyi, a Hungarian
musician and woodworker who
carves folk-like toy sculptures,
McCain made a special trip
abroad to meet him.
She had dinner at Palhegyi's
home with his wife and five
children, and by the time the
evening ended, Palhegyi had
agreed to let Playing Mantis
carry his toys. They didn't draw
up a contract, or consult with
lawyers. The two simply shook
hands. McCain even gave Palhegyi
a $9,000 advance towards future
orders.
That faith paid off. Since then,
she says other retailers have
approached Palhegyi, but he'll
only deal with her - making
McCain his official U.S.
distributor.
"A lot of people want stuff from
him, and he'll tell them to
order from me," she says.
Other artists praise McCain for
appreciating the time and care
that goes into their creations.
Fairy Woodland co-owners John
Curtis Crawford and his wife,
Bridget Wolfe, build delicate
miniature houses out of twigs,
stones, shells and sand
collected from all over the
world. The couple says McCain is
one of their highest-selling
retailers: They're convinced she
sells so many pieces because of
her sincere love of their work.
"We adore her," says Wolfe. "She
is so trying to get away from
all that plastic and flashing
and all those modern mechanical
things."
In less than three years,
Playing Mantis has become a
self-sustaining business,
although it's not profitable
yet. In fact, McCain doesn't
even pay herself a salary.
"As long as I can pay my
employees, pay my rent, and my
vendors and craftsmen are happy,
I'm good," she says.
Another perk of running the
stores, she says, is that it
allows plenty of time to spend
with her son. She also believes
she's giving Lucas a lesson in
entrepreneurship - and serving
as an example that one person
can change the world a step at a
time.
"What makes you a better
person," says McCain, "makes you
a better mother."
Additional
Facts
Some favorites
Imelda McCain believes in
stocking Playing Mantis - her
toy stores in Nyack and Tribeca
- with handmade items from
artisans from around the world.
Find out more about McCain's two
shops at friendlymantis.com, and
here are a few of her favorite
items on the shelves right now:
- Pirate ship ($499). Crafted by
Hungarian musician and
woodworker David Palhegyi, the
set includes a large ship with
four pirates, an island, a
smaller boat and more. "Nothing
is the same," says McCain. "One
tree is different from another
tree, because it's all
hand-carved."
- Knitted monkey ($32.95). The
sale of stuffed animals and toys
from Danish company En Gry & Sif
help improve the living
conditions of the Nepalese
villagers who make these
products.
- Black fur teddy bear ($126).
Vermont-based Moonlight Llamas
makes its bears from recycled
fur and wool coats.
- Painted wooden puzzle ($74).
Puzzles by Grimm's Design are
painted with nontoxic,
water-based paint. The German
company mainly uses wood from
sustainable forests in Europe;
it also supports workshops for
those with disabilities.
- Cloth doll dressed in everyday
Peruvian clothing ($120). The
Q'Ewar Project trains indigenous
women of Peru in doll-making as
a way to gain economic
independence.
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