The Final Days of Whatsit & Doohickey

After two years of evolving as downtown Libertyville’s novelty and toy store, announced at the beginning of the month that its doors will close by the end of September.

“The first year was really good,” said store owner Brian Sykes. “We were discussing where we would open a second location. The growth was amazing.”

Sykes says that sales dropped in the first and second quarter of 2011, but he was hopeful that the summer would provide a boost.

“Last year the summer was amazing. It was like Christmas,” Sykes said. “But sales for the third quarter this year dropped like 50 percent. It was such a blow. We had to make a decision fast.”

Sykes says he had always wanted to own his own business, and opening Whatsit & Doohickey was a dream come true for him.

“We weren’t even a toy store when we opened,” Sykes says. “We were going to sell games and puzzles, and stuff more geared toward teenagers and adults. But we heard people passing by saying, ‘Oh, a toy store’s opening, finally.’”

He says they added toys to their product line, which contributed to a large amount of their sales.

sells the role-playing game Dungeons and Dragons, a game that Sykes says usually attracts high school kids. For Sykes, a big highlight of owning Whatsit & Doohickey was the store’s ability to generate interest in Dungeons and Dragons in the 9- to 11-year-old age group, including holding a themed birthday party for a boy inside the store.

“It was amazing because he was really into it,” Sykes said. “It was a merging of a retail experience and doing something for the community.”

Sykes, a father of two, believes that he will open a again, though he doesn’t know where or when.

“I can’t walk away from this without realizing that I really learned a lot about myself and owning a business,” he said. “I’ll miss the interactions I’ve had with the customers. I’ve grown a lot of relationships over the last two years with the people of Libertyville.”

Sykes says that the store is likely to close by Sept. 25. Most merchandise is marked down 30 percent to 50 percent during the store’s final days.