The Imperial Castle Toy Shop — Local services in Town of Pawling

Even with it's small shop size, this store is packed with stuff for vintage middle-aged collectors like myself and neighborhood kids grabbing a modern toy with their dad. Staff was friendly and the owner went above and beyond trying to help me.

I was in town and visiting for the first time after seeing his shop featured on the show "A Toy Store Near You" (S5E1 to check it out). Before the concert at Tanglewood an hour away, I stopped in hoping to find something on my list. Then I hit upon the ARAH Joes on pegs in baggies. Super helpful for me as I could move the limbs to see how loose they were (or not), and if the o-ring was dead (or not). Everything I looked at was tight and the header cards give essential info you need. Great idea all around.

I didn't find a complete figure and the owner took me to the basement to pick through some Joes ready for bagging, and inventory not gone through yet. Not saying everyone will get that treatment, but I've never been to the town, let alone his store, and he did that for me. I've been to lots of retro stores and never met someone that friendly and accommodating.

I highly recommend any collector or any adult with a kid in their life that wants to show them what a cool toy store looks like, vs some ransacked aisle in a big box store, to make the trip...

A gem of a toy store! The owner John has created a very unique store. First you have a very solid local toy store which is hard enough to find. The store has all the latest toys for all ages, literally from baby/toddler toys to the latest Funk Pops and action figures. While finding a toy store itself is a challenge these days, the Imperial Castle sets itself apart by also focusing on vintage toy collectibles. They have a ton of vintage from many toy lines; Star Wars, He-Man, GI Joe, Battlestar Galactica and others that I'm forgetting. Loose figures, on card, vehicles/playsets, foreign imports, so much to chose from. John is very knowledgeable and can help with anything you need. I drove 90 minutes to visit the Imperial Castle and I guarantee it was absolutely worth the drive and I'll be back again soon! The Force is strong with this place.

Oh and did I mention he has a full size Donkey Kong arcade game set on free...

I am a collector of vintage Star Wars. This store is pretty much an amazing location to find vintage Star Wars, but also current lines that appeal to toy fans of all ages. The owner is very helpful, knowledgeable, and really does his best to make sure his customers are happy. It’s not easy in this day and age to open on your own, much less a toy store in the face of the closing of Toys R Us, but the owner’s passion shines through each time I visit the store.

It’s stories like this that make you realize how important it is to support small businesses- you end up doing great for the community, and at the same time you enhance your own...