ANGELA and David Ballinger have bid farewell to their beloved Horsham Toyworld and Just Juniors after almost 16 years of ownership.
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The couple bought the business in 2004, and sold it to Malcolm and Trish Munro in July.
Mr and Mrs Munro are no strangers to the toy business having owned Hamilton Toyworld for 11 years, and Ballarat Toyworld for two years. The couple now live on a cropping farm near Natimuk.
Mrs Ballinger said now was the right time to announce the change of ownership.
"We thought now - heading into Christmas - was a good time to say goodbye. We couldn't have done it without all the support we've had from out family, staff and every customer we've had," she said.
"It really became a family business for us. Our sons (Zac, Stuart and Tim), and our neighbours, relatives and friends of the family have all worked at the shop."
She said the business was an important part of Horsham's retail community.
"There has been a baby shop in this area for at least half a century and Toyworld has been on this site for about 45 years. These businesses have made up part of the Horsham streetscape for a long time," she said.
She said the decision to sell the business had been both an easy and difficult choice to make.
"You live and breathe a retail business of this size. The motivations have changed for us now - our three sons are all independent and moving on with their lives," she said.
"We have loved it for all those years, but along with living and breathing a small business you get tired.
"We would work 55 to 60 days straight leading up to Christmas. We'd have Christmas Day off and then we'd be back for Boxing Day.
"Everyday was 12 to 14 hours of work, every day of the week - it was very consuming. We set a time limit of how long we could sustain that because we never wanted to not give it 100 per cent. We took it really seriously and wanted to be the best."
Mr and Mrs Ballinger have known Mr and Mrs Munro for more than 10 years.
"Trish has been in business for years and we've been really good friends for a decade - we've travelled together and done buying trips together," Mrs Ballinger said.
"Without the friendship, it would be hard doing this thing on your own. It's a big job; we start planning for Christmas in March. So to be able to bounce ideas off people and be able to buy products together has been great.
"We've had a really good cooperative business relationship, as well as a friendship for over a decade."
Although the business has faced tough competition from online shopping in the last decade, Mrs Ballinger said the business offered unparalleled customer service.
"Competition has always been there, and it doesn't really matter where it comes from. We never got too caught up with competition coming from online," she said.
"We really just tried to control the things that we could control and focus on the things that were important to us, that is knowing our customers and being a part of the community."
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Mrs Ballinger said she had many fond memories of the shop.
"Watching the babies turn into young adults has been a joy. Then some of the children who were 11 or 12 when we first bought the business are having their own children now. We felt like we're part of their family as well," she said.
"The kids and bringing them joy hasn't changed over those years. When children looked around in awe and said it was their favourite shop, that's when we knew we were doing something right."
Mrs Ballinger is now working as a public servant, while Mr Ballinger is working as a professional printer. They have no plans to move from Horsham.
Mrs Munro said fate brought her and Horsham Toyworld together.
"We've had the farm at Natimuk for a couple of years now, and my husband and son Charles were commuting from Hamilton - so that wasn't ideal. When the opportunity came up to take this on, it just fit so well," she said.
"The shop is running along smoothly and we have nothing major planned on the horizon. We just want to keep up with the great customer service.
"Ange and Dave have been my mentors for 10 years and I can't thank them enough for their help."
Mr Ballinger is the only accredited child restraint fitter in Horsham. People will still be able to make appointments through the shop to have their child restraints fitted.
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