When Katie MacKinnon and Lori Parker bought the Danforth landmark Treasure Island Toys in 2010, they knew they had a lot to live up to. The independent toy store had been at the centre of the Riverdale parenting community for over 20 years, and with the original owner retiring, parents were furrowing their brows wondering: would Treasure Island Toys fall into the wrong hands?
But they needn’t have worried. Katie and Lori were local moms who had given up their nine-to-five jobs and had been regular customers of Treasure Island Toys. After being at home with her kids, Katie had no intention of re-entering the corporate world, and Lori had no desire to return to a desk. “I wanted to do something that was more connected to the community and closer to home,” says Lori, “to do something I enjoyed and believed in.”
