Sunday, October 26, 2008

Recession 'proof'?

Finally got some spare time and decided to go down to China Square after several months of absence. The place looks different. Less crowded. Less shops. Seems like the global on-slaught of the credit crunch has taken it's toll on toy collectors too? Several months back, when you go down to CS arnd 3pm, the place would be cramping with thongs of people looking for great bargains. But now, the same time when I took these pictures, the situation looks totally different.
Is it because nowadays, everyone's watching their wallet? Preparing for the financial 'next Tsumnami' to claim it's next victim? Visiting CS has been my favourite past time. Walking around, you'll be surprised to find toys that you once played with many years ago is still in prestine condition, kept under the good care of it's owner. CS is the ONLY place in Singapore that houses such a wide array of toy collectors under one roof.

This wasn't the case years back had Clark Quay hadn't gone for the major face lift. Back then , toy collectors, like myself will throng this place for cheap, good finds. Clark Quay was the flea market haven back then. I have even tried my hands at selling my collection at this place. Great crowds with plenty of space to roam and lots of things to see. If you ask me to compare CS to Clark Quay, I'd say Clark Quay has more to offer the CS. But ever since Clark Quay's reno, many of the toy collectors/sellers have relocated to CS for good.

It took the initative of one man, Mr Michael Poh, to come up with the idea of reorganizing this niche group of 'disbanded brothers' and Sunday Flea Market @ China Square was born! I'm not helping to promote or am I related to Mr Poh but I think, should any toys collectors who happened to visit my blog, do drop by this website to know more about the toy collecting scene in Singapore.

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