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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to be flippin annoyed with 'The Entertainer' toy shop?

117 replies

onelittleclara · 29/01/2012 21:11

Went into a branch of this toy shop yesterday with my boys. Was walking round and I noticed that they now have the shop divided into two sections:
'boys toys' and 'girls toys'. Was so angry I dragged my children straight out. If my sons wanted a doll (which they do play with) as soon as they see it labelled a 'girls toy' they are going to reject it outright. Surely a toy is a toy? Surely they are losing a potential 50% of their customers into the bargain.
Grrrrrr.

OP posts:

QueenOfAllBiscuitsandMuffins · 25/11/2012 17:04

I refuse to shop in The Entertainer any more either because of the pink/blue thing. It's ridiculous. Oh and the science stuff is under Blue/Boys section, I know this because I pointed out the the manager that very soon female drs are going to outnumber male drs and therefore why on earth would science kits be placed under boys section whilst the girls get fucking IRONS. (I Didn't say fucking just thought it because I was so cross)

Bue · 25/11/2012 17:15

I'm glad I'm not the only one who is so annoyed by this shop! It recently opened up here and I was delighted when I spotted it because we have a paucity of good toy shops in town. Was happily looking around, then I noticed the huge 'GIRLS TOYS' and 'BOYS TOYS' sections looming at the back. I had to walk out. Shame, because they had some lovely quality wooden toys for little ones.

Thinking I might write a letter too...

vladimirimp · 25/11/2012 21:41

What I like least about this retailer behaviour is that it becomes self-perpetuating. Some of the posters above have said things like "it's good to lay out the store like this so my girl can go straight to the girls stuff". Let's imagine a career's advice centre laid out in the same way - womens' careers to the left and mens' to the right. Exactly!

But since people get it into their minds that such a thing as a girls' toy car and a boys' toy car exists (according to The Entertainer there is!), they will continue to seek segregation in this way.

And where I feel it's most dangerous is in terms of friends and relatives. Can I blame my friends and relatives for limiting their present choices for my DD to the girls section? Aren't they going to feel weird if I ask them to get her something from the boys toys? This year DD would like a train set - "oh dear, do you think she might be....you know?".

And now that everyone is behaving like this, my DD will find that all her female friends' toys are similar to what's in the girls' section, and we have a self-perpetuating system where eventually DD will only want to go to the girls section.

sumhope · 25/11/2012 23:01

The owner is a christian who puts his staff and their families before profits by not opening Sundays which I think is great. Did notice the segregation thing though and I didn't like it. The floor colour actually changes from brue to pink. (yukk) So op ynbu about that

JE2k13 · 04/02/2013 20:17

Ok, so you are finding it troubling that to make things easier for most of society, and because your boys like to play with dolls (which, by the way good for them, if that's what they are into why not?). But considering the target market for dolls ARE USUALLY girls, you are disgusted by the fact a shop has made it easier for the majority of children to find what they are looking for? That's just pathetic. You'd be annoyed if clothes shops were the same, you go in and find that the lingerie section is mixed in with children's clothes. Then yes people have a right to be annoyed. Divisions like this are made to help, and toy shops have been doing this for years. How do you not know about this? Get over it, it's how things are. There's nothing wrong with it! Children don't care! If they want a certain toy they will go and get it regardless of where in store it is! Chill out, you're all pathetic.

lucysnowe · 04/02/2013 21:03

YANBU. Toddlers and older are at a very susceptible age and all about gender which is fair enough because they're trying to define themselves via differences but stereotyping girls' and boys' toys is the absolutely LAST thing you want to do. I think if there are actually signs up, OP you should write to them and complain. It's unacceptable. (Never mind the religion of the owners, as many have said that's got nowt to do with it.)

DeWe · 04/02/2013 22:05

Do people realise that NEXT has signs up in their children's wear area? It says "GIRLS CLOTHES" and another says "BOYS CLOTHES" and surely that is gender segregation?

I'm sure most people here, if these signs weren't up would have boys happily wearing the bright pink dress I saw there today, and, I'm sure, entirely because of the sign, no girl will wear the t-shirt with a dinosaur on...

Even worse, so you realise they even have Women's wear and Men's wear... continuing the segregation into adult hood.

BAN CLOTHES SEGREGATION I SAY! TARGET NEXT! M&S! BHS!

WorriedMummy73 · 04/02/2013 22:12

"Mrs Gledhill, 40, from Wakefield, said: 'I asked the store manager for help in finding the new Harry Potter Lego and he said "Look, we're a Christian company, we don't believe in teaching children evil".

Ahahahahahahahahahahahaha! That's the best thing I've read all day. This makes me a Satanic cult leader because we've read the books (well, we're in the process) and watched the first film AND played the LEGO games on the DS. I don't believe for a second the store manager actually said that, and if he did, it must have been tongue in cheek. Brilliant. I'm actually imagining Ricky Gervais playing that store manager in a new sitcom now...

MrsMushroom · 04/02/2013 22:18

I went in ours today and they had a card game called Minger Blast or something...Minger something...it was like top trumps but with pics of ugly people.

I was really disgusted tbh and I won't go in there again.

MrsMushroom · 04/02/2013 22:20

DeWe Scandinavia have moved away from that actually. Of course they have dresses etc but a LOT of children's clothes there are for either sex.

5madthings · 04/02/2013 22:20

Yanbu but this is a zombie thread, for anyone interested in campaigning about the genderfication of toys join the let toys be toys campaign, started by mnetters there us a fb page and on twitter.

LadyKinbote · 04/02/2013 22:29

Just came on to mention Let Toys Be Toys! Great campaign, well worth a look. I personally think it's hugely damaging for a shop to explicitly state that parenting and looking pretty is exclusively for girls, and science and driving is exclusively for boys. They're only toys, why do retailers feel the need to put up stupid, unhelpful labels? Just let kids be kids FFS.

nailak · 04/02/2013 22:47

at 3 my dd2 thought she was a boy, so would have been in the boys section,

now she is 4, she knows she is a girl, that wouldnt stop her from checking out angry birds toys or whatever, she would probably hunt the shop for them, and since she already knows she likes them and she is a girl, she would not be put off by seeing it on the boys side.

my dd1 always knew she was a girl and has always been drawn to pink and sparkly stuff, preferred picking flowers to playing football and so on.

my ds like to dress up in his sisters clothes and he likes playing with dolls and pushchairs and kitchen toys, although his favourite thing is cars (as dd2s was at his age). At my mums we have a disney princess play kitchen, he doesn't not play with it because it it pink, so why would he not go in the pink section of a shop to see what he likes?

Cantbelieveitsnotbutter · 05/02/2013 10:11

Yanbu about the gender thing, my ds loves cuddlies but all these are in the pink section so he doesn't even look there

But I like the fact they have little children steps to the till & I like the moral point of view about Sundays (blooming annoying!). I also find the staff really knowledgable and helpful.

jacksonprice · 24/02/2013 13:29

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by Mumsnet for breaking our Talk Guidelines. Replies may also be deleted.

Callycat · 24/02/2013 15:12

I don't agree that OP is overreacting. She didn't smash the windows, picket the store or harangue the shop assistant. She simply decided to take her hard-earned cash elsewhere - fair enough!

Callycat · 24/02/2013 15:17

Oh bugger, this is an old thread. I'll go away again makes note to check dates in future

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