ChildTrek Blog

PRESS RELEASE

Contact: Annette Roth, Marketing Director
IR2 Media Group Inc.
Phone: 253-212-0379
Email: aroth@ir2media.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

NATURAL TOYS FOR A GREEN GENERATION
Introducing ChildTrek, Tacoma’s Newest Natural Toys Store
Grand Opening Celebration from August 17 to September 14, 2008

Are you looking for unique, natural and educational toys that are safe for your child? Then come visit ChildTrek, a new toy store located in Tacoma, Washington’s historic Freighthouse Square.

Good for Kids & Planet
Miebeth Bustillo-Booth created ChildTrek to marry her love for children, education, and the environment. As a former teacher, Bustillo-Booth understands the importance of toys that promote positive childhood development. As a parent, she understands that parents want toys that are safe, fun and educational as well as good for the environment and affordable. “I believe parents and grandparents are looking for quality, unique, open-ended toys that stimulate their children’s intelligence. When they come into ChildTrek or visit ChildTrek.com, they will find toys that provide this and more,” says Bustillo-Booth.

ChildTrek believes that the best toys are good for both kids and the planet, and actively promotes the idea of living in harmony with the environment. To support this belief, ChildTrek offers green toys. They are made with natural, biodegradable, recyclable or recycled materials under sustainable practices. Most are wooden toys. Very little new plastic is used. All toys are child-safe and non-toxic. They are finished with beeswax, water- or vegetable-based dyes, or non-toxic paints. Because the toys are made under stringent quality and safety specifications, few will end up in landfills anytime soon. They will become beloved toys that are passed down to siblings, friends’ children, and perhaps grandchildren.

Childhood Discovered Naturally
ChildTrek will soon offer fun, engaging, beautifully-illustrated children’s books. They are carefully selected to instill a love for reading — the foundation for a love of learning and lifelong success. The ChildTrek storefront is family and kid-friendly, where children can openly play with toys on display. “I love to see children play at the store. It also helps parents choose toys that are just right for their kids,” says Bustillo-Booth.

Come help celebrate ChildTrek’s Grand Opening celebration from Aug. 27 - Sept. 14, 2008. There will be door prizes, specials and daily promotions. For more information, please contact Annette Roth at 253-212-0379 or via email, aroth@ir2media.com. You can also visit the user-friendly and highly-informative website at http://www.childtrek.com.

ChildTrek Storefront Address
ChildTrek is located just two blocks north of the Tacoma Dome. Take Exit 133, right at the off ramp. Freighthouse Square is the green building just 2 blocks ahead. See you soon!

ChildTrek Toys, Books & Gifts
430 East 25th St., Suite #3
Freighthouse Square
Tacoma, WA 98421

800-406-8735 (Customer service available M-F (10 am - 5 pm PST)

Store Hours
Monday - Saturday: 10 am - 7 pm
Sunday: 12 noon - 5 pm

Come see us soon!

By Miebeth Bustillo-Booth, ChildTrek Founder

On July 1, ChildTrek quietly opened its first storefront in the City of Destiny - Tacoma, Washington - at historic Freighthouse Square. We were pleased to see many come in and check out the unique, natural and educational toys.

There are still some design refinements to attend to and more wooden toys to come!

Also, I want to personally thank all of ChildTrek’s online customers for your patience as we shifted shipping from Missouri to Washington. I truly appreciate honoring us with your business during this transition period. I am glad to say that shipping and customer phone service are now back to normal.

Below are pictures of the store after hours.

If you are in the area, please come by and visit us soon!

By Miebeth Bustillo-Booth, ChildTrek Founder

Old is New Again
There’s great satisfaction in giving old things new life. A bit of sanding here, a fresh coat of paint or stain there, (a lot of patience), and voila! Great pieces!

In the last few days, ChildTrek’s new storefront in Tacoma’s historic Freighthouse Square got a fresh coat of low VOC paint. (Make that several coats of paint.) New cabinets were made and staged. True to our green mission, we found old wooden bookcases, display units, and an iron baker’s rack. They were in great shape and worked well together. They received face lifts and look terrific! Two counters that look like they came from the ’80s were joined and recrafted by a master carpenter to become ChildTrek’s new checkout counter. Not much of the ’80s is left (that’s a good thing), and it looks absolutely wonderful!

New Baby & Toddler Toys & More
New natural and wooden toys also arrived. Some like Under the Nile organic toys are already on the site. You should see be able to view the rest soon.

By the end of this week, the storefront should have internet and working phones.

There are still about a buzzilion other things to check off the ever growing list before ChildTrek quietly opens its doors on July 1 or 2. At that time, we will do a dry run and work out the kinks that will doubtless come. ChildTrek’s grand opening will be later in the month or early in August.

Below are some shots from the last week:

Come back and see the finished store next week!

By Miebeth Bustillo-Booth, ChildTrek Founder

This Week’s Progress
Watching your dream come alive is a bit surreal. First it’s in your head. Then it’s on paper. Then it starts to take shape right before your eyes. If it were not for all the logistics that keep me firmly on the ground, I would be on cloud nine. Let there be no mistake about it: Opening a toy store is a lot of work. But seeing the pieces come together is really its own energy.

Below are pictures from earlier this week. Much has already happened since. The walls are no longer blue (at least most of them, and not this blue). As soon as more pictures are available, I’ll post them here.

More about this process will be in How ChildTrek Was Born: The 3rd Trimester - the last installation of the series (read 1st Trimester, 2nd Trimester). I promise, it’s coming.

By Miebeth Bustillo-Booth, ChildTrek Founder

From Virtual to Reality
ChildTrek will soon open a “real” store in Tacoma, Washington’s historic Freighthouse Square. In the next few weeks, I will chronicle the store’s transformation. For now, here are some before pictures. First thing: Goodbye to all that blue. Hello green!

Grand Opening
ChildTrek opens its doors on July 1 and holds its grand opening sometime after. ChildTrek is located just to the right of the Sound Transit ticket terminals and under what I fondly call “the little engine that could.” Go to ChildTrek.com to view a selection of high-quality, unique, natural toys for babies and toddlers.