‘A huge amount of nostalgia’: end of an era as London’s famed Sylvanian Families shop shuts

Ben Miller-Poole, who manages the Sylvanian Families shop in north London which will close after 30 years. Photograph: Antonio Olmos/The Observer

Nineteen-year-old Molly Bell arrived in London early last week from Brisbane. By Wednesday, she had found her way to a tiny toy emporium in a nondescript street in north London to fulfil a dream. She needed to move fast as the Sylvanian Families shop, selling the eponymous toy animals and their habitats, closes on 22 April after more than 30 years.

Since 1992, the charming Highbury shop has been a magnet for thousands of collectors of the anthropomorphic animals – a magical grotto reminiscent of a bygone idyll.