05/14/2025
by Victoria Ritter
Expect the unexpected at Off the Wagon. The small, local chain of specialty toy stores in northern Ohio, owned by Michelle Sahr, deals in novelty and specialty products that appeal to various ages and demographics.
Specialty toys are deeply engrained in Sahr’s family. Prior to opening Off the Wagon, her dad owned a number of retail stores across northeast Ohio, including a toy store called My Little Red Wagon, until the early 2000s. Off the Wagon opened its first location in downtown Kent in 2009, followed by a second location in Chagrin Falls in 2021. While the Kent location was the smallest, it had the highest sales.
“We got lot of good foot traffic in the historic downtown district,” Sahr explained. “We’re nestled around other small retailers and restaurants. Being in a community like that, people like to come and spend their afternoon, perusing and maybe having a nice dinner with friends and walking around the town. It becomes a destination point.”
Today, Off the Wagon employs roughly 28 people across its two locations and distribution center. Each store is staffed by five to six full-time employees along with a handful of part-time workers – some from the local college.
Catering to the clientele
When Off the Wagon first opened in Kent, the retail landscape was geared toward college students and older adults – there were very few family-oriented businesses. Sahr and her team had to figure out a way to appeal to their audience and came up with “toy-tangent” products. They found that college students tended to buy games, puzzles, arts and crafts and plush.
Although more family-friendly restaurants and retail locations have opened in the downtown district, Off the Wagon remains the only toy store in the area.
“I’m selling more plush in my college town than in Chagrin Falls, which tends to cater a little bit towards families,” Sahr said. “We have an eclectic mix of items that appeals to all ages. Our theme is basically, it needs to either be fun or just kind of eclectic and weird to be in our shop.”
The Kent location’s sales floor is 2,300 square feet, and the Chagrin Falls floor is 3,800 square feet. Each store is laid out by category – toys, games, and candy – with seasonal displays at the front. “Since we’re in historic buildings, every store is laid out differently,” Sahr said. “It gives the store more character. In one store, the plush is separated by brand in two or three areas, and in the other store, it’s all together.”
Altogether, Off the Wagon carries more than 10,000 SKUs. Then there is the robust online catalog found on offthewagonshop.com which has a few products that can be purchased only online. “Maybe they don’t sell well in store, but they sell online,” Sahr explained. “Or, on rare occasions, it could get too damaged in-shop from customers. For online products, we can transfer it to the store and the customer can pick it up.”
“Our online store has been really successful overall,” she added. “It’s geared towards the more eclectic, weird and quirky novelty stuff – and they tend to do extremely well online.”
Online sales account for about 20 percent of Off the Wagon’s profits. The retailer sees a significant increase in online sales from October through December.
“In November, our online sales beat any of our in-store sales,” Sahr said. Since Off the Wagon is a reliable source for funny and unique Christmas gifts, its distribution center has sent out 300 packages a day during the holiday season. The retailer is able to ship internationally and even has regular customers in Australia.
Off the Wagon has close to 380 vendors, with popular products being Jellycat and Squishable plush, Fat Brain Toys’ Air Toobz and Robotime DIY miniatures. Top product categories include plush, books, socks and candy.
Sahr’s favorite aspect of operating the stores is bringing in new items. Sometimes she will introduce a product at only one store to see how well it sells before adding it to the other store’s shelves. Meanwhile, staff members will keep tabs on what items are running low. Yearly inventory is conducted with 12 employees entering every item into the POS system with USB scanners.
“I rely on those numbers,” Sahr said. “One of the most important numbers we look at is our turnover rates on each item. I tell my manager, ‘If we can bring in an item and put it in the same space and turn it over four times instead of two, then that’s what we’re doing.’”
When looking for new products, Sahr keeps an eye out for TikTok trends and classic or novelty items. Off the Wagon’s candy selection is unique, to say the least, with pickle-flavored cotton candy, spicy gummy bears, astronaut Neapolitan ice cream sandwiches and gummy macaroni and cheese. “We try to make sure what we carry is not what you can find in your nearest grocery store,” Sahr commented.
In addition to TikTok, Sahr keeps her “finger on the pulse of sales” and attends national trade shows to keep up with trends. Up and coming fads include strawberries, cherries, weird animals and insects such as beetles, moths and spiders.
“I would swear that all of these types of trends start in college towns,” Sahr mused. “Not play trends, but like the sensory trend is popular here.”
Continuously evolving
Off the Wagon regularly contributes to local events that benefit the wider community. Past activities include Vendor Village and themed days hosted by Main Street Kent, a nonprofit focused on revitalizing the downtown area.
“I found that my time is well-spent contributing to those events because they tend to bring huge crowds into the downtown district. They help everyone,” Sahr stated. “When you collaborate with other retailers and restaurants and everyone’s doing something, it just makes the event all the more exciting.”
Business is going well for Off the Wagon as its year-over-year profits continue to increase. Sahr shared key reasons for their continued growth have been taking calculated risks and keeping track of in-store sales trends. She cited one instance where the store once sold comics, but they weren’t making money and were hard to order; instead, they brought in more “quirky” items which performed well.
Keeping track of sales data, knowing what the store is known for and catering to what people want is “a sweet spot” for Sahr. “You have to always reevaluate what you’re doing well and what you’re not doing well,” she said. “I always want to reinvent myself.”
Sahr is currently looking at opening a third location in the nearby community. She also plans to grow online sales and ensure Off the Wagon’s legacy for the next generation; her daughter and son are full-time employees.
“I’m thinking of how we can tap the knowledge we have,” Sahr stated. “I’m also continually trying to do better and learn how to make this a business that’s going to thrive and survive.”
