Allison Fullenkamp, left to right, of Troy, talks with Susan Bost and her daughter, Sabrina Bost, 11, both of Sidney, during the opening day of the second location of the family boutique Samozrejme, located at 101 N. Ohio Ave. Fullenkamp opened her new store on Saturday, Dec. 2. The store has a wide range of products for all ages, including baby supplies, toys and family games. Sabrina is also the daughter of Ben Bost.
Luke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News
Isla Lemons, 1, of Piqua, finds a doll she likes while attending opening day of the second location of the family boutique Samozrejme, located at 101 N. Ohio Ave. It opened on Saturday, Dec. 2. The store has a wide range of products for all ages, including baby supplies, toys and family games. Isla is the daughter of Wesley and Christie Lemons.
Luke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News
Lisa Beigel, of Sidney, peruses toys on opening day of the second location of the family boutique Samozrejme, located at 101 N. Ohio Ave. It opened on Saturday, Dec. 2. The store has a wide range of products for all ages, including baby supplies, toys and family games.
Luke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News
Sidney has a new family boutique called Samozrejme, located at 101 N. Ohio Ave. It opened on Saturday, Dec. 2. The store has a wide range of products for all ages, including baby supplies, toys and family games.
Luke Gronneberg | Sidney Daily News
By Kimberly Pistone
For the Sidney Daily News
SIDNEY – Allison Fullenkamp has opened a second location of her store samozrejme (pronounced sah moze ray may) in downtown Sidney. Samozrejme means “of course” in Slovak; Fullenkamp chose the name because she lived in Slovakia for almost three years and it was one of her favorite words to say.
Fullenkamp describes samozrejme as “a family boutique that curates the highest-quality imaginative toys, family games, creative art kits and supplies, modern baby products, toxin-free personal care items, and reusable feeding products and home goods.” She carries heirloom, wooden Montessori and Waldorf toys, and she likes to offer toys that have multiple levels of learning, fun, and use.
Fullenkamp said she is really good at helping her customers find a single toy that will meet the needs of multiple ages. She is very hands-on, helping customers when they come in to find the perfect purchase to meet their needs. Fullenkamp said, “One of my very favorite things is to help people navigate traditional toys, they are so different than what you see on commercials and find in other stores.”
Fullenkamp said, “It is important to me that people don’t think we are just a kid’s store. Play is for everyone. It is important for all of us, for our mental health and happiness, to have moments of downtime – games and art and play are really important for our own happiness.”
Fullenkamp designed her store to appeal to the whole family, from zero to infinity years old. Samozrejme carries toys and games for the whole family as well as adult crafts such as paper quilling, embroidery and soap carving.
Beyond games and toys, samozrejme is a baby boutique. They offer baby gifts and layette, as well as cloth diapers and baby carriers. While most of these items will remain at her store in Troy, she will have a small selection available in Sidney and will take appointments to help people find the cloth diapers and carriers that meet their individual needs. Fullenkamp is also planning to eventually offer classes.
The original samozrejme has been open for 14 years and is located in downtown Troy. Fullenkamp decided to open a second location in Sidney because she has many customers in Sidney, and many people are traveling from further north down to her Troy store, and this gives them a closer option.
Samozrejme is located at 101 N. Ohio Ave. and is currently offering holiday hours. They will be open Tuesday through Saturday from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
