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- January 29, 2024
- Posted by: Professor Penelope Presto
- Categories: NEW!, Shop news
We bring you the sad sad news that Quizzic Alley in Sydney will close its doors in February. We want you to know how hard this decision has been. We’ve loved our time here in Drummoyne and in Sydney and we have thoroughly enjoyed bringing the magic that is Quizzic Alley to a new and bigger audience.
A store in Sydney was on our list the moment we opened our first shop in Canberra back in 2018 and confirmed what we already knew: that the story of the boy who lived was as popular as ever and had truly become inter-generational. We watched on in delight as mums and dads who grew up with the series started reading it to their own children. On more than one occasion we had three generations of Harry Potter fans visit the store and some visitors were so happy they were reduced to tears! There is something truly magical about working in a store that makes people happy.
It has been such a privilege to share our own love of Harry Potter with so many more fans, including those who came to work at Quizzic Alley. 16 witches and wizards have worked in our Sydney store over the last three years and every single one of them was more knowledgeable than us. Lifelong friendships have been forged, not just with fellow workers here but also with team members in our Canberra store. We often say that Harry Potter fans find their tribe at Quizzic Alley, none moreso than those who join our team. This alone makes all the hard work worthwhile.
So, why close the store? There are many reasons and we won’t be going into great detail but we feel we owe our many dedicated customers a reasonable explanation.
To start with, the building (as magical as it is) never really allowed us to realise our goals for this store. We spent a lot of time and money trying to get approval to use the upstairs space for a range of wizard themed events to no avail. The conversion of the downstairs space would have required an investment we weren’t prepared to make in an economy that would make it very difficult to recoup the cost.
Next up is Mick’s health. Late last year he was diagnosed with cancer for the third time. Our family is Canberra based and the constant travel back and forth transferring stock, filling in for staff and making repairs will never be good for his health and, now more than ever, we just all need to be at home.
Back to the building. No old building is watertight but this old bank leaks with almost every downpour. We’ve spent countless hours mopping up, moving stock and trying to protect our business. With the severity and frequency of storms increasing, we simply do not want to have to mop up again.
So, that’s it. It’s time to move out. We’re retreating to Canberra to regroup as a family, to support Mick in his journey back to health and to work on growing our business there and online. If you haven’t already, come and visit us in Canberra: you won’t be disappointed!!
We’ll miss Sydney so much but we WILL be back… in another guise and in a new place. Join our mailing list to be among the first to know when, what and where!
Until then, thank you for supporting our family-owned small business and our magical Sydney store. We hope you will continue to shop for Harry Potter merch at Quizzic Alley in Canberra and online.
Always.
The Milton family: Penelope Presto, Nearly Legless Mick, Violet Crumble and Rophney Redhead.
Such a well written post, thank you for taking the time to share it with your community. The obstacles of renting property, particularly in Sydney is well known by all of us who work and live here. Wishing Mick and family all the be try best while battling such an insidious disease. Your loyal Potter Family are behind you and will welcome you back when it’s time. All the best.
Thanks for your lovely words Cathy. We really appreciate it. Hopefully Quizzic Alley can return to Sydney one day.
Thank you for taking the time to provide our community with this update. Sincerely from my family to yours, thank you for serving us with your shared love of all things Harry and best wishes for a healthy and happy future. When you’re ready to open again in Sydney, we’ll be ready too!
Hello Cassandra. We’ve loved being in Sydney and are so sad to be leaving but we need to regroup and focus our energy elsewhere for the moment. Thanks for your kind comments.
Thank you for bringing your magic to Sydney. When is the last day?
Hi Tara. You are welcome! We have enjoyed it as much as our visitors! We don’t really know when our last day will be. We know the store will be open until 18th February becuase that is the last day we have a potions class booked. Then we have to be out of the building by 28th February. When we close the doors will have a lot to do with how well the sale goes and stock levels on any given day. We need to leave ourselves enough time to remove all the fixings and furniture and then paint… all before 28th. Best to keep an eye on socials.
Hi Tara. You are welcome. We’re unsure exactly when our last day will be. Our last potions class is on 18th February so we will be open until then at least. We need to leave enough time to move all the furniture and fixings out and paint all the walls so the final opening day will very much be dictated by how much stock is left. Keep an eye on socials for updates.
[…] Wondering why we’re closing our much-loved Sydney store? You can read all about it here. […]
I’m not good at goodbyes so how about I say, I’ll see you soon then. Quizzic alley Sydney has been an absolutely amazing experience, all the staff have always been so friendly. I bought my first wand there and I cherish it to this day. So many Harry Potter collectibles and many more to come. I wish you all the very best and hope everything gets better for you all. It’s been a pleasure to visit your store and feel so much love and magic. From the very first step inside the doors, I knew it would be a thrilling experience and that I’d be back. And I was right. Thank you so much for your hard work and love that you’ve given not just to me but to all of us. 💖
Hi Riley and thank you so much for your lovely words and your “see you soon”. We are certain we will indeed see you soon. After we’ve regrouped and replenished, we’ll be back in some form or other. Until then, remember your visits to Quizzic Alley in Sydney, stay magical and enjoy your beautiful wand!
Hi Riley and thank you for your lovely message and your “see you soon.” We will, indeed, see you soon! Once we have regrouped, we will surely be abck in Sydney in one guise or another. Until then, remember your visits to Quizzic Alley, come and visit us in Canberra and enjoy your magical wand!
Beautiful post! Brought me to tears. My daughter and I visited on a fortnightly basis and are currently sitting out the front looking at an empty building with a man inside cleaning the floors. We are already discussing a trip to Canberra. All the best to Mick, I met mick skating on a Halloween skate! What a legend x
HI Jessica and thanks for your lovely message. We dare not drive along Victoria Rd – it will make us too sad! We hope you and your daughter can make the trip to Canberra to visit Quizzic Alley there. You won;t be disappointed! See you then! ⚡⚡⚡