Marbles: the Brain Store

This was the first store we came upon when we walked into the mall. It’s located by the mall entrance close to Peet’s coffee. It immediately caught our attention because it’s so colorful. Even though it’s a small store the variety/​selection is huge. They have everything from unusual card games, mind bending puzzles, key chains, fidget toys, cool building type games, miniature catapults, and tons of other interesting stuff. The customer service was excellent too! The young lady that helped me was so knowledgeable about each game/​toy and if she didn’t know a particular game one of the other employees would. She was very attentive without being annoying… totally nice. All the staff was great. The products are a little on the pricey side but not much more than Toys r Us and they are totally different and way more interesting than anything you could find at a regular toy store. The games you find here are total conversation starters… I went in thinking of maybe buying one or two things but I came out with a whole bag full of stuff. This is the perfect place to find cool stocking stuffers. Love it!

Imagine a store that caters to curious minds young and old with a mix of fun, silliness and purpose all wrapped into one fantastic little place. That’s Marbles: the Brain Store.
I’m a fan of any toy or game that keeps my child’s screen time down to a less frightening level and more importantly, inspires creativity — and quiet time.
In this digital age, kids can get so overstimulated by iPads and movies. If you’re a parent, you know it’s a constant struggle wrenching those electronic gadgets out of their hands and turning off the TV.
I’m all for books and games; imagining, learning, creating, problem-​solving delight is what it’s all about.
Here at Marbles: the Brain Store you’ll find all sorts of unusual and creative toys designed to stimulate learning, help memory and motor skills and inspire creativity. The store’s founder had a relative with traumatic brain injury and dreamt up the retail concept to source and sell toys that improve brain function. It’s a store that’s definitely not just for kids.
I bought this cool deck of cards called «The Storymatic» that allows you to choose three cards and build a story around them. The only rules are that the main character must have a transformation and no one can die (good rules).
The game is great for building social skills, creative writing and it’s fun! I bought a deck for my little boy’s school, too, to use in speech, social skills therapy and creative writing classes.
I also bought this fun toy that you build towers and chutes to let a marble find its way through a maze, kind of a mix between Jinga and a mini engineering project.
I saw lots of parents with kids, teenagers who randomly stopped in and were laughing and playing and adults, all having great fun at this fantastic, creative store.
It’s located right inside the main entrance to Stonestown, just after the mall directory signage.
Headquartered in Chicago, they have stores across the US.

I’m a huge fan of this store. This place has a lot of cool games and most were on sale. I did a price check on one of the games. The game was cheaper on Amazon, but it was only $ 4 more at the store – not a huge price difference. I ended up buying it at Marbles because I couldn’t wait the 2 days for delivery from Amazon – I was eager to play the game!
Another game that I ended up buying at Marbles was not even available at Amazon. I did a price check beforehand and when I could not find it on Amazon, I ended up going back to Marbles to purchase the game. I was worried when I didnt see it displayed in the store, but when I asked the employee, he said he had just put it in the back. I’m not sure why it was in the back of the store, but he was able to find it quickly for me. Unfortunately when we played the game, a piece was missing. It didnt really make a big difference in my game because it was a stacking game, but I was still a little bummed the game was missing a piece. That is why my review loses a star and doesnt get a full five.
Overall a great experience and I’d come back to check out more games!

I stopped in this store because it looked interesting. When I walked In I was greeted by Jackie and Mel. The two ladies were more than just friendly, they were very knowledgeable about the items I was enquiring about! I probably stayed in this store for an hour before I had to leave. I will be coming back to get some more items that I wanted from this store.
I would recommend stopping in and looking at the puzzles they are fun.

Just found this store on the way out of the mall. Neat store but the customer service has something to be desired. I walked in there with my kids.
I was looking at a Spiralgraph, remembering it when I was a kid. I popped open the box to see what discs were in it. The man walked over and said «oh please don’t do that»… He took it from my hand and told me «look there are pieces missing» I told him that «I didn’t do that». What I really didn’t appreciate is that he made me feel like it was all my fault that parts were missing the way he implied and said it!
He than goes on to say «that is why you ask to see something». I took my kids and left immediately!
It is natural to pick thing up in a toys store. If you have to ask to see everything, what is the point! I am a firm believer in «you break it, you buy it». We are careful in stores.
Sad. Neat store. Bad service!

Love this store.

Small store, but great selection of logic and word games and puzzles. Definitely eyeing some things as gifts for friends and myself.

Admittedly my favorite store at Stonestown. They feature a lot of games that I have never heard of before, but are real brain benders. They also have a fair amount of their games open to sample and play around with. It does get really busy on the weekends, but tends to be completely deserted on the weekdays so if you really want to explore, come on a weekday.
Just as a note though, some of the games can be a little pricey, but the price can be justified if you find the right game. While Marbles does carry some traditional games such like Tangrams, Bananagrams, and Rummikub, I suggest being open to new challenges and trying something new.
I am always finding new things to look at when I visit Marbles!

I absolutely love this store. I have already made a purchase from this store twice and I have been more than satisfied by the good service and excellent products. Very new and thoughtful games they do offer and being a little bit pricey, it’s worth the product price. I do suggest asking the staff. When they’re not busy fighting off the annoying teenagers that take up too much room in the store, they’re helping you out with good suggestions on games.

Christmas or Gift shopping and tired of buying the same old boring stuff? Want to motivate your friends and family to spend time together rather interact in a virtual ‘Facebook’ world? This is the place for you! These games are intelligent, and fun, and most importantly gets you away from the computer or television to spend memorable, quality, a fun time with others. The staff is engaging and they know the games that you can play in the store. I thought I was bored with Westfield Shopping, bored with shopping for clothes… and now I have a great reason to return… after the Holidays! Woo hoo!!!

Glad to see a game store back at Stonestown. The shop is set up so that you can try out the games before making your purchase. The staff there are pretty helpful in helping you navigate through the various products. There is so much «brain candy» that it took me a while to digest all of the offerings. Definitely will be back to make more purchases for the holiday season.
The only minus is that they don’t seem to have Mental Floss which I saw the first time around.

Jason and I stumbled upon this place after a necessary errand was completed at the mall. On our way out, we were just talking about a good game, so we were so excited to see this place had opened up. Our first visit went awesome. I really appreciated the emphasis in developing cognitive abilities/​critical thinking in the brain through stimulating and fun activities. The majority of games could be tested in-​store, which was excellent. The staff invited us to use bouncy discs and hit around a koosh-​like ball. We ran into some of Jason’s old friends and had a blast playing a trivia game. I invested in a game based on a staff member’s suggestion (and abridged demo of the game) and went home as a happy customer.
By the next visit, I reflected on my experience and had some concerns:
–I tried the exclusive-​to-​Marbles-​the-​Brain-​Store game, that I invested almost $ 35 in, to a group of open-​minded friends and the fun was minimal. Instructions were vague and there were many grammatical errors.
–The customer service. When I told them about the confusion in the game I purchased from them, their bottom-​line was, verbatim, «Yah, you don’t have to use those [cards].» Why did I pay $ 35 for a game where there are parts of the game that, according to the staff, are superfluous? They follow you, offer unsolicited and long-​winded suggestions/​explanations (displaying what they remembered from the corporate workshops) and pressure you into making an executive decision on a game («So out of the two games, which do you like?» and «Were you going to buy something today?»)
–I am still unsure if the two female staff actually have prescription glasses with the same frames or if it’s part of the employee «brain store girl» uniform…
While the mall is convenient, my experiences here leave me in search of a local board game store that is affordable with friendly but informed, unassuming staff.

I just discovered this new, pretty fun place at Stonestown to look at games, a type of store that’s also not commonly found anymore these days. I grew up on board games so it’s always fun to look at these items.
Here the emphasis is on games that involves solving things. Therefore, you won’t find games such as Monopoly here. Even so, it’s very interesting to browse around in here.

Sign at the entrance reads:
«Which is the odd one out:
First, Second, Third, Forth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Eight»
This space seems a little tighter than the shop in San Francisco Centre, but customer service and friendliness is as great as the other location. It’s located at the former Haagen Daz space.
Message me if you think you know the answer ;) It’s a lot easier than you think.

I’ve only been into this store once, but mad props to the staff for being interactive, fun and informative. There were some kids messing with the toys in a «let’s screw everything up» kind of way and I think they kept their cool and still managed to engage them. It reminded me a bit of the old Discovery Store that used to be on the 2^nd floor. if you are having a hard time thinking of a gift for someone, this store might be holding the unique and clever thing you are looking for. Will definitely make a point to stop in this story next time in the mall.

Marbles: The Brain Store
Today June 9,2012. This marks the Grand Opening of Marbles.
Store is unique, fantastic and the sales people here are nice, friendly and most helpful. Everything sold in this store helps exercise and strengthen the brain. From puzzles to games, books and toys. I’m sure you’ll find something for anyone and everyone here at the brain store. If you got Marbles… you’ve got marbles!
This store is small, but as good as it will get. I fell in love with the store right when I walked in. The place to shop for brain power!
Good for all people of all ages.