Magic Beans

This is an interesting place.
I would have thought the store would have carried more, yet the selection is unique, and they carry other useful products. They have a full baby section, somewhat small toy section, that I found some unique items I haven’t seen, but not enough to make me come back tomorrow, or until Christmas, probably.
The staff were all very friendly and very efficient helping multiple people in the store, last night.
And the store was very large, easy to shop, and very well organized. I wish they had make sure everything was priced, as most things were, but some items were missing their tags, which got quite annoying. Additionally, they had a large LEGO section, with the same prices or so as Toys R Us or Walmart, as well as lots of arts&crafts (my favorite section of gift-​giving, where I probably buy the most from), all by ALEX, and I would say these were a bit overpriced, yet they had a LOT more than most other places I’ve seen, so I may be returning for some of those sometime, and I will be suggesting this store for some gift items, LEGOs, and most importantly, for Baby products, as it seems thats what they are focusing on in some way.
Oh yeah, thought I’d mention the water machine, as it was very convenient and a nice gesture from the store.
Overall, cute store, just in need to get some more different, unique stuff (not the same as every other toy store throughout a 10 mile radius, sort of as it is right now), to make customers come back quickly, yet they continue to add more items, and are convenient (especially for Wellesley /​Needham). Therefore, I will be back at some point, and will be suggesting the store. Overall, 4 stars.
Located in Linden Square off Linden Street in Wellesley.

Wow, I have been to the other location in Coolidge Corner and both locations are fantastic. The staff are extremely knowledgeable on their products. The baby gear they offer is top notch. They even took the time to demonstrate on how to use the baby carriers, slings and strollers.

I love being ignored when I go into a baby/​kid store. 5 months pregnant here – not «big» enough for a little help??! It’s cool-I’ll take my business elsewhere.

Ever since they changed management recently (Ben was so knowledgeable & awesome!), I’ve seen a dramatic drop in quality of service. Why would they hire 20-​year-​olds to staff a baby store carrying high end products? The staff appear to be inexperienced in the the industry when questions were asked. And as a new mother-​to-​be, I need a lot of guidance on baby products. It’s not very reassuring when the young staff look at me as if I have 2 heads when asked a baby question. Very disappointing.

This is a great, locally owned & managed toy shop.
The staff knows their stuff and is very willing to help a clueless god-​parent like me pick out gifts for my god kids. (Girl age 2 & Boy age 4)
Ben made some great gift suggestions. It felt like he was a personal shopper for me — which I really appreciated!
Ben even laughed when he asked me what the 4 year old was interested in & I replied «breaking stuff». (I swear the kid will grow up to be an engineer because he’s into taking things apart to figure out how they work, but he’s too young to have the put it back together part of that down.)
He suggested a toy that is hard to break. :-)

Quality toy store for the young and young at heart. Well thought out merchandising, pleasant staff, descent location.

Great selection of unique toys and baby products. Things you can’t find anywhere else.

Today was my first time visiting the store. I was on a mission to find some sensory toys for my 2 year old. I was very impressed by their selection. I was looking for something very specific and the gentleman at the register went on a mission to find it – and was successful. Something were very much overpriced but, there are many fairly priced items. Lots of great gift ideas, unique toys, and things you would also find at your target, etc. I’m not sure I would be a regular but possibly stop in from time to time. Honestly, for a small store located in the community I feel that they should have some loyalty to shoppers. Promotions or coupons would be a motivator. But overall, I do recommend stopping in!

Update ⁹⁄₁₃: I was contacted by one of the co-​owners of Magic Beans, who explained that my experience at his store was NOT the norm, and wanted to apologize for the service I received (or didn’t receive at the time). This, to me, shows that the owners of this store truely are dedicated to customer service, and will try to make things right for their customers. I greatly appreciated being contacted, as the owner certainly did not have to reach out to me at all. I’m giving 5 stars for now, simply for the management’s customer service, and will revisit the store in the near future, and further update my review, if necessary.
So, clearly I’m in the minority here, and maybe it was an off day for the store and staff, but I was less than thrilled with my experience at Magic Beans. I was pretty excited to go to this store, as I’ve read a lot about it, and knew that they had the types of strollers and baby carriers that I was looking for. All of the rave reviews promised great customer service and knowledgable stuff, neither of which I was lucky enough to get. Giving 2 stars only for the store itself… it’s cute, and filled with lots of options for babies and kids of all ages. Unique gifts, and as I mentioned, the higher end baby products I wanted to explore in person before purchasing, and spending hundreds of dollars on. I walked in, and was half-​heartedly greeted by a member of the staff. That was where the staff interaction ended. I was over by the baby carriers, looking at and trying on various styles. This is one of the reasons I came to Magic Beans in the first place… I had heard that you can go to this store and try on all the carriers that they have, as well as getting advice and assistance on the proper way to wear, the best option for you, etc. Well, I stood in the carrier section looking very clearly overwhelmed for about 5 minutes before deciding just to start helping myself. I should mention that 2 – 3 sales associates were sitting around a carriage in the section right next to me, glanced over a couple of times, but stayed put. They were not helping another customer, just didn’t seem to want to be bothered coming over to help. I started trying on some carriers on my own; awkwardly adjusting straps, trying to hook the bands around my back. Granted, I know this is something I’ll be doing on my own once my baby’s born, but it would have been nice to have some staff assistance… again, this is why I went to Magic Beans in the first place. After about 15 minutes of standing on my own, learning how to use the carriers, and getting glances from the staff every few minutes, I decided this was NOT the store that I would be spending my money at. I understand and can appreciate not harassing your customers, not pressuring them to buy things, and letting them look around on their own. However, nobody checked on me once, and when I was right in front of them, clearly struggling with choosing a carrier, trying to find a good fit, I found this to be extremely rude. I left without even a goodbye from the 2 – 3 staff members that were STILL sitting around in the carriage section. I prefer to support smaller, family owned stores, rather than the big box giants, but my first experience at Magic Beans left so much to be desired, that I will NEVER go back.

I was very impressed with this place and now this is my go to baby/​child store when I need to get a gift. See ya later, Geoffrey the Giraffe, Magic Beans got you on this one.
My two favorite things about this place is the dedicated, knowledgeable staff and how large this place is. At first, I was intimidated since it’s kind of higher priced and not your standard toy store. However, the staff was very welcoming and one of the sales ladies took the time to help me out compiling a gift basket from my friend’s registry.
Also, Magic Beans has classic wooden toys and numerous educational toys which I love. They have Pottery Barn style furniture at a better price.

If you really want to understand baby equipment, go to Magic Beans in Wellesley (their largest store) and ask for Sara. Which car seats go with which strollers easily. Which are a pain to latch. Which have good growth progression paths. Which accessories have a poor cost /​benefit ratio. Even which items are best purchased at The Competition (where one must turn to other customers for advice. I’ve been there.).
Many of these products are going to be used several times a day for several years, sometimes under duress. An explanation of the quirks and kinks is helpful, and Sara was unstinting in her willingness to explain.
Not only did she understand the product line, but she also understood the need to personalize for lifestyle and for size. (E.g., «This carrier seems to hit you a little high on the chest.». Or, «Are the handles of this stroller high enough for you?»).
I’ve bought cars with less help (and knowledge). Sara was worth the trip.
And, yes, they carry lots of nice gift items and clothes, too, but for the basic, essential equipment, start with Sara at Magic Beans in Wellesley.

There’s something for kids of all ages in Magic Beans: stuff to play with, stuff to read, stuff to wear, stuff to ride in, and even stuff to bring their lunches to school in. I’ve bought so many presents in this place. I really like their selection of puppets and other interactive soft toys. It’s a nice big store, with a really sweet play area in it. They’re one of the better independent kids’ stores in the Boston area. I like that everything is educational in some way, but without feeling like it’s super obvious or annoying; most kids don’t especially enjoy that. Meanwhile, I get to show up at birthday parties and winter holidays after a trip to Magic Beans with a pile of well-​made, quality presents like food replicas, archaeology kits, and indie games. And I am the most popular old person ever. (Anyone who’s over fifteen is old.)

Magic Beans has saved me time and time again from new mommy confusion. The staff are friendly and knowledgeable, a true rarity in a market populated by stores like Babies R Us. Magic Beans helped me choose big ticket items like a stroller, a high chair, and a baby carrier. The staff is equally helpful in choosing smaller items like teethers and birthday gifts. There’s no pressure to buy, which is a welcome change from stores like Isis. I love this store.

Magic Beans is a great store to go to for birthday gifts, and for great baby items. There are so many awesome things we’ve bought there: Mountain Buggy stroller, Stokke seats, the bumbo, etc. The selection is amazing, and the staff is very knowledgeable.
I also want to mention how great the Web site is, how easy it is to send gifts to family (and to order bulkier items, either for home delivery or in-​store pick-​up). Sheri Gurock’s blog is informative, well-​written, and entertaining, too.
I really recommend Magic Beans!

My favorite place to go when I am looking for non-​plastic baby toys. They have a great selection of wooden and fabric toys for children of all ages.
The only problem is that I end up wanting to get everything I see.

This is a store specializing in mid– to high-​end baby and toddler-​age toys, furniture, and strollers. Not the sort of place I frequent, but so help me this place has the most amazing service-​after-​the-​sale I’ve ever seen.
Over a year ago two friends of mine in Germany were getting married and they wanted to get a very particular stroller (looking ahead into the not-​too-​distant future…), one of the Bugaboo models.
Due to the strength of the Euro at the time, over here it was half price. She purchased it so I could smuggle it duty-​free into Deutschland as a wedding gift. Due to its rarity, Magic Beans was one of the three stores in the Boston area that carried it, and they were both helpful and willing to sell it to a European via a credit card.
A year later, I get an email from my friend that the handle had broken, he’s trying to get the Dutch manufacturer to replace it and is there any way I can get a copy of the year-​old receipt.
So I call Magic Beans and Grace answers, and after asking two questions she’s located the receipt. I give her a fax number, and she promises to send it out that afternoon. Fifteen minutes later, it’s sitting there on the fax, so I scan it and email it to Germany.
Now, three days later, I get an envelope addressed to my house with a paper copy of the receipt, sent in case the fax didn’t go through. Thank you Grace, you’re a shining example of what customer service should be.

the maclaren volo is lightweight and perfect as a second stroller for those frequent trips to the mall or doctors office, although not recommend until the baby is at least 8 months old, will serve until the unit reaches 3+ years.
the orbit on the other hand was built and engineered by MIT grads, as you can see the 360′ action is perfect for positioning in any number of ways. included is the orbit clutch for you to be able to remove from the undercarriage and tote around letting everyone know you just paid out 1200 for your new baby prison, i mean carseat/​stroller/​rocketship
here we have the klaxxas, made by some potsmoker in the Netherlands, how do we know this? well it looks like a high chair crossed with an ikea explosion, but for a mere 1,000 bucks, it can be yours.
if i decided to fill up the entire 5k limit for the review i could with all the vast knowledge i now have regarding strollers thanks in part to magic beans speed stroller dating and of course wifey for making me go. i did get a special treat for going so it wasnt the end of the world, just the end of my childhood :(
clock is ticking, 18 weeks,…saveme