NORTH ADAMS, Mass. - Friday’s grand opening of the NORAD Toy and Candy Company at the NORAD Mill was the realization of a wish owner David Moresi has had since his company bought the mill in 2017.

“This entire mill development took off a lot faster than we anticipated,” Moresi, who owns the Moresi and Associates development firm, said. “We brought a lot of retail businesses in, and we always kind of saved one little spot here to bring in this little niche business, which has been lacking in the North Adams area for many years.” 

The store features hundreds of types of candy, and dozens of toys, from LEGO to classics like Tinker Toys and Lincoln Logs. It’s enough for everyone to feel like a kid in a candy store.

“It’s good stuff,” special projects manager, Hannah Klammer, said. “We’ve got high quality toys, how many different kinds of candy?”

“There’s about 169 of the apothecary jars, and we also have loads of other stuff as well,” business coordinator, Carolina Collins, said.

“Packaged candy, you name it, we have it,” Klammer said

Everything about the store, from the types of candy and toys to the décor, is designed to give customers a heavy dose of nostalgia.

“It’s really about the experience of coming in,” said Moresi. That’s half the fun, is the experience of coming in, whether it’s being rung up on the old-timey cash register or having the candy scooped out of the jars.”

They have some special plans in the works for the holiday season, and they might consider expanding to new locations in the future, but for now, the focus is just on everyone having a good time.

“It’s all about having fun,” Moresi said. “We want everyone to have fun here, all the visitors, all the staff. Just enjoy themselves.”