Shoppers cram Shropshire toy factory for bargains

Shoppers were up at the crack of dawn on Saturday to queue outside Golden Bear Toys, on the Hortonwood Industrial Estate in?Telford, hoping the early-bird would catch the bargain.

On offer were such coveted items as Ben and Holly's Little Kingdom Little Castle Magical Playset, and a life-size cardboard cut-out of Harry Styles from One Direction.

Both retail for about £25, but were on sale here for a mere £10.

James Ellis, estimator at nearby car repair centre Autocraft, said the roads were clear just before 8am, but half an hour later it was different story as families hoped to be first in the queue for the opening of the factory-outlet sale.

"The cars are just packed down all four exits of the roundabout," he said, "There are hundreds of people parked there."

Shareholder at Golden Bear, Robert Hales, helping out at the shop, estimated that between 700 and 1,000 people had passed through the warehouse shop that morning.

He said: "We advertised as opening at 8.30am, but because of the cars queueing around the block we opened at 8.15am.

"We do it once a year, it's a bit of a tradition at Golden Bear and we always see a good turnout.

"But today's been a bit exceptional, we've had the biggest turnout ever."

He said they were selling mainly pre-school toys that were either surplus stock or end-of-the-line items to be discontinued.

"There are massive discounts. We've got Olympic stock, like this mug," he said, picking up a mug with a soft toy of the 2012 London Olympics mascot inside, "This would have been £10 in the shops, but now we're selling it for a pound."

Emma Richards, 35, of Aqueduct, was one of those who found the early scramble all too much, especially with baby Dylan in tow.

She said: "Somebody pushed my five-month-old son's pram out of the way. Those boxes have got sharp corners and they were pushing them in his face."

She decided enough was enough and left empty-handed, but others had a better experience.

Michael Eley, 40, of Shawbirch, there with wife Jo and three-year-old son Matthew, said: "It's very packed. We've got a couple of cars and some JCB stuff.

"Being a factory shop it's ideal, we've come along to have a look and get a bargain."

Robert Knight, 31, of Poplar Grove, Madeley, was there with father Keith Knight, 53, and pleased with his Peppa Pig purchases.

"It is busy and there are only two aisles and they're quite small – but queues are going down quite fast.

"We've been doing this for the last couple of years. I'm happy," he said.