Astoria stuffed animal shop funds conservation efforts

Published 5:00 pm Thursday, May 31, 2007

When Astoria resident Sheryl Todd talks on the phone about saving tapirs, she’s quick to explain she isn’t a candle collector.

Todd’s passion is saving the endangered tapir – an unusual mammal found in South America and Asia, related to the horse and rhinoceros. She runs a thriving non-profit organization that raises money for tapir conservation by selling unusual stuffed and plastic animals online.

But now Todd’s exotic stock of toys and hard-to-find plastic models is even more accessible to Astorians – this spring she opened a retail store on the Riverwalk.

Next time you’re strolling in the vicinity of the old Englund Marine store at the foot of 15th St., look in the windows of the grey building next door. You’ll see a showroom filled with cute, furry and odd stuffed animals – among them tapirs, foxes, and even a so-ugly-it’s-cute turkey vulture.

The real life inspiration for this inventory – the endearingly homely tapir – stands about three feet high, and looks like a cross between an anteater and a furry wild pig. Experts estimate there are just a few thousand left in the wild among all four of its surviving species.

Todd discovered that offering realistic, high-quality plastic and stuffed animals online was a great way to raise funds for tapir conservation. It’s definitely a niche.

“It you’re looking for a plastic Tasmanian devil, we might be your only choice,” Todd said. “We cater to that market.”

Todd’s online business is called “Tapir and Friends Animal World,” but she’s is calling the brick and mortar version “The Animal World,” so customers will remember it easily.

Last year the business grossed over $150,000 in sales and growing; that’s about a 180 percent jump in revenue from the previous year.

The Animal World is located at 1490 Marine Drive in Astoria. The store is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. For more information, call (503) 325-3179 or visit www.tapirback.com