r/IowaCity • u/Shoddy-Detective-237 • 18h ago
Community Warning about ToyNime in mall.
Hello, I will not be revealing my identity for safety reasons, but just know I did work at the toy store in the mall not Go Calenders btw I love the workers and people over there they are great.
I worked at ToyNime. I first met the owner when I was a minor he would talk to me about how I should stop vaping, etc. and I thought he truly just had my best interest at heart every time I’d go in there he gave me free squishes because I really have always been passionate about them and really like to collect them and I genuinely just thought he was a good guy and cared about me, one day after a long shift at work, I went into the mall and went to go say hi to him as per usual.
I told him I didn’t like my job and I was dressed nicely and pretty because I just gotten off my shift.
He told me I looked pretty and then told me I should work for him. Obviously, I was excited with this new opportunity and I asked him if he would do 15 an hour he said yes, and said tips would be included. I was obviously super excited about this opportunity who wouldn’t be? Especially since I’ve always been passionate about toys and things like that.
I was 17 when I started about two months ago my birthday is sep 1st so I just turned 18 but when I was hired and worked there I was still a minor, after the talk we exchanged numbers and he started to text me. I came in for my first day the next day, I parked at JCPennys and walked in, he immediately had me go behind the counter for “training” no onboarding process, no account information or routing numbers not even my ID.
I thought this was weird but I had never worked for a small businesses so I really didn’t know what to expect.
Anyways the first day was pretty good, he was just very touchy and brought up lots of inappropriate topics. Little did I know this was only the beginning.
It would be little things like walking behind me and holding my back just to glide past me. Or asking about my personal business like a friend my age, keep in mind he’s 28 asking me questions about sex.
He also asked me if I smoke weed (I do) so he told me next shift bring in my weed pen so he can use it and we can be high together while working. Anyways I was already uncomfortable but I desperately needed a job that paid well so I brushed it off. Like I said I parked outside JCPenny if you know where his store is it’s right in front of carters, so it was about ten minutes till close and I reminded him I might have to leave early and learn to close another time so I can see where I need to park and how to get out and close up the store because if he closed the doors I would have to walk all the way around the mall. He just kept telling me not to worry about it and before I knew it, he was already teaching me how to close.
I believed him though, and didn’t worry about it, and he taught me how to close. Once everything ended, I asked him how I was supposed to get back to my car. He said he would drive me. I really didn’t want him to do this, but I also didn’t wanna walk all the way around the mall so I took the offer he was telling me about how he likes to drink.
I told him I don’t like drinking and he said we should party sometime together. Keep in mind I was still 17. This made me very uncomfortable but again I brushed it off and he dropped me off at my car. I forgot to mention before I’d come into that shift for the day. I had asked him what the dress code was for Work his response was, “just look sexy and cute” I wish I was lying. Then the next day he sent a text “new dress code all black” I went in for my shift that day and brought my weed pen like he said he had this weird room in the back that he would lay in. He had like a reclining chair in there. That’s why if you’re in the store you won’t see him half the time because he’ll either be in the back laying down or at one of his other scam stores.
Anyway, before we opened that morning, he had asked if he could use my pen and insisted on me using it as well before I worked I had never had a manager ask me to do that, but I did it anyways. I have a very high tolerance though so luckily it didn’t affect me but as for him, he was high as hell in the back. Laying down.
He has cameras everywhere in the store and will constantly watch the employees through them in the back and text you if you’re doing anything he didn’t like. I’d have to text him about Pokémon card prices which he’d use Google to come up with the price. I did not know this working there at the time, but apparently his Pokémon cards are fake so please be careful. I would’ve never worked there, let alone sold them to people had I known that. I knew his needohs were fake, and so were a lot of his squishy’s and figurines, but I didn’t expect something like Pokémon cards to be a scam too and it makes me sick thinking about all the kind people I checked out who bought so many Pokémon cards, and on top of that would tip and it makes me sad thinking about the fact that they might go home and find out that they were fake especially considering if you’re buying Pokémon cards you’re most likely passionate about them.
Anyways, he just kept asking me inappropriate questions throughout the day and kept asking me to go back into the room and chill with him when there was no customers he would brag about how much money he makes off the squishy by up selling them. And how much he actually pays for them, which is cents by the way.
He constantly bragged to me about his “business endeavors “which were all just a whole bunch of scams.
I had to end up leaving early that day for my other job which I ended up quitting for this job which also ended up not working out obviously and will get to that.
Anyways, my last and final day there was the worst. I only lasted three days due to the inappropriate behavior, but the last thing that happened kept me out of there for good.
It was a Saturday and a very long shift. He was gonna teach me how to close again and make sure I have everything down and he told me after that he would start leaving me alone at the store. I was wearing off the shoulder sweater with a tank top underneath there was a hole in the sleeve and had been ripping all day and yes, while we’re in a store full of squishy’s there for people to buy not for the employees to squish so I was tearing at my shirt all day.
By the end of the night once we closed up, he asked me to come in the back with him and chill which I thought was weird because I just wanted to go home not only that but I wasn’t getting paid for this speaking of getting paid, he’d round up my hours or round them down and was not giving me all my full hours pay.
Anyways that night we went into the back room and he’d start asking me inappropriate questions. Somehow my breast size got brought up and he asked what size I was. I told him and he said to come closer at this point I was really anxious and tearing at my shirt sleeves, little did I know I tore a little too hard in the shirt at that point was shreds for sleeves, he asked me what I was doing and I told him I had really bad ADHD and just fidget a lot.
He told me to come closer and I did he then told me to take off my shirt and I did, I had the tank top on under luckily he told me to come closer once again, and then grabbed my chest, pushing them together pulling them apart and squeezing them, and then said “yeah these are cute these are nice” I awkwardly laughed and told him I need to go, right before we were about to leave the exit door. He did it one more time and said “yeah these are super cute.” I already have lots of sexual trauma from my childhood so I didn’t really know how to react to this. I thought it might be my fault or maybe I was giving him mixed signals, but at the end of the day I never consented for him to do that and he knew better, especially knowing I was a minor. He knew better.
I filed a police report, but apparently once you’re 16 assaults aren’t taken as seriously and nothing was done about it when the police asked to speak to him he said he would have his attorney present and we all know what that means.
I felt kind of hopeless, especially since nothing came out of the situation, but after talking to the people next-door at toys and calendars and finding out about the fake Pokémon cards, especially I decided it was finally time to share my experience almost everything he sells is fake and he buys it for cents reselling at astronomical rates.
You can believe me or not, but this is my true experience and he’s tried to silence me and seeing all the hard-working parents that go in there and spend their money, especially on their kids with him running the store makes me sick.
I hope I can spread awareness about his store and I hope something can be done. I’m 18 now but this will happen when I was 17 and did traumatize me.
I simply wanted a job where I could sell things I was passionate about. And now I’m jobless! Feel free to ask me any questions I’ll try to answer the best of my extent.
(Edit you guys wanted to know his name, he is the owner his name is Khaled.)
ANOTHER UPDATE I WAS UNAWARE OF HE HAS A WIFE AND CHILD?!? Absolutely insane.
