If you were ever a collector of TY Beanie Babies, Webkinz, Pillow Pets or other plush toys as a child, you might find yourself retreating back to your childhood habits once you pick up a Squishmallow. First introduced by Kellytoy in 2017, Squishmallows are soft, collectible stuffed animals with their own names and stories written on a tag attached to each one.
While Squishmallows aren’t usually hard to find, good ones at a good price can be. Squishmallows can go for anywhere between $3.99 to $59.99 in stores, depending on their size and type. Whether you’re shopping for the holidays or just want a new soft, squishy friend, here are four of the best places near St. Joe’s to purchase Squishmallows of all kinds.
Walgreens
Address: 300 N. 63rd St.
Philadelphia, PA 19139
Price range: $9.99-$29.99
Located on the same street as Pennbrook Apartments, Walgreens is one of the best places to get Squishmallows near St. Joe’s. They have two sections: one with regular Squishmallows, sizes ranging from 5 inches to 16 inches, with styles like owls and koala bears, and another section of Squishmallows that are Christmas themed.
While holiday-themed Squishmallows can be among the most popular and also difficult to find, this Walgreens seems to be a hidden gem that not many people know about. Almost always fully stocked with Squishmallows falling off of the shelves, this Walgreens location won’t disappoint.
Learning Express of Havertown
Address: 1305 West Chester Pke.
Store #23 Manoa Shopping Center
Havertown, PA 19083
Price range: $6.99-$34.99
Learning Express of Havertown, a national toy store chain, is Squishmallow heaven. With nearly an entire wall dedicated to the popular plush, any Squishmallow shopper will be pleasantly overwhelmed with the selection. This location currently sells Squishmallows ranging from 5 inch to 24 inch, 3.5 inch clips and other Squishmallow merchandise such as sticker books, trading cards, collector’s tins and school supplies. Holiday-themed Squishmallows are slightly more expensive than the non-holiday-themed plush, like the axolotls and octopi.
Ian Dominski, an employee at Learning Express of Havertown, said the store sells Squishmallows every day, many of them to college-aged students.
“People will come in, they’ll talk like, ‘We have 200 of these at home,’” Dominski said.
Five Below
Address: 266 E. Lancaster Ave.
Ardmore, PA 19003
Price range: $3.25-$5.95
The Five Below in Ardmore can be a gold mine for Squishmallows, especially on their Sunday Squishday event that happens almost every other Sunday. On social media, Five Below teases consumers by showing the outline of six of the new 7.5 inch Squishmallows that will soon be hitting their shelves on Sunday Squishday. Sometimes, they also have 4.5 inch Squishmallows that sell for $4.50 each. Five Below usually surprises shoppers with a few more new Squishmallows beyond the six they tease online, and shoppers typically line up outside the doors before the store’s 10 a.m. opening for the event.
The 7.5 inch Squishmallows sell for $5.95, including ones that are seasonal and holiday themed. In addition to the biweekly releases, Five Below in Ardmore also sells mini Squishmallows called Squishville, Squishmallow trading cards and mystery-scented Squishmallows that are sold in a teal-colored, sealed bag.
Squishmallow lover Calaya Zhou ’23 said she first started buying her Squishmallows at Five Below before they were popular.
“I found them at Five Below in a big basket and was like, ‘Oh, they look cute,’” Zhou said. “And I squished them and was like, ‘Oh, they’re so soft. I should get one.’ So I got one.”
T.J. Maxx
Address: 7616 City Line Ave.
Philadelphia, PA 19151
Price range: $3.99-$15.99
The T.J. Maxx located on City Avenue has a modest selection of stuffed animals tucked in a corner shelf in the back of the store, and intermixed with the Squishmallow look-alikes are real Squishmallows.
While offering a random selection, T.J. Maxx is bound to have a surprising variety with each visit. Sizes range between 4 inch to 16 inch with many seasonal and holiday-themed ’Mallows. The size they typically have the most of is 12 inch, which sells at $11.99.
Meg Thompson ’23 said she thinks the comfort Squishmallows give is what makes them so popular.
“Even though I’m literally a 21-year-old adult, it’s really comforting in a sense,” Thompson said. “I feel like the material they’re made of makes it more comforting than a normal pillow.”
