AUSTIN, Texas — Austin toy store Batcity Toys is the brainchild of owner Geno Astarita. He mainly sels vintage toys — most of them are from his own collection.

“I think I had about $70,000 in inventory from my own personal collection that helped launch this store,” said Astarita. “Nobody was happier about that than my wife because we have plenty of room back at home when we opened the store and moved all that stuff here.”

He has added to his collection in the nine months the store has been open. You’ll find everything from decades-old "Star Wars" figurines to all sizes of Transformers. Most of the toys are from the 1970s, '80s and '90s. 

“For example, these Thundercats that we have here. Some people may not have seen these since the '80s. Many of these did not survive,” he said.

Astarita also points out perhaps the coolest item in the store: a model of the Khetanna, Jabba’s sail barge, from the movie "Return of the Jedi." It’s kept behind glass.

“This was never developed or created when the 'Return of the Jedi' came out. This was released about four years ago as a crowd-funded toy,” said Astarita.

The Khetanna model and glass case it’s kept in sells for $6,000, but Astarita says you can’t put a price on a place where memories are made. He says his store serves as a sort of museum. He says you get a history lesson with every vintage toy sold.

“I don’t think anybody has a bad memory of opening a present at Christmas that was absolutely what they wanted. That’s what this store does. It brings back that nostalgia. It brings back that euphoria,” he said.