The thrill of choice, the exhilaration of adventure and the opportunity to explore — these are some ideas that inspired Michelle Pascucci, a Port Washington mother, to open her community’s newest toy store.

Learning Express, at 61 Shore Road, opened in late October. Pascucci is also the executive director of Parsons Preschool in Queens. She said between COVID-19 and e-commerce, opportunities for children to go shopping have become limited.

“They don’t get to go to a store where it’s all about them,” she said. “Where they have lots of choices and they’re not choosing from one or two items. So we figured a toy store would be a really great addition to the town that I live in.”

Learning Express seeks to provide customers with a lively, interactive shopping experience. They do this through their large offering of educational toys to games that even adults can try at their demonstration tables.

Pascucci said opening a business in Port followed many of the same reasons she made the area her family’s home: it’s kid-friendly.

“It just seems like such a family-friendly place,” she said. “Kids are riding bikes and walking dogs. It was so nice — just a really friendly, nice town. So I chose to make it our home. And I figured what better place to open a toy store?”

Pascucci said upon entering the Learning Express site, she fell in love with it. Walking out and seeing sailboats also added to the allure of the location, which she described as the “coolest place to open the coolest toy store.”

Despite having only recently opened, the store has already received favorable reviews. There are many pictures and videos of satisfied customers on its Facebook page.

“With any new business, you’re nervous,” said Pascucci. “Is it the right idea? People are closing left and right. Is this going to be a success? You’re putting a lot of time, money and effort into it. But everybody that I speak to is just so happy that we’re here, so it’s really dynamite.”

The store also plans to host birthday parties beginning in December or January. These will let partygoers pick their own stuffed animals. They will also host pottery and painting sessions.

“We’ll see what the community is looking for,” said Pascucci. “And we’ll see how well we can accommodate it.”

One can visit their Facebook page for more details.