Red Hot Robot

Red Hot Robot is unique in all ways. As the name suggests they sell plenty of robot themed items as well as related Japanese inspired toys. I love this place. I saw it front the street and was curious to go inside and do not regret it. I found some off the wall magnets, Family Guy inspired figurines and a Lego book for my five year old. It is a great place to find a gift for the someone who is next to impossible to please.
Tonight I will be stopping by to get some small, but worthy gifts.
If you are in the neighborhood, stop by.
It is a great place to spend about twenty minutes and twenty dollars.
Parking is plentiful and there are some other fun places nearby.

Uh, Im almost hesitant to share my secret love/​obsession, but its too good not to! Words cannot describe the swellegant environment that is Red Hot Robot. Just go to the store and see for yourself, you will thank me… or maybe you wont. You may become addicted to vinyl toys and then every paycheck you will find yourself buying freaking awesome goodies from the trinket peddler known as Jason who sits behind the counter with a candied grin recognizing he has hooked yet another sucker in for his sweet merchandise… I love you Red Hot Robot (whispers) I love you.

I have been in love with Red Hot Robot since I discovered it a couple years ago when it was over on Central. I have never gone in and left empty-​handed. My bank account is always at least $ 20 lighter, but the smile on my face and the goodies in the black RHR shopping back more than make up for that.
I finally visited the new digs today, and even though it’s a bit further from my home and office, I’m so glad they found such a lovely new space. It’s bigger and better-​showcases all of the wonderful treasures. The selection of cards and postcards is bigger than before, which, in my opinion, is a HUGE bonus. The usual vinyl blind box collectibles are still available and there are so many other awesome little goodies.
I have never asked his name, but the really nice guy who always rings me up (the owner, I believe) is always super friendly and seems genuinely concerned about how well his shop is meeting his customers’ needs. When I went in today, I asked him about the new Android figurines and he gave me all kinds of fun information about them and when they’ll be available. It’s refreshing to be able to talk to a shop owner and get the feeling you’re just having a nice conversation with a friend.
Today I spent my $ 15 birthday gift certificate, which I’d been holding on to since January, and spent another $ 35 on top of that. Best way to spend a Friday if you ask me!

I give them all my money and I never regret a moment of it. Don’t see what you desire? Ask Jason and he’ll find it for you!
Get on the mailing list and attend one of the special events. Fun and fab!

Interesting.. . This is one strange freakin’ place. There’s all kinds of Animé-​type robot art here as well as other accessories/​vinyl-​type toys. Not my taste in artwork, but definitely a place to visit and look around. If you’re looking for smorkin’ labbits, you’ll find them here.
If you come to Red Hot Robot and haven’t been to Smeeks yet, it’s just next door and you’ll find all the candy you’ll ever want. Entrance in back.

Your one stop shop for indie and custom toys and books and stickers and t-​shirts etc you know the drill– art shows plus local artists doing the custom thing. Best selection of pencil toppers seen anywhere, ever. Jason is super nice. Park behind in the lot.

Found my new obsession store. For those toys and novelties I fall in love with online, I have found a store that carries it locally. From everything ranging from TokiDoki, Dunny’s, Johnny Cupcakes, etc– they have it!
I discovered this place when Johnny Cupcake’s was actually in town do his Suitcase Tour promo from their locale. The staff is pretty nice, and tho the store is fairly small they have an array of items that will tickle just about anyones fancy and tastes.

Not being a toy collector OR any kind of expert on Japanese culture, I was mesmerized by the abundance of ridiculous madness that faced me at Red Hot Robot. Perhaps I’m simply not familiar enough with the crazy world of vinyl models, but this place is BIZARRE.
And I loved it, of course. The whole shop was brightly colored, cute, nostalgic and childlike all at once. There were hints of things I knew (Mark Ryden books, stylized He-​Man and Thundercats posters) and even things I wanted (that Godzilla wine bottle!) but the most fascinating stuff was the collection of totally unfamiliar toys. What the hell was that smiling red robot cat thing? I don’t know!
Anyway, great shop filled with things that are not the least bit essential but look great on a shelf. Plus it’s between an awesome candy shop AND an awesome record store, so even if you’re just looking for a unique time killer in Phoenix you should just stop here first.
Oh yeah, bonus points for the super nice store clerk, she was awesome too.

I less than 3 Red Hot Robot. I really don’t need any of the awesome cool kitschy things they sell but I want them anyway. Want them like crack.
Do I need I stuffed mustache I named General Robert E Lee? No. But they have him and I love. I also don’t need the billions of tiny stuffed ninjas but they make my life somehow more complete. And safer. Nothing is safer than having an army of stuffed ninjas at your back.
Every time I come in the store is well laid out and as well stocked as possible considering most of what they sell is limited edition and awesome.
It’s also super conveniently located next to Smeeks Candy Shop and the light rail.

Oh Red Hot Robot! How shall I count the ways I love thee? It surely is in the dollar signs leaving my wallet. No longer do I resort to my regular two online stores for cutesy and disturbing vinyl goods.
Now, I’ve not been to some of the real brick and mortar giants in larger cities, but of the cities I have been to, Red Hot Robot has a lot going for it. This is no «art» gallery with a few boxes of Dunnies thrown in a corner on a wall. This is no record store with a case of Qees or some other random toys. This is one (yes, small) store with every inch of space holding books, magazines, plush, blind-​boxed items, open blind-​box items, customs, etc etc.
There is no better-​than-​you attitude in this store. Instead you’ll find friendly, awesomeness amid a sea of fun. Just make sure you come prepared and TRY not to spend that whole paycheck.
Having ordered from them online before I moved out here recently I can also say their online store is first rate as well.

Tons of great stuff for the collector of rare, stylised toys. They have small items for $ 7 and all the way up to much larger, custom designs for as much as $ 500. Don’t come in expecting to get your kid something — this is definitely for collectors only.
I love to go in and just look at it from a gallery perspective. Tons of wonderful art for art’s sake.

A shop filled with things I want but don’t need? If it’s wrong to spend time here, I don’t want to be right.
It’s not big, it doesn’t have a ton of stuff, but it works. Instead of feeling overwhelmed by things to look at, I can take my time looking over everything. And by some form of wizardry, everything in this store turns out to be something I want.
Great place to take someone when you’ve got a birthday coming up so you can point out all the things you wouldn’t buy yourself.

RHR is perfect! A cute little vinyl shop with something for everybody. I never leave empty-​handed.
If you have someone hard to shop for, this is a great place to buy some unique/​cute gifts that will definitely get a smile. Figurines & plushes, little toys & trinkets, artwork, clothing, and cards to boot. My favorite item has to be the stuffed mustache with a mustache that I bought my boyfriend about a year ago or my stuffed anatomical heart sporting a smile (ala I Heart Guts).
I’m melting!

==Red Hot Robot vs Toys R’ Us & KB Toys==
–Concept–
RHR: Small, intimate setting wherein vinyl toy enthusiasts can browse through toys, books, clothes, knick knacks and art work.
Other Places: Large, lawless warehouses of misery and confusion where cheap, useless toys are left strewn about aisles as unsupervised children topple displays and parents are forced to watch their childhood memories be forcibly stripped of their nostalgic dignity and peddled to their own clueless children.
«Oh wow I bet you wish they had Transformers when you were a kid.»
Guess what, mouth-​breather? THEY DID.
Winner: Red Hot Robot
–Staff & Management–
RHR: Mild-​mannered owner Jason Kingingham smiles pleasantly at you as you browse the store, eager to strike up a conversation or impart his knowledge. Newbies and connoisseurs alike have a friend in Jason.
Other Places: Apathetic high schoolers and the sloppy managers who love them… inappropriately…and outside of the confines of the law.
Winner: Red Hot Robot
–Price–
Red Hot Robot: Economically reasonable, placed clearly and openly for anyone to see.
Other Places: Here, take this to a scanner and see how much this is. It’s how much? Fuck it. Let’s go to Wal-​Mart. They probably have it for cheaper, and in undamaged packaging. Come to think of it, I need some things. Yeah, put it back, we’re going to walmart.
Winner: Red Hot Robot
So, according to my flawless scientific point by point analysis, Red Hot Robot pwns.

I have only been one time and I am afraid to go back. The thing is I like have $$ for bills and rent. I have a problem, and that problem is little robots and monsters presented in a toy type format.
If you have the same addiction I do please go to this place. I talked to the owner for 15 minutes or so and he is very informative and genuinely happy to help his customers. The place is very clean and organized. Great job!
Now if I could only avoid Wet pant. I would have successfully saved myself a ass ton of $$ and would have murdered all of my fun.

«It’s a toy store for grown-​ups»
*eyebrows raise*
«No no no not like that!»
When I was a kid I would get my allowance weekly and promptly get my mom to take me to the store to pick the new troll doll err… I mean troll action figure I would buy with it. Don’t look at me like that! I mostly got the terminator and ninja turtle ones. sigh…oh but I digress.
Red Hot Robot is full of. well Red Hot Robots. Vinyl; it’s not just for records anymore. The hippest little world of geeky toys… or is it geeky world of hip toys? Either way this place will have your inner child poking it’s head out of your belly button and your cube mate rage with jealousy that you have the cooledt desk toys in all the land… yup my vinyl bunny-​robot-​skull mask will totally kick your star wars action figures plastic asses back to Tatooine you mama’s basement living, wookie sucking douche.
Ahem…but I digress again. Get back that excitement of buying a new toy with your allowance and be the Joneses of the cubicle farm.

Call me Mr. Roboto…
I have to say this is a cool «adult» toy store (not a porn thing) I like the collections and interesting variety RR offers up. A friend of a friend was being featured and had a mini show of his upcoming web comic, hence my first visit to RR.
Check out his stuff:
It was cool to talk to him about his comic and the characters he created and see the man behind the monsters. I also bought one of his prints, this cool Lincoln-​stein Voting poster sort of a statement of our lack luster political candidates. This poster is basically saying It would be better to bring back good ol’ Abe and make him into a undead monster than to vote for any of our current candidates. It’s clever and combines 2 of my favorite things, Universal Studios Monsters and History. :)
Added Bonus he signed it for me. If you are into cool weird, unique collectibles (like the Gay Empire Line of pink Star Wars Storm Troopers) and Japanese animation style stuff, this is a great place to check out, it’s next too Stinkweeds records, which is also a plus :)

The whole time I was in here, I could barely think cause my inner cute girl was squealing like a little bitch the WHOLE TIME. Imagine me watching Cute
and drooling over baby pandas farting and baby kittens in elf hats mewling and little sloths so sleepy they fall off of sofas… now times that a thousand and I think my bf wanted to seriously strangle me.
SO CUTE SO CUTE SO CUTE SO CUTE SO CUTE SO CUTE
My first impression after being in Frances Vintage was «Wow, this place is really sparse and not all crammed with crap» and «good light». Jason K was there at the display/​cash register and I immediately saw Junko Mizuno (google image her) figurine and grabbed my BFs arm. OMG. I started nerding it up with Jason. Okay cool, as a chick I would find stuff here.
I do agree the guy clothing was much cooler than the womens clothing (Jason, do you have a lady to help you in that dept.?).
We really enjoyed looking at all the books he had on display, some pop surrealism, graffiti, vinyl toys, and general culture books that we lingered over for a long time.
I also loved the display of medium vinyl toys and that bunny rabbit smoking? Put me over the edge. It was like a billion kittens in elf hats at once. I had a cute meltdown. I started grabbing. I dropped a toy in delirium. I wanted it all. I was like Veruca Salt in Willy Wonka. «I WANT the golden bunny with the cigarette, daddy, and I
.NOW.»
I calmed down. I took a few breaths. I almost bought the cute little Junko Mizuno key chain figure for 7 bucks (and I still do!), but I was overwhelmed and my BF had to escort me out the door, and murmured we would be back, back when I can handle it.

I finally wandered into Red Hot Robot after another wandering session in Stinkweeds (adiós, hard-​earned cash, I’ll miss you) and I’ll tell you that I enjoyed walking and looking around this joint. Full of random toys, vinyl or otherwise (including these funky UglyDolls
, which may have 3 eyes or one), collectible figures — robot or otherwise (many with a Japanese design bent), books on graffiti (Bansky, etc.), t-​shirts, hip and non-​cheesy greeting cards, candy (including those chocolate Kinder Eggs with the BRAND NEW! 2008 collection of little toys that American kids would swallow but European kids apparently wouldn’t), and more.
Red Hot Robot could easily be located somewhere in San Francisco, where there definitely is a huge market of people who’d buy stuff like these collectibles and toys for themselves or other people; which makes the fact that it’s here in uptown Phoenix instead all the greater. That’s because I would never have expected Phoenix to have a store like this (but I’ll be first to readily admit to underestimating this city now and then).
The downside to Red Hot Robot for me personally is as much as I thought everything in there was pretty cool, I still didn’t buy a single thing. However, that probably has more to do with my aversion to «stuff» in general than anything else.
So 4 stars. Even though I didn’t buy anything, I hope enough people do. Great little independent businesses like this one are what’s going to keep rapidly developing-​and-​redeveloping Phoenix from becoming «Anywhere, USA». Definitely worth checking out next time you’re around this part of town.

Red Hot Robot is a fantastic little «urban culture» art store. I don’t know what else to call it.
Sure, it’s full of cool vinyl toys, but also prints, books, cards, local art… things the the owner has carefully selected and arranged with a keen eye.
Even my wife has been swayed by the Robot, who usually doesn’t like to follow me into stores like this. She’s gotten interested in the vinyl toy movement, too!
I’ve always had great service, and parking has never been an issue for me.
My favorite store in PHX.