**This Freebie Friday offer is closed. Come back to our website this Friday for your next chance to win.**

As part of our belief that it pays to shop local, each and every Friday this November Bookmans Mesa hosts a new contest called Freebie Fridays. This series showcases a local business and offers you a chance to experience parts of Mesa that deserve a broader audience. This second week takes us to Downtown Mesa where lies Lulubell Toy Bodega. Lulubell’s is an art gallery and retail store featuring art toys, designer vinyl toys, Japanese Kaiju and pop culture items among so much other cool stuff. A designer toy store in Arizona?! Yes, plus they have a great sense of humor.

Freebie Fridays: Lulubell Toy Bodega

Downtown Mesa’s website lists Lulubell Toy Bodega as  specializing in pop culture items and soft vinyl toys from Japan, as well as items from dozens of local artists and makers. Lulubell originates from owner Luke Rook’s obsession with toys after moving to Taiwan in 1997. It started with a small skull figure from Hot Dog Toys called Hallowteens, which you can find on display in the store. After moving back to Tucson, his collection started to grow and soon Rook decided to open his own shop. Within one year, Rook moved to Tokyo, Japan to learn the art of toy making and produce Lulubell’s own line of toys and figures for clients around the world. Lulubell is going on their fourth year in Downtown Mesa with no regrets.

Beginning in Tucson nine years ago, Lulubell owners Rook and Amy Del Castillo, looked at Downtown Phoenix, Gilbert, Chandler and Mesa when considering a move for Lulubell into a larger metro area. Lulubell spent its first 6 years of business in a close-knit community of indie businesses within Downtown Tucson. Rook and Del Castillo searched for a place in the Phoenix metro area that provides the same community feel they experienced in Tucson.

Lulubell is an incredible downtown Mesa shopping experience. If you have been wanting to check it out, now is your chance! We have in hand a $50 gift card for one lucky winner that can be used in store or on their online store. Really, you should go to the store in person because you need to see the Hallowteens all together and also because you just should.

To enter this Freebie Friday giveaway, just use our comment section to answer the following question:

WHAT MAKES YOU GEEK OUT?

We will allow 72 hours for entries so no excuse for letting this chance pass you by. The winner will be selected using random.org and will be notified by e-mail sometime on the following day. Comments are moderated and may take some time to appear. Please do not resubmit your comments — one will be plenty.

Last week the responses to, “Why buy locally owned?” filled our hearts with joy. It’s like you see right into our soul. Keeping it local means supporting our neighbors, maintaining our community identity and keeping up our supply of delicious eats. You know as well as we do that nobody does huevos in all their forms as well as Arizonans.

Also, if you love these local business giveaways, join our Shop Local Twitter Treasure Hunts. So many giveaways! So many ways to win! Bookmans is proud to partner with Local First Arizona and to be part of Shop Local, Give Local in our Community.