Autism
Spotlight On
Spotlight On: Spectrum Toy Store
Sydney Gutierrez
•
December 8, 2016
In the behavioral healthcare community, it is no secret that Direct Support Professionals (DSP’s) are the backbone of providing care to individuals. This is precisely why there is a large movement to pay these workers competitive wages and why states across the country have officially recognized a DSP week to honor those who serve in this capacity. So it should come as no surprise that Jamilah Rahim, a behavior therapist in Chicago, was working with a client when she began to notice a few particular details.
Her client was a nonverbal boy on the autism spectrum who had a mother doing everything she could to help her son. The mother would regularly buy new toys and sensory products for her son who would take the object, analyze it for a few seconds before tossing it behind the TV, completely uninterested in it again. When Jamilah noticed this pattern she asked the mother if there was a local place where she was acquiring the toys. She was stunned to hear that the mother was ordering everything online due to there not being a local store where these products were available. After hearing that, Jamilah went home and began conducting her own research. Surely there had to be someplace that had been overlooked where this loving mom could take her son and find some items that he could try out before she bought them; after all, this was Chicago - a major city where individuals in the community could find attorneys, real estate specialists and specialized products for individuals with disabilities. After searching and failing to find anything in the city, she tried expanding her search to the rest of Illinois, then on to Indiana and to Wisconsin but to no avail.
Given the market gap, Jamilah stepped up and founded Spectrum Toy Store. When first walking in you can feel just how much this space was designed with the idea of minimizing sensory overload. Just as you take your first step you’ll notice the padded floor; soft, comfortable, the contrast from concrete sidewalk to this fun marshmallow feeling carpet is staggering and hard to miss. A look left and right offers customers walls literally lined with products. We asked Jamilah about the products in the store and she confirmed that while Spectrum is in fact a toy store, a lot of her customers need more than just toys, they need sensory products centered around development as well. In addition to a lot of the puzzles that take up a wall there’s a section for board games like Monopoly and upon laying our eyes on this section Jamilah makes a point to emphasize this choice:
In addition to some of these puzzles and board games, Jamilah has a handful of products from Melissa & Doug, a company that makes toys designed to inspire while remaining durable enough to handle wear and tear. What makes Spectrum so special isn’t just this atmosphere of acceptance or all the products they offer, but they offer a space for kids to demo the toys and games prior to purchasing anything. Spectrum is a place to try things out and see what they like, saving parents some time and money.
After seeing the largely positive response from the community, Spectrum now offers a CARE BOX subscription program! With visitors coming out from Missouri, central Indiana, Wisconsin and even a couple from Canada, Jamilah and her team knew that they would need to expand their catered offerings to individuals who weren’t close by. The CARE BOX subscription offers a special care box with sensory toys, products and educational activities for children that are specifically tailored to each customer’s needs and is delivered right at your doorstep. If that wasn’t enough, Jamilah will soon be launching their Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) program where parents and their children will be able to come into the space and use these pictures to interact with one another.
Every year millions of people around the world come together around this time to be with their loved ones and exchange gifts as tokens of affection. The CapGrow team is ecstatic to have found a place where individuals can come find gifts for their loved ones on the spectrum. We hope you all will take some time to visit Spectrum and see what they have with your own eyes.
Given the market gap, Jamilah stepped up and founded Spectrum Toy Store. When first walking in you can feel just how much this space was designed with the idea of minimizing sensory overload. Just as you take your first step you’ll notice the padded floor; soft, comfortable, the contrast from concrete sidewalk to this fun marshmallow feeling carpet is staggering and hard to miss. A look left and right offers customers walls literally lined with products. We asked Jamilah about the products in the store and she confirmed that while Spectrum is in fact a toy store, a lot of her customers need more than just toys, they need sensory products centered around development as well. In addition to a lot of the puzzles that take up a wall there’s a section for board games like Monopoly and upon laying our eyes on this section Jamilah makes a point to emphasize this choice:
“A lot of people come in and think - what are autism toys? We try to reinforce the idea that there’s no such thing as autism toys but that there are toys that sometimes do better with children on the spectrum. Products like puzzles with audio options, multi-color options, and spacial relation toys just happen to be better for those sensitive to sensory overload.”
In addition to some of these puzzles and board games, Jamilah has a handful of products from Melissa & Doug, a company that makes toys designed to inspire while remaining durable enough to handle wear and tear. What makes Spectrum so special isn’t just this atmosphere of acceptance or all the products they offer, but they offer a space for kids to demo the toys and games prior to purchasing anything. Spectrum is a place to try things out and see what they like, saving parents some time and money.
After seeing the largely positive response from the community, Spectrum now offers a CARE BOX subscription program! With visitors coming out from Missouri, central Indiana, Wisconsin and even a couple from Canada, Jamilah and her team knew that they would need to expand their catered offerings to individuals who weren’t close by. The CARE BOX subscription offers a special care box with sensory toys, products and educational activities for children that are specifically tailored to each customer’s needs and is delivered right at your doorstep. If that wasn’t enough, Jamilah will soon be launching their Picture Exchange Communication System (PECS) program where parents and their children will be able to come into the space and use these pictures to interact with one another.
Every year millions of people around the world come together around this time to be with their loved ones and exchange gifts as tokens of affection. The CapGrow team is ecstatic to have found a place where individuals can come find gifts for their loved ones on the spectrum. We hope you all will take some time to visit Spectrum and see what they have with your own eyes. Industry News from CapGrow
View all
The Behavioral Health Worker Outlook for 2026 and Beyond
CapGrowPartners
•
March 27, 2026
Top Priorities for Medical Providers in 2026 for Newly Eligible Medicaid Recipients
CapGrowPartners
•
December 23, 2025
Upcoming Medicaid Cuts Leave Applied Behavior Analysis Providers & Patients Looking for Solutions
CapGrowPartners
•
September 25, 2025