Toys"R"Us in Roanoke will have hatchimals this weekend

ROANOKE (WSLS 10) -Chances are, if you are shopping for a child this Christmas, you are also on the hunt for Hatchimals.

Due to the demand, Hatchimals are next to impossible to buy in stores, and go for a small fortune online.

It's the hot ticket item of the holiday season that almost every parent is trying to get their hands on.

Target and Walmart locations in our area have reported getting small shipments in occasionally - but they go fast.

Thanks to a last minute shipment from Toys"R"Us, this weekend parents in Roanoke will have one more shot at getting the most wanted toy of 2016.

"It's just a hot item. Everybody wants it," shopper Pam Johnson said.

And it's one every retailer can't seem to keep in stock.

"It has been crazy. It's been a roller coaster ride," said Toys"R"Us manager Destiny Ferguson.

What's being called 2016's Tickle-Me-Elmo, or Furby, Hatchimals have created a shopping frenzy.

"Hatchimals is the number one item. Everybody is coming in from West Virginia, I even had a customer coming all the from Maryland looking for it," Ferguson said.

And yet, many shoppers are left still searching.

Low stock of the toy has sent many parents online to find the elusive Hatchimals, but shoppers will pay at least three times the retail cost on Ebay. Even walmart.com is selling the item through third-party sellers that have hiked up the price.

Toys"R"Us however, is still getting occasional shipments. Ferguson says the release two weeks ago sold in only minutes.

"I had over 100 people and we only had 80 on hand to pass out," Ferguson said.

But parents rejoice -the next big release is this Sunday. Hatchimals will be at the Toys"R"Us in Roanoke.

A note to shoppers - you better get there early. Although the doors open at 6 a.m., judging by the last event, the lines to get the toy will start much earlier.

"We had people camping out on the side of the store starting about 7 p.m.," Ferguson said.

An already busy season for the toy shopping headquarters, Ferguson says they are bracing for impact.

"My staff are pretty prepared," Ferguson said. "They have seen the good the bad and the ugly, so they know what to expect."

Toys"R"Us will be handing out tickets to those in line starting at 5:30 a.m. Sunday morning.

Only one Hatchimal per customer will be sold.

Ferguson says they won't know how many they will have to sell until they see them that morning.

But no matter what - they are going to go fast.


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