The Collector: Matchbox car collection strengthened this match

A tiny red Rolls-Royce launched a collection that eventually spawned a brick-and-mortar store in the Garland District.

In 1988, Renee and Terry Taylor were browsing at a flea market when a Matchbox Rolls-Royce circa 1967 caught Terry’s eye.

“I had one when I was a kid,” he said.

That car was just one of many he enjoyed playing with. His dad owned a car dealership in a small Montana town.

“When we drove to Spokane, my brother and I each got to pick out one Matchbox car,” recalled Terry. “We’d rip open the package and throw the box away.”

He shook his head.

“Now, the boxes are worth more than the cars.”

After scooping up the Rolls, he called his mom to ask about his childhood toys. As he feared, the cars were long gone. So, he decided to recreate his childhood, one Matchbox car at a time, concentrating on the vehicles produced from 1953-1970.

He pointed to a ’60s-era orange and red Hoveringham Tipper (dump truck).

“I played with one as a kid,” Terry said. “I rolled the wheels right off that thing!”

As her husband began collecting in earnest, Renee said she had a choice to make.

“He was spending money,” she recalled. “I could get divorced, go bankrupt, or get involved.”

She grinned at Terry.

“I got involved. I played with cars as a kid. I had 100 of them!”

Matchbox cars were first made in England in 1953 by Lesney Products, a company formed by Leslie Smith and Rodney Smith. Jack Odell, an engineer and partner, launched the toy line when his daughter told him that her school only allowed toys that fit inside a matchbox. He designed a tiny diesel road roller, popped it in a matchbox and made history.

Thousands of cars, trucks, vans, motorcycles, and construction and farm vehicles later, the company, now owned by Mattel, is still going strong.

While her husband coveted the miniature motors, Renee turned her eye to the larger models.

“I started collecting Matchbox King Size (3½ to 4 inches),” she said. Now mine are worth more than his.”

Attention to detail was an early hallmark of the die-cast toys.

“When they made a car, they’d bring a full-size model to the factory floor and scale it to size,’ Renee said.

She pointed to the windows of a 1967 King Size ambulance.

“You can see a body on a stretcher.”

Her favorite item is her newest acquisition – a Speed Kings Easy Rider chopper. It’s based on the iconic movie, and Renee thinks the figure on the motorcycle even looks like Peter Fonda. She has two versions: one with chrome handlebars and one with red handlebars.

“It’s part of the Super King series – they had faster wheels,” she said.

Terry has a favorite in that series, too – a blue Dodge custom van with “It’s only rock ’n’ roll” painted on the side.

By 1956, the Matchbox was making playsets, too. The collectors own gas stations, garages and fire stations.

“The green-roofed fire station is rarer than the red-roofed,” said Terry, pointing to both sets.

That’s why the couple has multiple versions of similar items. Sometimes, a Matchbox car produced in a unique or uncommon color variation can be worth significantly more than the standard color.

Sets featuring multiple toys proved popular, too. For example, the collectors own a 1968 G-6 truck set in its original packaging, as well as a farm set from the same year.

When the couple moved to Spokane from Missouri in 1990, they had 100 Matchbox cars. Now, their collection numbers 1,800.

Their vintage cars fill several original store display cases, including the circular ones Terry remembered from childhood. The rest line shelves in glass-fronted displays.

Like many collectors, they have interests beyond Matchbox, such as vinyl records and vintage radios. Since 2015, they’ve sponsored the Inland NW Toy Show Classic in May and November at the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center.

“Spokane is a toy town,” said Renee.

In 2019, they used the bulk of their collections to open Over the Moon Relics on Garland Avenue.

“We had too much of everything,” Terry said.

For him, the joy of their collection is in the thrill of the hunt.

“Buying a big collection, opening the boxes, and finding the treasures!”

Renee’s enjoyment is a bit more sentimental.

“When we moved in here in 1990, we’d only been married a couple of years,” she said. “Shopping together and looking for Matchbox cars is something that made us closer – something we enjoy together.”