“What do you have for a kid who likes space?” With that, an eager employee at this charmingly cluttered world of wonders sifts through its many low-tech delights—tiny snow globes, silly emoji socks, can’t-find-’em-anywhere-else board games—before returning with glow-in-the-dark star stickers.

70 S. Evergreen Ave., Arlington Heights; 521 Park Dr., Kenilworth; beat-st.com