Zonko's and Honeydukes
-- This is a reminder that my posts possibly contain spoilers; if you are banking on being surprised, do not read, thank you! --
These two shops, immediately to your left as you pass the train station, are connected and feature great themed windows (the puking pastill is hilarious, if not offensive!). When you enter Zonko's, a loud bell may ring, prompting each TM inside to shout "Welcome to Zonko's Joke Shop!" -- which I'm sure they are already tired of doing. The shop is (DUH) tiny, with merchandise on the walls and on a central shelf. Fanged frisbees (or Fanged Flyers, as UO is calling them), colorful slinkees, and dozens of other items that I cannot remember were everywhere. Most of the merchandise, however, didn't seem very "purchaseable" to me. For example, next door at Honeydukes, almost everything was a safe buy, in my opinion. Many of the HP themed items at Filch's are easy buys, too. But it will be the curious and unique traveler who walks out of Zonko's with a bag filled with goodies, in my opinion -- it's filled with toys and tricks that are fun to imagine and look at, but I don't see many people purchasing them when faced with other options.
Honeydukes will make you break your budget (well, WWoHP will do that altogether). You may protest that you have self-control, but you will lose it at Honeydukes. Every-Flavor Beans, Peppermint Toads, Cauldron Cakes, Chocolate Skulls, and unnumerable other inventions of sugar make Honeydukes the most colorful, attractive, and tasty shop I've been to in a long time. There's even your generic gas-station candy (orange slices, caramels, mints) that are bagged with Honeydukes packaging. Probably the LEAST appetizing snack, but cleverly designed, was the black licorice strings, which could be extracted from a machine with a large figure inside of it, the licorice oozing from his facial orifices. But hey, people will buy anything, right?
Turquoise and pink and white are everywhere, and the packaging of the candy blends perfectly into the shops color palatte. There are refridgerated drink selections and a case of specialty chocolate, including a tiny cauldron-looking fudge treat. Most of the items weren't priced yet -- I asked a TM and she even said that they were having difficulty pricing some items. The pumpkin juice I bought was over $5 with tax, but since it was non-alcoholic, it paid to be a TM at that moment. :thumbs:
If only Rowling would have let them make it larger, like Magic Kingdom's Confectionary (which you can smell for YARDS). The only thing Honeydukes lacked, in my opinion, was FUDGE -- even if most guests don't buy it, every guest will smell it. This is a draw that is bigger and better than any colorful sign. Smell is linked to many passions and memories, and UO would benefit from either making fudge or piping its scent into the store.
--- Update ---
That's my guess...don't quote me on that, exactly! I just know how much an import costs at the Rose & Crown, so I'm assuming its comparable.