I went to one to help me with an idea for a 7th grade science fair when I was a child and the staff helped me figure out which items I needed, which included a bunch of electronics parts and motors I had no idea what I was doing with. They patiently and very enthusiastically explained to me how they worked, how to safely use them, and gave me encouragement on my ideas for the project. They thought it was a cool idea. I was really blown away. I went on to win that science fair but honestly could not have done it without their help.
I still go back once in a while and love to look at the strange electronics parts they somehow acquired. I definitely love that someone decided to try to collect and sell these things.
They helped me out for my 8th grade science fair! I wanted to build a shake table to simulate the effects of earthquakes on buildings. (tl;dr: the taller the building, the more flexible it is. At least according to my experiment, which did get me a place at the state finals.) They helped me size the motor and even had an AC one I could plug directly into the wall. This was the Geneva location.
The 1980s catalog equivalent to AS&S as a youngster was Edmund Scientific. Magnets, motors, solar panels, various electronic parts as well as science kits and telescopes. Really a fantastic resource for a budding scientist.