Flying Colors Comics of Concord, CA, has reopened in its new location after owners Joe and Libby Field was told earlier this year that their lease would not be renewed. At that point, Joe, the creator of Free Comic Book Day and a co-founder of ComicsPRO, had to decide whether to move or retire. He decided to move and reached out to the community for help (see “Joe Field Recruits Heroes”). It worked, and KRON4 reported that the new location, at Heritage Square, opened on September 4. “We’re keeping this business going because of the community,” Field said, and yes, they will be celebrating Free Comic Book Day again next May.
“To my surprise and to my joy, the community was not having any of that,” Sam Wilcox II said to WCNCafter three teens painted a racial slur on the side of his store, Doc’s Basement Comics, Toys & Games in Belmont, NC. The slur didn’t last long: Doc’s neighbors, including local police and firefighters and the owner of an auto detailing business, got together and cleaned it off, and the community as a whole responded with what Doc described on the store Facebook as an outpouring of love. The three perpetrators had been in the store earlier that day, and Doc had given them free comics as well as some water; he had hoped to have them participate in the cleanup, but everyone else got there first.
Collector’s Paradise of Winnetka, Pasadena, and NoHo, CA, is celebrating its 30th anniversary with a month of sales, signings, and events, including a “Most Valuable Customer” prize: 30% off one item a month for the next year. The three-store chain began with a single shop in Winnetka in 1994, expanded to a second location in Old Town Pasadena in 2005, and added the third store, in the NoHo art district, in 2019. They got through the COVID pandemic by pivoting to online sales, with support from the local creator community. “We couldn’t have survived the pandemic, if it was not for the creators like Mark Waid, Tony Fleecs, Pornsak Pichetshote, Marc Silvestri and many others, who allowed us to take pre-orders for their books and would sign every issue as they came out,” said owner Edward Greenberg. This grew into the Collector’s Paradise Signature Series, which offers signed copies of comics shipped directly to the customer.
Secret Headquarters in Evansville, IN, is closing its doors but not going out of business: Although WBKR reported that the store, which opened up in 2016 and sells comics, vintage toys, and video games, is closing its retail location, owner Jeffrey Osborne clarified on his Facebook that the business will continue without the bricks and mortar. “85% of our revenue is generated from online sales so we’re just going in a more positive direction,” he said, adding that he also wants to just step away and relax.
The Vantage, the student newspaper of Newman College in Wichita, KS, writes about the relationship between local comic and games store Wizard’s Alley and the university. The two team up for student events, and owner Brian “BamBam” Hunter says that’s the way to do it: “A lot of gaming or comic books or any of these communities are about establishing relationships and having long-term relationships, and you don’t realize those things are happening while you have fun,” he said.
The owners of the Jersey City, NJ, tabletop game store Victory Point have been playing games together since they were in college, and the trio, Philipp Starovoytov, Barry Chau, and Nanyou Guan got tired of waiting for a game store to open up in their town so they started one themselves, Starovoytov told the Jersey City Times: “Instead of sitting around and waiting for someone else to do it, we decided we might as well do it ourselves.” The store carries a variety of games for all skill levels but has a particularly deep inventory of Eurogames.
Forrest Meader, owner of Mythical Market game shop in Damariscotta, ME, thought about opening a game store for 10 years before he actually did it; the store opened in July and shares a location with Meader’s other business, a cartography service. Meader has a degree in geology, because, he told the Lincoln County News, “you can’t go to school for being a board game nerd.” He did join the Magic: The Gathering club, though, and, he said, “The closest friends I ever made have been people I’ve either played Magic with or played Dungeons & Dragons with. I think it’s really important to try and facilitate that kind of community for other people too.” Together with his partner, Gabby Kimball, who has a background in game retailing, he hopes to not only build that community but also support local artists and crafters by selling their game-related wares at the shop.
Short Takes
The Secret Lair Comics in Harrisonburg, VA, celebrated its 10th anniversary in July, and the Daily News-Record was there to talk to owners Chris and Olivia Barcomb as well as the original owner, Steve Lotts, and the customers and fans who came by for the occasion.
Travel Portland recently did a roundup of Portland, OR, game shops and bars, complete with a quick glossary for newbies.
Craniacs creator Ira Friedman and artist Joe Simko will pay a visit to Forbidden Planet in New York City on September 21; the store’s Facebook page has details.
ABC7 drops in on the Burbank, CA, store Geeky Teas & Games, which offers over 800 board games and some nice loose-leaf teas as well.
Owner Alan Paperin has sold The Comic Depot, in Wantagh, NY, to two of his former employees, Thomas Hancock and Michael Gold, Scoop reports.
Source: ICV2
