Loss of Friendly Local Comic = Diminished Interest in Hobby? 0

[the blob]

The shop closest to my office closed in March. It was one of those places where folk congregated and BSed. The owner wasn't trying to scam anyone and the prices were not crazy and sometimes there were some good deals there. A Midtown Comics location is not too far, but it isn't the same. The next closest "old school" shop is a bit of a schlep and, as a result, is not somewhere I'd go during lunch and BS. While I have you guys I feel like it has taken something out of my affection for the hobby since losing that place. I know many of you despise shops (presumably due to cruddy owners) and make a big point about not having been in one for years, but I feel a bit of a loss. Oh well.

[Krismusic]

6 minutes ago, the blob said:

The shop closest to my office closed in March. It was one of those places where folk congregated and BSed. The owner wasn't trying to scam anyone and the prices were not crazy and sometimes there were some good deals there. A Midtown Comics location is not too far, but it isn't the same. The next closest "old school" shop is a bit of a schlep and, as a result, is not somewhere I'd go during lunch and BS. While I have you guys I feel like it has taken something out of my affection for the hobby since losing that place. I know many of you despise shops (presumably due to cruddy owners) and make a big point about not having been in one for years, but I feel a bit of a loss. Oh well.

I generally like my LCS, had nothing but good experiences in them.. overpriced stuff sometimes but sometimes great deals.. but I can imagine how you feel.. sucks that you lost a space that you loved. Hope you can find another space your comfortable in and love.

 

[the blob]

4 minutes ago, Krishosein said:

I generally like my LCS, had nothing but good experiences in them.. overpriced stuff sometimes but sometimes great deals.. but I can imagine how you feel.. sucks that you lost a space that you loved. Hope you can find another space your comfortable in and love.

 

As I am probably not changing jobs (and thus won't be near any different existing shops) and I don't envision new comic shops opening up, I have my doubts. maybe there is hope near where I live. One of the local shops I liked to take my kids to closed but insisted it was not due to bad sales, but a dispute with his partner, so maybe there is hope another comic lover will open a shop in some nook. I liked the old shop because there was a little bit of "Cheers" going on without the booze or the hunky owner. OK, maybe I was Norm, but whatever.

 

[Hollywood1892]

19 minutes ago, the blob said:

The shop closest to my office closed in March. It was one of those places where folk congregated and BSed. The owner wasn't trying to scam anyone and the prices were not crazy and sometimes there were some good deals there. A Midtown Comics location is not too far, but it isn't the same. The next closest "old school" shop is a bit of a schlep and, as a result, is not somewhere I'd go during lunch and BS. While I have you guys I feel like it has taken something out of my affection for the hobby since losing that place. I know many of you despise shops (presumably due to cruddy owners) and make a big point about not having been in one for years, but I feel a bit of a loss. Oh well.

I totally understand you.

I think the market has gone viral, so people would rather buy online and pay a little more than FMV for shipping

[kav]

To be successful a comic store has to diversify and adapt.  My local LCS sells a lot of games and magic cards and has several gaming nights.  The place is interestingly decorated and clean as a whistle.  Pull boxes are meticulously attended to and owner is polite and helpful.  Snappy insults for customers have no place there.

Edited September 6, 2019 by kav

[the blob]

1 minute ago, Hollywood1892 said:

I totally understand you.

I think the market has gone viral, so people would rather buy online and pay a little more than FMV for shipping

Yeah, I wasn't going to do better online than his 3 for $2 books and I was able to snag some more vintage books at solid prices. Sometimes even flipping them here. Most of his stuff was priced in line with online venues. He also  didn't close due to bad sales. I posted about it earlier. He was doing fine, actually, two full time employees and I suspect he took in at least high five figures from the shop, maybe six figures, they just jacked his rent up 40% to get him to leave and he was a goner. The space has been vacant since.

[the blob]

5 minutes ago, kav said:

To be successful a comic store has to diversify and adapt.  My local LCS sells a lot of games and magic cards and has several gaming nights.  The place is interestingly decorated and clean as a whistle.  Pull boxes are meticulously attended to and owner is polite and helpful.  Snappy insults for customers have no place there.

As per my other post, he was doing fine, just not fine enough to absorb a 40% rent increase on top of an already hefty manhattan rent. (And that the business was doing reasonably well is probably one of the reasons why it wasn't an unpleasant place to hang out... the owner and employees weren't stressing out every minute)

 

Edited September 6, 2019 by the blob

[Hollywood1892]

Just now, the blob said:

Yeah, I wasn't going to do better online than his 3 for $2 books and I was able to snag some more vintage books at solid prices. Sometimes even flipping them here. Most of his stuff was priced in line with online venues. He also  didn't close due to bad sales. I posted about it earlier. He was doing fine, actually, two full time employees and I suspect he took in at least high five figures from the shop, maybe six figures, they just jacked his rent up 40% to get him to leave and he was a goner. The space has been vacant since.

That's sad...in free market capitalism the little guy always suffers the most

[Krismusic]

8 minutes ago, the blob said:

As I am probably not changing jobs (and thus won't be near any different existing shops) and I don't envision new comic shops opening up, I have my doubts. maybe there is hope near where I live. One of the local shops I liked to take my kids to closed but insisted it was not due to bad sales, but a dispute with his partner, so maybe there is hope another comic lover will open a shop in some nook. I liked the old shop because there was a little bit of "Cheers" going on without the booze or the hunky owner. OK, maybe I was Norm, but whatever.

 

at the very least you got the boards 

[the blob]

Just now, Hollywood1892 said:

That's sad...in free market capitalism the little guy always suffers the most

They pushed out 3 other continguous small shops on the block. I am sure they are looking to rent it as a single space for big bucks.

 

[kav]

1 minute ago, the blob said:

They pushed out 3 other continguous small shops on the block. I am sure they are looking to rent it as a single space for big bucks.

 

what you do is keep releasing rats into the building so he cant do that.

[Krismusic]

3 minutes ago, kav said:

what you do is keep releasing rats into the building so he cant do that.

that's evil, don't forget to sprinkle a few bugs as well. only joking 

[the blob]

1 minute ago, kav said:

what you do is keep releasing rats into the building so he cant do that.

Rats are yucky. Among many things it is very irritating to see a viable business that employed 3.5 people (he had 2 full time guys and a part-time guy in addition to himself) get replaced by a vacant store front. Sure, if they ever do get the space rented more people will be employed, but right now we have 4 empty stores (maybe 3, I could be wrong).

[the blob]

1 minute ago, Krishosein said:

that's evil, don't forget to sprinkle a few bugs as well. only joking 

This is in lower Manhattan. If you don't think there aren't already rats and giant roaches there you are cray.

[Hollywood1892]

27 minutes ago, the blob said:

This is in lower Manhattan. If you don't think there aren't already rats and giant roaches there you are cray.

 

[the blob]

37 minutes ago, Hollywood1892 said:

 

Isn't that a nutria, found in the southeast, far far from NYC. the head is way too cute to be a NYC sewer rat

[kav]

11 minutes ago, the blob said:

Isn't that a nutria, found in the southeast, far far from NYC. the head is way too cute to be a NYC sewer rat

Often used to make rat hats.

[mrwoogieman]

Sewer rat might taste like pumpkin pie, but I'll never know...

 

 

[the blob]

They all taste like chicken.

 

[Ken Aldred]

I couldn’t continue going to my LCS on a regular basis, from mid 2010 onwards. Health issues, though I did miss, as you said, the Cheers-like social club nature of all the geeks together in one place with a shared interest and obsession. 

There was a void for several years until I started reading digitally, which, for me, quickly proved to be a great, stimulating alternative and a much-needed method of reconnecting. 

Edited September 6, 2019 by Ken Aldred