So, I started going to a new hobby gaming store (Dungeons & Dragons, Magic Cards, etc). I ran a store like that for the past two years and it just closed, so going to a different one is very awkward. It wasn't a very good store, to be honest. It was called Natural-20 (D&D reference? anyone? bueller?), it was open for just over three years. The owner, my friend, drove it into the ground with his drinking. He's an alcoholic but still won't admit it and it's basically ended our friendship. He'd tell me that he didn't have to do anything because it was his business so he didn't have to answer to anybody. He opened the store because he didn't want to get a job. I really try hard not to judge people but... loser is the description that comes to mind. Here he is... drinking... what a surprise! It was all a joke to him.
It's understandable though. He just stopped coming in and I was the only other person working there (for $50 a week
), so it was either take control or let it die. He resented that I ran it better than him. He'd come in to drink during our magic tournaments, get wasted by 6pm and be passed out on the bathroom floor by 9pm. Very often him and his drinking buddies would trash part of the store or break a table at 3am, when I couldn't keep track of them, and just leave it like that.
He didn't like that I complained about him having a drinking problem and not coming in to his own business while I was waking-and-baking everyday (which is a viewpoint I can understand, but don't agree with). After two years I, and my awesome volunteer employees, decided at a BtBAM show that we should finally let it die.
This was my main volunteer, Jake. I've known him for 4 years and seen mature past the level of the store owner. He had no retail experience, but was the best employee anyone could have. He was polite, professional and knew every magic card off the top of his head. Of course, most of the time we had no customers anyway, so we'd play Call of Duty: Black Ops split screen. I know everyone says this but... we're seriously disgustingly good at it! (we still play via xbox live)
Here's what a "packed" night looked like a few months before we closed. It's sad because we used to get 40+ people for tournaments every Wednesday and Friday. In this case, we barely had enough for an official tournament.
It was fun for a while. We had our moments. Here's Rob. He's an idiot. He took two "tabs" of acid that an old co-worker gave him (no clue what dose). After a few hours he was freaking out in the back alley insisting that he needed to go to the hospital. I took him to my car (since it was quieter and darker) and calmed him down... then his girlfriend arrived and took him to the hospital, despite my advice. He rails aderoll now, despite my warning about how it almost destroyed a friend in college. Whatever...
So I move on the another game store. At least I don't have to run this one... and it has customers... and its clean... and they can actually order product without the owner fucking everything up. C'est la vie.
It's understandable though. He just stopped coming in and I was the only other person working there (for $50 a week
), so it was either take control or let it die. He resented that I ran it better than him. He'd come in to drink during our magic tournaments, get wasted by 6pm and be passed out on the bathroom floor by 9pm. Very often him and his drinking buddies would trash part of the store or break a table at 3am, when I couldn't keep track of them, and just leave it like that.He didn't like that I complained about him having a drinking problem and not coming in to his own business while I was waking-and-baking everyday (which is a viewpoint I can understand, but don't agree with). After two years I, and my awesome volunteer employees, decided at a BtBAM show that we should finally let it die.
This was my main volunteer, Jake. I've known him for 4 years and seen mature past the level of the store owner. He had no retail experience, but was the best employee anyone could have. He was polite, professional and knew every magic card off the top of his head. Of course, most of the time we had no customers anyway, so we'd play Call of Duty: Black Ops split screen. I know everyone says this but... we're seriously disgustingly good at it! (we still play via xbox live)
Here's what a "packed" night looked like a few months before we closed. It's sad because we used to get 40+ people for tournaments every Wednesday and Friday. In this case, we barely had enough for an official tournament.
It was fun for a while. We had our moments. Here's Rob. He's an idiot. He took two "tabs" of acid that an old co-worker gave him (no clue what dose). After a few hours he was freaking out in the back alley insisting that he needed to go to the hospital. I took him to my car (since it was quieter and darker) and calmed him down... then his girlfriend arrived and took him to the hospital, despite my advice. He rails aderoll now, despite my warning about how it almost destroyed a friend in college. Whatever...
So I move on the another game store. At least I don't have to run this one... and it has customers... and its clean... and they can actually order product without the owner fucking everything up. C'est la vie.