Dice City Games With Store Owner, Jimmy Cooney

02/19/24 • 75 min

In episode 23, we're talking with Jimmy Cooney, owner of Dice City Games. Originally from Montgomery County, Maryland, now living in Fairfax, Virginia - Jimmy first got involved in gaming at seven years old. It was at that young age he bought his first Warhammer miniature.

Although he quit gaming in his teenage years, he would find himself working in restaurants, grocery stores, retail, and filmmaking. However, that gaming spark would be reignited after a meetup with some friends to play board games and Magic: The Gathering.

In 2015, Jimmy would write a business plan for Dice City Games. The store name would become a moniker representing the Washington D.C. area even though the store's location is in Silver Springs, Maryland - a D.C. suburb. Before the store's official location was launched, he spent 2015-2016 with pop-up stores.

Jimmy estimates that the store is 1/5 Washington D.C. players and 4/5 Marylanders. However, the store has attracted visitors from Sweden, Lithuania, Peru, and Japan. With a global appeal and a passion for branding, Jimmy sponsors competitive players in the Magic: The Gathering scene. Additionally, his store attends conventions such as SCG Con where he features a "Show & Tell" concept - like bringing large Magic: The Gathering cards - to make an impression on the players in attendance.

To facilitate his operation, Jimmy has an Inventory Manager, a Buyer, and a Magic: The Gathering Sales & Inventory representative. He also has 12 part-timers who assist with conventions and events, however, no more than 10 employees are working at the store.

Jimmy aspires to expand the brand of Dice City Games in the future while doing large off-site events emulated after the "North American Old School Cup" which runs every Thursday night leading into Eternal Weekend.

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Gamers Geekery & Tavern With Store Owner, Lance Shrader

In episode 22 of the podcast, we're talking with Lance Shrader, owner of Gamers Geekery & Tavern in Cary, North Carolina.

Growing up in the mountains in Virginia, Lance didn't have a game store to go to. However, being a board game fan, Lance found himself wanting to build a game store. In Cary, a game store featuring what Gamers Geekery & Tavern didn't exist and Lance wanted to change that.

In 2014, his friend's wife was looking for something to do, so they partnered up and opened a retail space. However, Lance knew he wanted a bar, but couldn't do so within the confines of his first lease. Fast forward to today, the store in Cary features a 12-tap line bar as well as serves food. His business partner handles the game store end while he focuses on the restaurant.

Lance currently has 14-15 employees servicing both the game store and restaurant. Since the 2021 COVID pandemic, staffing has been the most difficult challenge. However, Lance notes after 2-3 years later things are feeling better on that front.

Customers on the other hand are not a struggle for the store. Additionally, there are times when Lance will have to, unfortunately, turn people away due to being at capacity. This while both good and bad can occur on Tuesdays and Saturday nights. It's one of the reasons why Lance is having an extension built across the street from his store.

The majority of the business sales is about 53% food and drink and 47% retail. One of the luxuries afforded to Lance is that he hosts team-building corporate events about once a week which has been a boon for the business.

With about 620 board games available to choose from and a unique appearance that doesn't just appeal to gamers, Lance has built an establishment that has people coming back along with repeat business from corporate events. His goal is to create a comfortable and hospital place for anyone walking through his doors.

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Dragon's Hoard With Store Owners Sherri and Zack

In this episode, we're talking with Sherri and Zack of Dragon's Hoard, located in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Celebrating its 1st anniversary as a game store, Dragon's Hoard originally started as a hobby shop / collectible store. When Sherri's husband recommended they bring Magic: The Gathering to the store, it changed the direction of the business. The store would officially become a game store from that moment forward.

Both Sherri and Zack have full-time jobs outside of the game store. Sherri works in the corporate world and Zack is a commercial real estate broker. Furthermore, Zack was the property manager of the space where Dragon's Hoard now resides as he was looking for someone to take over the lease that was recently vacated. With a desire to open a board game cafe, Zack asked Sherri if they could be partners together on this venture.

The pair currently have two employees: Justin and Steven - the latter of whom ran the store in the beginning 6 days a week. With some help in hand, Sherri says Steven has two days a week off. One of the things Sherri likes doing in the early years to get the store's name out there is attending conventions. Even if money is lost by doing so, Sherri believes in the motto, "Be everywhere."

Sherri shares that the store name comes from the various vendors who would sell products in their store. Moreover, she's looking to highlight the vendors through various means - like raffles - as part of the store's 1st-anniversary celebration. Attending the conventions was a great networking opportunity to invite those vendors to sell in her store, Sherri shares.

With 3,500 sq ft. of space, Sherri and Zack can hold multiple events simultaneously. To help alleviate some of this work for Justin and Steven, they hope to bring on more employees in year 2. The long-term goal is to open a second store and make Dragon's Hoard their full-time gig in 5-10 years.