Space and time are 2 commodities that we are in desperate need of at our shop Conquest Comics. You can probably lump organization into that mix as well, but that will come once we are able to tackle one of the first two mentioned.
As we enter the 11th year at our shop, I look around and stand proud of what we were able to build...literally from nothing. It was an idea that I had and I was able to wrangle a long time friend into joining me on this adventure...mainly because I was a bit fearful to go it alone.
We’ve had some amazing accomplishments and things to be proud of at our shop. We’ve held not one, but two signings with one of my favorite artists on the planet...Mr. Adam Hughes. We’ve created several store exclusive Funko Pops and Variant covers that have done exceptionally well on the secondary market and have helped us stake our claim in this ever so rough industry. We’ve moved into a larger location in the plaza. We annually exhibit at the largest conventions on the planet and not to toot my own horn, have one of the craziest selections of product and inventory that I’ve ever seen at a comic & toy shop.
With all of that though comes...well...unorginization. And piles...and...well...rooms that I haven’t been able to enter in ages. Yeah, that’s the downside. We have a ton of inventory but often times when I attempt to restock or locate an item in the back, I fail. Reason is that we have a lack of space and what is there is just crammed with product.
Between the action figures, Funko Pops, comic books, statues, graphic novels, and other miscellaneous randomness...we are out of space in our back room. I feel like I’m walking through a maze back there each time I enter and am unsure if I’ll be killed by an avalanche of collapsing piles of toys when I head back to take a piss. Speaking of pissing...it’s been burni...oh, probably shouldn’t mention that here to my internet friends. (Books Doctors appointment) Seriously though, we even utilize our bathroom which looks straight out of a Saw film, for storage. We keep our Hot Toys boxes and Eaglemoss Batmobilia extras in there...just soaking up that comic shop bathroom stink....close your eyes and try to imagine it. Got it?!? Niiiiiiiice!
Sorry, I got sidetracked again. The point is that one of the few aspects that we have absolutely failed at is organization. That’s the cost of having a stupid amount of product I guess. But that is going to change soon.
Yesterday my landlord popped in for a visit. I always love his visits as we end up shooting the shit for a while as he’s just an all around awesome dude. He is the single biggest reason that I wouldn’t leave this location for a bigger spot. We just get along too well and that to me, is worth the sacrifice.
When I was headed to SteemFest in Krakow, he gave me tons of pointers as he lives in Poland half of the year. He toggles back and forth and tells me insane stories each time we chat it up.
There I go again...so while here, we touched upon the lack of extra space here a bit and discussed the two 8x20 feet shipping containers in the back parking lot, also filled to the brim with nonsense. He’s always helpful and I think appreciates the fact that we aren’t scumbags who beat him like other tenants of the plaza. So he proposed that he would pay to add on additional source of storage for us. That was amazing to hear!
Now I have to go to the township and inquire about how large a shed/structure we can place on the property. Once I find that out, we can figure out the details and get some well needed new storage space for this dump. That will allow us to organize the back room and help us be more efficient with restocking and separating inventory for the website. Looking forward to seeing what we can do with this bit of positive news.
Thanks Deepak!!! Updates to come!
Blewitt
