Third Planet in Los Angeles closing

[Dr. Confoundo]

For anyone in the Los Angeles area, it looks like Third Planet in Torrance is closing down next week. I stopped by there yesterday, and there was a little notice tacked up on the wall that they'd be shutting down, dated from Christmas.

While it's no longer the best game store around, I have been going there for over a decade, so I will be sad to see it go.

(If anyone is looking for a bargain, the guy behind the counter said that they'd be having a bit of a sale after the 1st. They still have a smallish RPG section, but they've also got a bunch of board games, comics, and miniatures.)

 

[DragonBelow]

I have been to that store a couple of times, the staff was friendly and the selection of products was decent, it was just too far for me. It's a shame it's closing.

 

[Mistwell]

This is the email I received last week:

Third Planet
December 26, 2008
Dear Mark,
It is with no small amount of regret that I announce that Third Planet will be closing it's doors on January 4th, 2009.

The deciding factor in this decision is that sales have fallen to a level where we can no longer meet our obligations. There are just not enough good and loyal customers like you to allow us to stay open.

Beginning on December 26th, we will begin a phased liquidation of the stock in the store and the contents of the storage area. We will also be liquidating the fixtures and artwork on the walls. I will also be considering reasonable offers on everything in the store.

This will be the last week for new comics and we will stop adding other new stock. Box Customers with cash deposits will want to claim them as soon as possible. Gift Certificates will be valid up to the day we close the door for the last time. All figures displayed in the store cases, that are not owned by Third Planet must be picked up by January 4th. These must be recorded by Scott Grunewald or myself before they are released.

This is a decision, which has been a long time coming, and the final decision has not been taken lightly. I would like to take this time to thank all of my employees, who fought valiantly over this past year to keep the doors open. If you have, or know of, any positions available, I couldn't recommend them more highly.




Again, I regret that I have to make this decision, but the economic reality leaves me no choice.
Sincerely,


Robert North
Third Planet

I loved 3rd planet. The only other decently-stocked game store I know of is The Game Empire in Pasadena (which is a great game store).

If anyone knows of other good game stores left in the LA area, please post them! I suppose I have heard good things about Aero Hobbies, and I used to shop at The Last Grenadier many years ago.

I talked to one of the folks who worked at 3rd planet for many years, and asked him why the store is closing. He said it was not the economy, but recent mismanagement by someone. He was quite sad about the end of an era.

He also mentioned that discounts would increase as the last day nears (it was only 10% off the day I went).

 

[Dr. Confoundo]

Thanks for posting that letter. That's the one they've got posted in the shop too.

If anyone knows of other good game stores left in the LA area, please post them! I suppose I have heard good things about Aero Hobbies, and I used to shop at The Last Grenadier many years ago.

Aero Hobbies has really been turned around over the last couple years. The previous owner passed away, and the new management has done a nice job of modernizing the store. Where once you'd struggle through random boxes and piles of books looking for what you might want, they've now got everything pretty well organized. There also seem to be a lot more people there... before, I'd be surprised to see anyone else in the store when I went on my lunchbreak; now there always seem to be at least 2-3 people hanging around, painting figs, playing games, etc.

 

[Eyes of Nine]

This is a super necro, but I was searching for news about 3P's closing (I was the owner until 2006) and found this thread

This past weekend I was driving through Torrance, and had heard about Third Planet's spiritual successor, at least on the game side - Lost Planet. Hard to find, but great selection of Warhammer, Magic, and D&D. Also plenty of board games

Run by a former employee of Third Planet - Lost Planet Games, would recommend