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<blockquote data-quote="amazingshafeman" data-source="post: 2390761" data-attributes="member: 29870">I know back home there's a great local shop that I'd buy all of my stuff from if I still lived there.&nbsp; They originally opened as a place for the owner to meet and play with other gamers, as both he and his wife had full time jobs.&nbsp; I don't think they've made money yet, but the local gamers have helped as much as possible, even instituting a pay to play plan for the minis tournaments held there.&nbsp;What the manager has done, though, to support the store is to open a restaurant next door and name menu items after the more dedicated gamers.&nbsp; Cactus Joe Chilli and the Boolah Burger are all meals close to my heart.&nbsp; The Big Country Special, named after another close friend of mine, is a meal so big that if you eat in 1 hour or less, your next one is free.&nbsp; Best of all, he occasionally holds tournaments wherin the prize is nothing more than helping him to create the next &quot;special&quot; on the menu with the victor's name in there somewhere.&nbsp;That's helped the store break even and brought enough of the younger gamer's parents in that the restaurant has a serious family community built around.&nbsp; Good food, good atmosphere, and a place to send the kids while socializing?&nbsp; What's not to like?&nbsp;What he doesn't do is pay extremely low prices for used goods which he then sales high.&nbsp; Nor does he mark up his product very much.&nbsp;Compare this to the LGS in my present location.&nbsp; Employees that have actually ridiculed me for not knowing some obscure trivia for some anime I've never heard of.&nbsp; Significant mark up on several products.&nbsp; Misleading customers about product availability.&nbsp; A manager that waves off my complaint because he doesn't &quot;hire people that behave in such a base fashion.&quot;&nbsp;In one place, I'll gladly pay a little more to support a company.&nbsp; In another, I won't.&nbsp; Does it mean I don't care about the hobby or the mid tier companies?&nbsp; Not in my mind.&nbsp; It just means that the store front those companies are indirectly presenting me with has more impact on my decision than the product itself.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="amazingshafeman, post: 2390761, member: 29870"] I know back home there's a great local shop that I'd buy all of my stuff from if I still lived there. They originally opened as a place for the owner to meet and play with other gamers, as both he and his wife had full time jobs. I don't think they've made money yet, but the local gamers have helped as much as possible, even instituting a pay to play plan for the minis tournaments held there. What the manager has done, though, to support the store is to open a restaurant next door and name menu items after the more dedicated gamers. Cactus Joe Chilli and the Boolah Burger are all meals close to my heart. The Big Country Special, named after another close friend of mine, is a meal so big that if you eat in 1 hour or less, your next one is free. Best of all, he occasionally holds tournaments wherin the prize is nothing more than helping him to create the next "special" on the menu with the victor's name in there somewhere. That's helped the store break even and brought enough of the younger gamer's parents in that the restaurant has a serious family community built around. Good food, good atmosphere, and a place to send the kids while socializing? What's not to like? What he doesn't do is pay extremely low prices for used goods which he then sales high. Nor does he mark up his product very much. Compare this to the LGS in my present location. Employees that have actually ridiculed me for not knowing some obscure trivia for some anime I've never heard of. Significant mark up on several products. Misleading customers about product availability. A manager that waves off my complaint because he doesn't "hire people that behave in such a base fashion." In one place, I'll gladly pay a little more to support a company. In another, I won't. Does it mean I don't care about the hobby or the mid tier companies? Not in my mind. It just means that the store front those companies are indirectly presenting me with has more impact on my decision than the product itself. [/QUOTE]

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