The Match Slip

Game Goblins With Store Owner, Josh Wilhelmi

In this episode, we're talking with Josh Wilhelmi, owner of Game Goblins . With two locations in both Little Rock, Arkansas, and Conway, Arkansas, Josh hopes to open five stores in total with plans to franchise the brand afterward. Josh started buying and selling singles from dealers at events to pay for his travel. He built up enough income from this venture which led to a game store. Game Goblins started in 2012 with 2,000 sq. ft. of space. This would become a limitation, and the store would r...

OC Geeks & Games With Store Owner, La Donna

In this episode, store owner, La Donna of OC Geeks & Games owner joins us to discuss her store in Oregon City, Oregon. While not a gamer herself, her husband is. While La Donna was in the military, La Donna's husband had wanted to start a game store focused on families. The family concept of the store is their most unique selling point. It is further emphasized by La Donna when she says, "When someone comes into my store, it's like you're coming into my living room." La Donna handles the man...

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...

Dice City Games With Store Owner, Jimmy Cooney

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 ...

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 ret...

Dragon's Lair With Founder & Franchisor, David Wheeler

In episode 21 of the podcast, we're talking with David Wheeler, the founder and franchisor of Dragon's Lair . Dragon's Lair in Austin, Texas is the original store location dating back to 1986. It is 10,700 sq. ft. After selling ownership of this location in 2015, David decided he wanted to help people open stores and utilize his contacts in the industry to help others succeed. With a wide variety of interests and not wanting to remain a game store owner forever - having done so for more than 20 ...

Decks & Dice With Store Owner, Jared McKenzie

In episode 20, we're interviewing store owner, Jared McKenzie, of Decks & Dice located in Seneca, South Carolina, outside of Clemson. After selling the land he owned, Jared opened his store and immediately implemented a family-like environment. Operations are conducted less rigidly at Decks & Dice . Customers can haggle and even go behind the checkout counter to browse the binders of trading card games. Jared always wanted to open a shop. Growing up, going to his local game store and pla...

Atomic Empire With Store Owner, Jennifer Bedell

Episode 19 of The Match Slip podcast features store owner, Jennifer Bedell, of Atomic Empire in Durham, North Carolina. Before the existence of a retail store, Jennifer and her boyfriend, Mark, at the time would sell duplicate comics he owned on eBay. Eventually, they switched to selling on their e-commerce site. Both have a background in full-stack web development leading to the creation of their in-house point-of-sale system. Currently, Atomic Empire is at its second location where the store's...

Games And Stuff With Store Owner, Paul Butler

In episode 18 of The Match Slip podcast, store owner, Paul Butler, of Games And Stuff joins us fresh off his move to his new location in Glen Burnie, Maryland. Glen Burnie is the store's third location in its lifetime with the latest sporting a 14,000 sq. ft. sales floor. Now having the space available for more products, Paul, with a background in retail and a passion for merchandising, can experiment with additional product lines. While the store is three and a half sizes larger than the previo...

Bill & Ogre's Games With Co-Owner, "Ogre"

In episode 17 of The Match Slip podcast, we're talking with "Ogre" of Bill & Ogre's Games located in Murphy, North Carolina. The store is two hours north of Atlanta, Georgia. Along with his Co-Owner, Travis, Bill & Ogre's Games did not start off as a traditional storefront. Instead, the storefront came later with the primary focus on wholesale-to-wholesale distribution. It wasn't until a storefront was requested that the owners agreed to do so. The storefront is only 8% of the business. ...

Warpstorm Games & Lounge With Co-Owner, Antonio

In episode 16 of The Match Slip podcast, we're talking with Co-Owner, Antonio, of Warpstorm Games & Lounge . Antonio is one of the five owners of the business which is located in Greenfield, Wisconsin. All owners of the store are friends who each bring a specialty background to the store where they operate their departments individually. Before being a store owner, Antonio had worked in retail for six years followed by three additional years working at Games Workshop . Given his background, ...

Anubis Games & Hobby With Store Owner, Darnel Sonnier

In episode 15 of The Match Slip podcast, we're talking with store owner, Darnel Sonnier, of Anubis Games & Hobby located in Lafayette, Louisiana. A former welder, Darnel's store, Anubis Games & Hobby , began online selling on eBay and in flea markets. The inspiration to launch a store originated with the affinity he had for a store in Georgia. In the initial 7 months of opening his brick-and-mortar store, Darnel was there 7 days a week. Along with his wife, Darnel shares that he had to l...

Magnolia Gaming With Store Owner, Spencer Thomas

In episode 14 of The Match Slip , we're talking with store owner, Spencer Thomas of Magnolia Gaming . The store has two locations located in Troy, Alabama, and Huntsville, Alabama. However, there are plans for a third store that will serve as the headquarters with a 40,000 sq. ft. warehouse. Spencer originally bought the store for $0 and took on $5,700 in debt when it was three weeks away from closing. He currently has 52 employees with a manager at both locations, so his involvement these days ...

The Gathering Place With Store Owner, Josh Goodsell

In episode 13 of The Match Slip podcast, we're talking with Josh Goodsell, Owner of The Gathering Place located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. This live episode was recorded in person with Josh at SCG Con in Columbus, Ohio. Located in a college town, The Gathering Place has its core returning customers but also has the luxury of new incoming players every four years when new students enter the fray. A unique aspect of his store is a dive bar, "specializing in local craft beer & vintage MTG!...

Star City Games With Owner, Pete Hoefling

In episode 12 of The Match Slip podcast, we talk with store owner, Pete Hoefling, of Star City Games in Roanoke, Virginia. Having entered the industry with a love of comic books, Pete's journey in the business started 30 years ago and has been based in the same town since its inception. As someone who enjoyed attending one-day comic conventions as a kid, Pete would soon find himself vending at these events on the weekends while he was in high school. Later in life, he would run the largest singl...

Millennium Games With Store Owner, Travis

In episode 11 of The Match Slip podcast, we're talking with store owner, Travis, of Millennium Games in Rochester, NY. It's the birthplace of the Rochester Draft format for Magic: The Gathering and is the "largest game store in the country", as dubbed by Travis himself with no disputes to the sentiment thus far. Travis, who originally went to college to become a teacher, has owned the store for 17 years after purchasing it from the previous owner on February 20, 2007. Prior to that, he was an on...

Cardboard Shuffle With Store Owner, Mark

In episode 10 of The Match Slip podcast, we're talking with store owner, Mark of Cardboard Shuffle located in Kingsport, Tennessee. Based in a factory town, the store originally started at Mark's house where he was only selling singles. As time went on the amount of single cards he was collecting to sell exceeded the space in his house. At that moment, Mark realized a retail location would be needed. Cardboard Shuffle has been in business since 2019, however, the retail store didn't come to exis...

Treasure Coast Magic With Owners Don & Jen

In episode 9 of The Match Slip podcast, we're talking with Don and Jen, owners of Treasure Coast Magic in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Originally customers at the store's first location, Don and Jen purchased the store from the original owner in 2018. They stayed at the previous place for two years before moving and now aspire to move to a larger space. However, they plan to remain in Port St. Lucie where they are currently the only store in the area. Don handles product orders at the store and over...

Gamers Guild AZ With Majority Owner Aaron C.

In episode 8 of The Match Slip podcast, we're interviewing Aaron C. of Gamers Guild AZ located in Tempe, Arizona. Gamers Guild AZ opened on June 1st, 2021. Aaron, Justin, and Erik founded it. Ryan, the initial investor in the company would later be brought on as the fourth owner of the store. Aaron is the one owner in this venture who is not unfamiliar with owning a game store as he previously owned one earlier in his life. While admittedly Aaron considered himself not mature enough for running ...

Adam Bowles of Owl Central Games

In episode 7 of The Match Slip podcast, we're talking with Adam Bowles of Owl Central Games located in Millersville, Pennsylvania. Adam is the former General Manager of the store who now focuses on the technical aspects like managing the store's website. The website is very engaging and very easy to navigate and find whatever you may be looking for. Another interesting aspect of Adam's job is the in-house application he developed that is used for pricing cards the store sells on TCG Player . Owl...

Gnome Games With Store Owner, Pat Fuge

In episode 6 of The Match Slip , we're speaking with Pat Fuge, Store Owner and Head Gnome of Gnome Games in Wisconsin. With four locations throughout Wisconsin and each store having its own unique feel - a traditional retail space at one spot and a board game café at another - Pat has built a successful business that puts his employees in positions to succeed. Pat makes sure parents are comfortable with their kids visiting and playing in the store while focusing on teaching both kids and new pla...

Blade Gaming With General Manager, Mike Hall

In episode 5 of The Match Slip , we're interviewing the General Manager of Blade Gaming , Mike Hall. Blade Gaming is located in downtown Roanoke, Virginia. In addition to offering players the opportunity to play various tradeable card games and Dungeons & Dragons, they also offer Disc Golf to their players - a unique selling point to the store. With various blades adorned on the walls of the store to custom art by Mike's wife, the store offers a unique experience to new and returning custome...

Atlas Games With Joey - Owner, Rick Chong's Right Hand Man

In the fourth episode of The Match Slip , we talk with Joey from Atlas Games located in City of Industry, California based at Frank and Sons . Owner, Rick Chong, described Joey to me as his right-hand man who handles most of the business. Joey has been with Rick from the beginning and handles the Magic: The Gathering card buys and sales. He also builds a lot of Commander decks for customers. While Atlas Games is not a traditional game store in the sense that they don't have events, they still ha...

Zulus Games With Owner, Matt Zaremba and Food and Beverage Director, Tony Jutt

In the third installment of The Match Slip , we had the pleasure of speaking with the Owner of Zulus Games , Matt Zaremba, and the Food and Beverage Director, Tony Jutt. From store theming to a full-fledged restaurant, Zulus Games has a unique selling proposition for the customer base in Bothell, Washington. In the spirit of The Hobbit, Matt knew what the store's theme had to be the moment he walked into the prospective property. He used YouTube to learn how to build the store and bootstrap his ...

The Comic Dimension With Co-Owner, Chris Gordon

In the second episode of The Match Slip podcast we're speaking with Co-Owner, Chris Gordon, of The Comic Dimension located in Greensboro, North Carolina. Chris' passion for starting a local game store began with his love of comics. From that point forward, after a discussion with his good friend and Co-Owner Neil, they both decided to open the store. With a focus on the community and putting everything they earn back into the store, The Comic Dimension focuses on quality and serving the customer...

The Meta Gaming and Esports With Co-Owner, Christopher Fitzpatrick

Editor's Note: The Meta Gaming & Esports closed during the summer of 2023 with plans to open a bigger location. However, we are not aware of any new location having been opened at this time. If new information is available, we will provide an update. In the inaugural (relaunch) episode of The Match Slip podcast, we talk with Christopher Fitzpatrick, Co-Owner of The Meta Gaming and Esports (The Meta) located in St. James, NY. The Meta is my local game store (LGS) and has revitalized my desire...

The Match Slip (Trailer)