This year has been like no other in recent memory. The Covid pandemic has impacted nearly everyone on the planet, and with profound, catastrophic loss of life. Our local economies have also been hugely impacted. Millions of people who had jobs a year ago now find themselves unemployed and stuck at home, while thousands of small businesses across America that were not able to pivot to the new challenges are no more.

As SW Portland’s friendly local game store, Other Worlds Games & Comics has in so many ways been very fortunate. In addition to the wonderful support from all our regular visitors, we have pivoted and pirouetted around so many industry-obstacles, from not being able to host in-store events and lower than average foot traffic to disruptions in our supply and distribution chain. Yet, we continue to go to work daily, with the store now open 7 days/week and with all the necessary safety protocols. Honestly, we are grateful to be busy.

However, we know this holiday season in particular will be very telling for so many neighborhood small businesses, even those who have so far withstood the challenges of this year. Including us.

For many small businesses this year, revenue is down significantly (over 30% for us from this point last year). Schools are out (which we depend on), we have fewer employees and foot traffic is not what we are used to.

The pandemic seems tailor-made for Amazon and other big online sellers. They are already showing BILLIONS in sales and profits, while we slug it out in the retail trenches, trying to do business the old-fashioned way. All that money going to Amazon means LESS for our local and state economy. LESS to hold on to our employees, LESS for our rent and utilities, and LESS for ordering the new products so many of you expect from us.

We ask that you please remember to support local shops BIG this year. Keep us in your thoughts, in business and in your neighborhoods. Keep as much of YOUR money in your local economy. The investment is well worth it, for all of us.

Thank you all for your continued support and please remember to thank any medical and first-responders you know during this extremely challenging time.

Please be safe!
-Ronald Connell, Owner/ManagerOther Worlds Games & Comics

Good Evening, Friends and Neighbors!
{Nov. 18} You thought I would forget to announce the new comics this week didn’t ya? (Caleb! 😉 Not any new #1’s this week, but some important ongoing titles. Also, we’re going back to MANGA! Lots of new Manga books (complete My Hero Academy, Sailor Moon, Demon Slayer and others. Also, some re-stocks on popular Kids Graphic Novels (Dog Man, Amulet, Raina Telgemeier Books, etc). ENJOY!

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BE SAFE! 

Despite the rise in Covid cases and the recent business “freeze” in Oregon (small retail stores like us are not affected) we are now OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK! This adds more open hours for you to enjoy and check out our SMORGASBORD SALE!

Remember to visit and bookmark our WEBSITE for frequent product updates, articles, store NEWS and more.
We will be continuing to sanitize all common surfaces regularly. Hand sanitizer and sanitizing wipes are available to all who desire. Please wear a mask when you come in. THANK YOU for your consideration.

NEW BOOKS, 11/18/20

KIDS GRAPHIC NOVELS

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MANGA – NEW/RESTOCKS

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ADULT GRAPHIC NOVELS

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ONGOING COMICS ISSUES, PARTIAL

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Ronald Connell, Owner/Manager, Other Worlds Games & Comics

Many of you have asked the delicate question of how the store is doing during this incredibly difficult year.

I am humbled by your concern and I apologize for taking so long to respond in writing. I did not realize how many actually wanted to know. Here’s the short of it: Thanks to so many of you WE ARE, THANKFULLY, STILL OPEN. This may not seem much but it is more than many games, comic stores and other small businesses across the country and across the world can say. We are down about 35% from this same point in 2019, we haven’t had in-store events since last March, no camps, not nearly as much walk-in traffic and with still no light at the end of this grim tunnel. Even with the holidays, we are bracing for slow walk-in traffic and possible winter storms. But, I remain cautiously optimistic.

Five years of change in five months. Although some stores were better positioned, NO ONE was truly prepared for this cataclysmic interruption in our economy. In our industry, after ELEVEN YEARS of constant growth in hobby games, there have been many casualties in 2020. No one ever knows exactly how many game stores there are at any given time, but recent reports from an industry talk I attended (online) indicated 15 to 25% of all sanctioned, tournament stores/venues (by Wizards of the Coast) and comic store accounts (by Diamond) from December, 2019, in North America have closed permanently. A loss of 1,200 to 1,800 stores. This figure is not solid, is difficult to pin down is likely higher than reported. Still, a dramatic, near hyper-speed shifting of the game store landscape.

Those game stores who remain at this point have been able to survive by the following: Online presence with social media/websites/newsletters, pre-existing or rapidly-implemented online sales, and they were NOT previously as dependent on random foot traffic. NONE of these stores have been able to host any measurable in-store organized play since the beginning of the pandemic.

How has Other Worlds done it thus far?

First) Financial Aid early. In the Spring, right after lockdown, I launched my first-ever GOFUNDME campaign (which many of you graciously contributed to). I also applied to every form of loan or grant that became available. We gradually received help from the federal CARES Act, the BINC Foundation (booksellers), Oregon State emergency loan and another state-funded small business relief grant. Without this aid, and the continued patronage and support from YOU and the greater community, I don’t think I would be sitting here writing this. Leastways, not as confidently with an eye to the future. So, A BIG THANK YOU TO ALL!

2nd) Responding to demand, we rapidly moved our kid’s Dungeons & Dragons camps to an ONLINE format with Discord and Roll20. This has been very successful and currently we still have around 30 kids (6 groups) meeting at various times throughout each week. This has been a tremendous reward, emotionally, for myself and the DM’s just to see the kids enjoyment, especially during these dark times, and with great relief expressed unanimously by all their parents. An ancient dragon-sized THANK YOU to Emily, Duncan and Boone, the Dungeon Masters, for their commitment and perseverance. (I suspect they are also enjoying it as much as the kids 😉

3rd) Comics. After things went quiet in April from Diamond, Marvel, DC, et al., we weren’t sure what the future of the comics industry would morph into. As things began to open in late-May and as the wheels of the comics industry, which had never before been forced to stop so suddenly, slowly picked up speed, we were able to fall in step and resume our weekly subscription service. There have been a few hiccups, such as DC breaking way from Diamond (after 25 yrs), interrupts in ongoing titles and some new releases being delayed (some still are) but many other new titles have released, including the new DUNE and NORSE MYTHOLOGY (Gaiman) comics. These were both announced earlier in the year and there was concern they would be delayed until 2021. Thankfully, not so.

4th) D&D. As awful as these circumstances, a lockdown makes for an ideal time to play long campaigns of Dungeons & Dragons, paint minis and learn to play D&D online (myself included). As a result, D&D sales nationwide and at our store have been out-performing previous years. People are buying ALL the books (I still prefer them over their online counterparts), painting minis (big bump in sales here) and seemingly continuing to play in-person with quarantine friends and family. HUZZAH!

5th) Magic. We’ve had above average online sales of sealed Magic: the Gathering boxes during the pandemic. We were setup for that months before the shutdowns. Any problems had been supply-side (manufacturing/distribution delays). Demand for Magic is now higher than supply in most cases. In April we were forced to pause our online Magic ‘singles’ sales when our online service, TCGPlayer.com, was forced to shut down their warehouses due to their state’s mandate. By June, their servers came back on line and we got back to selling Magic singles online, in greater volume (so did just about every other game store). The effect has been that sales of Magic, Pokemon, sports cards and other collectibles have been soaring during the pandemic.

6th) This month we launched a new ONLINE STORE. This new site is separate but connected to our regular website and uses our regular Square merchant services. This will give shoppers a better, smoother, shopping experience, give us better inventory tracking and result in fewer fees for us. To go along with this we have also added a new Neighborhood Delivery Service.

7th) We have decided to bring back a selection of GAMES WORKSHOP products. Just last week we received our first shipment of Warhammer (fantasy) and Warhammer 40,000 (sci-fi) minis/models! It turns out that Games Workshop models have been selling really well globally during this pandemic. Perhaps an indicator that many have discovered the fun of painting minis when forced to stay home for extended periods of time.

Thankfully, with all factors combined; financial aid, your individual support and all of the above strategies, we have been able to navigate this incredible crisis. We are able to remain open, to pay our wonderful, committed employees, guaranteeing their pay through the end of the year, as well as pay all our bills and distributors on time and even thrive a little during this Covid year. Somehow, we are also still keeping it fun for ourselves (and hopefully many of you). Accomplishing all this with fewer open hours, without any organized play, (FNM and Magic prerelease events) without drop-in gamers, kid’s camps nor Free Comic Book Day would be unthinkable for a game store in the before-times.

A BIG sense of loss for me has been the absence of all the kids and regulars playing in the store. Many of whom have become like friends. Will we ever see them all in the store again? To me, the last several years has not just been about running a business, which has become my own passion, but it has also been about providing a safe place for the kids and creating positive, memorable experiences and joy that I could see on their faces. Playing games, reading comics on the floor, browsing the aisles with wide eyes filled with wonder, or just sitting at the tables in groups of new-found friends acting like grownups with their fizzy (soda) drinks – this brought ME joy, satisfaction and as big a reward as any paycheck.

After thirteen and a half years of owning Other Worlds and getting to know so many of our customers, I am still working my tail off to make it to at least year 14 this Spring. I hope to continue this long campaign of store ownership adventure and fun with all of you well beyond 2020 and hopefully, the gods willing, eventually, to see the kids and other gamers back in the shop for more tournaments, D&D and summer camps.

I remain optimistic and grateful to be in business and to have the community support that we, as a store have had. I can only hope that the upcoming holidays will be safe for all and strong for all small businesses. I also hope the really cold weather holds off at least until January and that folks will have good reason to step outside their doors, safely, and visit their favorite shops for the holidays and in the new year beyond. Stay safe!

Be Kind, Ron

Place your PRE-ORDER for these books before they come in. Supplies will be VERY limited. This helps us order enough and makes sure you get one.

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Dear Friends and Families,

With the start of the school year, we have decided to offer our in-store Magic camp on Saturday mornings only at 11am to 1:30pm. As before, the store will be closed to walk-in customers during the camps. More groups may be added later as needed.

With stringent attention to face masks, physical distancing and hand washing, we feel more confident in providing a reasonably safe way to begin hosting our camps IN THE STORE in small groups of up to 6 kids. To reduce foot traffic and promote a more closed community, we will also keep the store closed to walk-ins.

CAMP STRUCTURE
In addition to providing supervision and an opportunity for kids to play IRL “paper” Magic, we (our camp supervisors) will discuss new Magic sets, game rules, new card-mechanics, upcoming releases and other topics. Campers will each receive ONE Magic booster pack, Welcome pack or promo pack (their choice) for attending each group. These camps are for girls and boys, age 9 to 15.

Per state guidelines, there is currently a 10-person limit for social gatherings.

SCHEDULE (Begins Saturday, Sept. 5th)
Saturdays Only
Group A: 11am to 1:30pm

RATES (Please click links)
One Session, $20.00 (includes One booster pack)
Five Sessions, $90.00 (includes Five booster packs)

When paying, PLEASE LEAVE YOUR KID’S NAME and your PHONE NUMBER in the comments during last page of checkout. (Comments)

As it stands, here is our list of guidelines/precautions: FIRST AND FOREMOST, PLEASE DO NOT SEND YOUR CHILD TO THE CAMP IF THEY EXHIBIT ANY COLD, ALLERGY OR FLU-LIKE SYMPTOMS, OR ARE OF HIGHER RISK. We do have a thermometer gun if desired/needed for checking temperatures. If any campers show ANY symptoms, we will have to isolate them outside immediately and ask you to come and get them right away. If your camper or anyone they quarantine with has traveled out-of-state, we ask that you please wait TWO WEEKS from the date of their return before signing up for our camps. IMPORTANT: We will require at least one parent of each camper to SIGN a COVID-specific Waiver of Liability form prior to their child’s first camp. All campers MUST BRING AND WEAR A MASK AT ALL TIMES while in the store and wash hands at the start and end of each camp. Please bring your own masks. Hand Sanitizer will be available. Campers will sit ACROSS from one another, TWO players per 6-foot table. We will have clear acrylic dividers across each table so they are between each facing player. Campers can trade cards from ACROSS the acrylic barriers (there are slots along the bottom). However, they CANNOT touch other players sleeved cards or binders unless they are wearing gloves. (we will have backup gloves but campers should bring their own) Campers must bring their own LABELLED personal beverage container with water or other drink. (We can NOT provide a public water fountain at this time). We do have water bottles and soft drinks for sale. Campers can bring snacks but cannot eat snacks at the same table with others. We will reserve one table for solo-snacking. Campers will NOT be allowed to leave the store for lunches or errands. Please bring what they need for the duration. Campers will, of course, be allowed to use our bathroom. This will be cleaned daily. For ventilation, we will have fans, air-conditioning and keep the front/back doors open during camp hours for ventilation. We will keep the store closed to walk-ins during camp hours but may still serve customers at the front door with a barrier so they do not come in. We will sanitize tables and other common surfaces in between each session. We reserve the right to cancel or postpone the camps whenever we deem it necessary for safety or any other reasons. (i.e. If this first weekend proves too unmanageable or difficult for our staff) If cancelled, we will issue refunds for unused camps as needed.

If you are interested in reserving a seat, please click on the links above to pre-pay. Only the first 6 kids will be considered for each group. I will notify you if your desired group is full. We know this is a challenging time for all and we want to provide a safe place for the kids to play. But we must all be very careful for this to work. We WILL be strict in enforcing our guidelines. Campers must agree to being responsible, respectful and careful. We will evaluate at the end of each week through August for feedback and if there is demand to continue into September. Thank you for your patience and all your support!