Oxford Comics & Games — Local services in Atlanta

I have visited this place 3 times in the last 3 months and each time, except this last visit, I have made purchases of $50+ in quick 10 - 15 minute visits. Once before, I arrived 20 minutes before closing time and two people, including an older gentleman, reminded us that they were about to close. I have worked in the service and retail industries and know very well that there are customers who do not respect closing time nor employees. I do not expect the staff here to remember me; however, there is a basic level of decency you need to treat customers with if you expect to earn their money and respect.

During my last visit, I arrived 15 minutes before closing time. Immediately upon entering, one employee let me know that they were closing in 15 minutes. Within 15 seconds, a second employee advised us that they were closing in 15 minutes. I honestly think the second employee did not hear the first employee tell us so I wasn't too bothered. The same older gentleman from my previous visit then told us about 1 minute later, "I know you already know, but we close in 15 minutes." I acknowledged all three employees politely, but the "I know you already know" statement was annoying as he was acknowledging that we had already been told multiple times before.

I finally found a collectible that I wanted to buy and simply did a quick price check online to see if what the store had was indeed a competitive price. I was right next to the cashier because I was ready to tell them. At this point, they were not closing for another 6 minutes. I had been checking my watch very intently during my visit. The older gentleman then advised once again, "We are closing at 7 PM. My ride is coming at that time so I cannot wait past that time." So during my 9-minute shopping experience here, I was told 4 times that they are about to close when I was literally about to ask for them to take the collectible out of the display case. They lost a $70 sale.

As I said before, there are terrible customers who are inconsiderate, but you need to treat your customers with respect if you want their business. This repetitive nagging that I experienced during my 9-minute visit was shocking. If closing time is such an issue for your business, make it earlier, or turn off your neon "Open" sign earlier. Do not run your business with the attitude and assumption that every customer who walks in through the door is going to disrespect you and that it's almost like you are the one doing them a favor by letting them in to spend...

Most Unfriendly Comic Shop in the ATL?

My friend and I went here to get some comics, obviously. He had warned me the clerks weren't the friendliest in town, but looking at the reviews here on Google, I didn't believe him. He also mentioned how they had everything - everything - in the store.

He was right on both accounts. Upon entering the store, their quaint and cozy location belies something truly wonderful: a fully stocked comic shop in the city. We entered the store without fanfare nor greeting, just a dismissive look from the clerk at the counter. In the back, a bearded man side-eyed us as we discussed the latest Milestone comics release. It was both amazing to be back in a comic shop again, and painful (and kinda cliché) to be Black in a comic shop again. The classic Milestone stories ring as true today as they ever have.

We checked out that first time, and upon remarking on a cover featuring art by Olivier Copiel (who did great work on that Static cover, get it if you can), the clerk said 'What'd you call me?' as if the comment about an artist's work had been a hostile insult directed at him. Leaving, my only thought was, 'that was an odd experience, but I'd be back for that Olivier Copiel cover.'

Well, today I came back, and even though they didn't have that cover, they had the same amazingly diverse selection, and the same cold energy from the staff as before. Same bearded gentleman in the back, same estranged looks. A different person - a kindly looking woman - greeted my friend and me at the register, quietly ringing up our stuff with the same lack of grace and efficiency as before. She took a long look at my card - entirely too long to not be suspicious itself - and hurried away back to her work without even the offer of a bag.

In the end, I debated between the two stars for the selection, versus the one-star rating for the complete lack of customer care and service, but in the end, something tells me that if you look a certain way, you'll be offered a...

I believe this is a bona fide Georgia comic institution. I've been flipping through floppies since 2007-2008 or so, give or take a hiatus here and there, and Oxford has just always been one of those names thrown around in the comic community. I should have prefaced this with, my heart belongs to another...I'm loyal to my local comic shop, but that shouldn't stop you from supporting Oxford, especially if they're your local shop. There's a lot to love here. A notch above plenty to curate your own pull list. Plenty of TPB's to get your comic fix in a more digestible form factor. Manga. You know, the backwards stuff. And lots of collectibles sprinkled throughout.

I did notice a lot of the figures I looked at were marked up, nothing too grossly over priced, but enough to warrant a price check to see if I can save elsewhere. Business is business, and the competition is fierce out there.

I'm glad I finally stopped by. I should have years ago. I mean I used to work at the Jaguar Land Rover dealership 2 minutes down the road for Chrissake. Now I can't dole out any kind of divine blessing, but I do hope this comic shop is around for a good long time, cause gems like this are getting scarce as the...