J&R Cards — Local services in Brunswick

Worst customer service ever!!! I come up for vacation to Maine every year from New York and spend $100+ on Magic the Gathering product at video game box on Topsham so I wanted to see and support another LGS (local game store)... Walked in and asked the woman if they had Magic the gathering cards.... she responds with an abrupt “YUP” before I could finish saying “gathering”... I then asked if the had strixhaven collectors packs... before I could finish saying “collectors”... she again abruptly interrupted me with a “YUP”... before I could even say 1 sound of my next question I get a “YUP”... so then I ask if I could buy strix haven collectors packs. She gets up out of her seat from watching her IPad like I’m inconveniencing her. She get behind the counter and shows me a “bundle” 1x collector pack 1x Japanese pack and one regular pack for $30.. I asked if they had solo packs and she sighed and said yes and pulled out an unopened box and slams it on the counter... I ask if I can get 2x cus I wanted to spend only $50+tax not $60. So she is angry that she has to open the sealed box. Then turns around and angrily puts the box away and proceeds to pull out the loose packed from the bundle (which I didn’t want because I wanted packs from a sealed product so I know it has t been tampered with) she looks and me and I just walk away. She should be fired! I will NEVER give this shop my business. Go to Video Game Box if you want to be treated...

This is long overdue. The first time I ever shopped at J&R Cards was back before they moved locations (2008ish.) I played MTG with a buddy and he always wanted to go to that shop to spend locally - I was for it. The service always seemed fine and the female employee always was somewhat helpful with recommendations for product. I got out of the game for quite a few years. Flash forward to 2023 and I have started to collect both Pokemon and various sports cards. I WILL NOT SPEND MY MONEY HERE AND I WOULD ENCOURAGE EVERYONE TO LOOK ELSEWHERE. The shop is disgusting, the floors are sticky/dirty, Dunkin’ Donuts cups and trash on tables, smell of cigarettes and body odor are brutal. The customer service is absolutely horrible. The same female employee seems miserable and treats customers as such. The older man employee is very short and rude, especially on the phone. Go to any other local TCG store or just go to Walmart/Target as this business...

Tl:dr - Abysmal service. If you can make it to any other game store in Maine, I implore you to do so.

While J&R has proved a reliable spot for certain odds and ends of card collection, the selection of cards themselves leaves much to be desired. What detracts most from J&R Cards is the customer service. The quality of my interactions with staff and ownership have ranged from decent, at best, to, at worst, some of the worst customer service experiences I've had in my entire life.

Typically, I am serious about encouraging people to go to local game stores, to support small business, and most importantly, to support stores where people can play Magic: The Gathering. Spaces like this are integeral to the community, but J&R is a very unfortunate exception in this case. I regret ever having recommended this...