D20 Hobbies — Local services in Lexington

It is often said that the biggest cause of failure in small businesses today is the presence of big retailers - Amazon, Target, etc. I would say instead that the biggest cause of small businesses going under is indifference - indifference on the part of the retailer. Small businesses can’t rest on the reliability of mass purchases or the volume of foot traffic. The small business owner can’t afford to act indifferent to those who have taken the time to cross their threshold. Time after time my first - and usually only - interaction with a small business is filled with indifference on the part of those running the small shop. They simply don’t care whether you’re there, and act like they don’t care whether you ever return.

Such was the case recently with my visit to D20. I popped in to check out this new-to-me FLGS and did find their selection to be pretty good, with a brightly lit and nicely sized floor space. However, they couldn't care less whether I was there. When I asked about their upcoming participation in the recent “Free RPG Day” event (because they were listed as the only Lexington location to be involved) they were uninterested in providing any information. So I’ve made one trip to their store, inquiring about a possible second trip to their location with the potential of spending some real money there, But, whoever shouted an answer from the back of the store was not interested in looking up from whatever they were doing to earn a new customer. Unfortunately, no info about the special event was given, and therefore a second trip on my part was avoided.

I’m not sure if I’ll try again, but I don’t think they’ll care. And even worse, if the business one day fails (and I DON’T hope that they do), there will be a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth about how the evil Amazon drives the small business owner out of business. Sadly, Amazon couldn’t care less, the owners did this...

I went to check if this shop had a plastic playmat tube and they were out-of-stock temporarily. On my way out the door I glanced at the Pokémon cards display and asked the price of a card I was needing for my collection binder. I was given a price quote that was well above sold listings prices on TCGplayer. I asked the rep where they get their prices from and they said they use Market Price on TCGplayer and they also buy off of TCGplayer. They attempted to sell me a Heavily Played card for market price which is impacted on listings of cards for all conditions. Knowing this is how they price their cards out, I asked them if they were willing to match a price listing for the card so I did not have to buy online, and they were unable to match that price. You are better off just buying online if a shop is not willing to match an online listing price or even give you a better deal in-person. Just but online and do not waste your time...

After a few passes through this store I can honestly say that I truly enjoy this shop, and the only reason that I don't go more often is because it's the furthest away, and most traffic of any shop around, relative to my location. The owner/staff is friendly and knowledgeable about gaming. The crowd around the shop is friendly and welcoming, both the MTG and the D&D players are pretty awesome, and they have a mix of skill levels so there is someone for everyone to play with, whether you are a newbie or a seasoned veteran. The prices are good, and the selection is pretty good. They carry a few card games, board games, warhammer, collectables, D&D, comcs, and some other random various stuff, with decent prices. The staff is enthusiastic about events, and helpful when needed. Bathrooms are clean, and they have wifi. The play space is a little cramped sometimes, but not always. I wish I had an extra star to...