Universe of Superheroes reborn after fire
By Jeremy Bookmyer, Staff Writer
May 7, 2008 | noon
The Universe of Superheroes, located at 19 W. Washington St., provides comics, games and a place for people to hang out and share their hobbies, despite a devastating fire last July.
In July 2007 a fire destroyed a great deal of the shop’s inventory. Co-owner Tom Green said that the fire was likely started due to faulty wiring. He added that the stock of paper comic books probably did not help. Since the fire Green and fellow owner Todd Grace have been able to take the shop in some new directions.
The interior has been converted into a more open space, and tables for tabletop games have been added. However, the owners are still recovering regular customers that lost contact with the shop after the fire. “There are a lot of customers I haven’t seen [back] yet,” Green said.
Despite the losses, the owners are confident that the shop is headed in a good direction. Green said there were a number of directions they wanted to try with the shop but that they were limited by the building setup before the fire. When rebuilding Green could rearrange the shop, which has allowed him to open the space and to create a friendlier atmosphere.
Since the fire Green and Grace have increased the number of employees. They now employ six people, each of whom has something he specializes in. According to Green, the specialization helps them deal with customers who have specific interests.
“One of the biggest changes since the fire,” Grace said, “is that we have people who specialize in different things.” Universe’s employees seem to have an area of the shop that they are especially familiar with. Grace himself deals more in tabletop games, while Green is more into comic books.
The pair opened Universe of Superheroes in 2001 as a comic and hobby shop. Their goal was to create a place for people in Athens to find comics and games and to connect with fellow enthusiasts.
“We want to be a community. We want people to come in and be friends here," Grace said. "That’s part of the reason why this place is still here: to create a haven for people with slightly unusual interests.”
The shop hosts several different game nights. “People are welcome to come in and play games,” Grace said. They regularly play tabletop games like Warhammer 40k and Warhammer Fantasy, as well as card games like Magic: The Gathering and Pirates. The employees play the games that they have begun selling in the shop, and the game nights have brought in new customers.
Some of the tabletop games that are regularly played in the shop require more space than most people can offer, Grace said. By offering space for people to play games, they have created a space for people to enjoy their hobbies, and they have created that sense of community.
The shop also offers a pull service for customers. They will save any book a customer requests as they receive shipments and put them aside. This means that customers who read one or more regular series can avoid going through the shelves to find what they are looking for.
They also ship books to customers that have been in Athens and left. According to Green they have regular customers that buy from them in cities around the U.S., as well as some customers from as far away as Sweden and Australia.
Before the fire Green had 150 people on pull. Since the fire they have retained 80. Customers that use the shop pull service can receive discounts on their products.
The shop needed a great deal of work after the fire, causing it to close for several months. During this time, according to Green, they had to operate out of rented spaces. Jordan Cooper, an employee of Universe of Superheroes, said other local businesses in Athens helped out during the rebuilding.
Cooper said that the local businesses in Athens support each other when they can. The Donkey Coffeehouse, which is located next to Universe of Superheroes, collected money to help the shop.
Green and Grace both contributed some of their personal collections of games and comics to help get the shop running again when they reopened. Despite the damage the business suffered, they are confident that their store has not really changed. “It always was a clubhouse,” Grace said.
Grace invites anyone who is interested in comics or games to come in. The shop has couches for reading and tables in the back for games. Grace has also considered opening a time for people to come in and demonstrate games that they enjoy but that others may not know about. They are also working on a Web site and are considering doing online sales.
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