Retailer's hobby haven thrills collectors

The two stores are regional hubs of activity for hobbyists.
By PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- A downtown retailer has had the good fortune to be able to turn his passion for comic book collecting into a thriving enterprise and a gathering place that caters to hobbyists from a large region.
"In the type of business I'm in, I don't have to be in a high-traffic area," said Greg Bartholomew, owner of All-American Comics and Cards, 161 W. Market St.
"This is a specialty business, and people will drive for their hobbies," said Bartholomew, whose spacious Warren store is centrally located on Courthouse Square but is not within a major center of retail activity.
A Leavittsburg native, Bartholomew, 39, has been collecting comic books for more than 30 years. He opened his first store a few doors down at 141 W. Market St. in 1993, but he outgrew that location and moved the store into its current quarters in July 2002.
Bartholomew became fully invested in downtown Warren in 2003, when he bought the building that houses his store and the upstairs apartment where he resides.
After opening a store in leased quarters at 1295 Boardman-Canfield Road in Boardman in 1997, Bartholomew quit his adult education teaching job to devote his full-time attention to his stores.
Social gathering places
Besides selling merchandise, Bartholomew makes his stores come alive with a regular schedule of tournaments, activities and special events that turn the stores into social gathering places, where hobbyists can share their common interests.
The largest event is the annual three-day Mahoning Valley Con Dungeons and Dragons role-playing convention, which draws 50 to 75 people from across the country to the Warren store each Memorial Day weekend. That store is also home to smaller Dungeons and Dragons role-playing conventions about every two months. The next one will be at 10 a.m. Feb. 12.
Merchandise featured in the Warren store includes comic books, superhero toys, graphic novels, card games, board games, role-playing games, dice and bags and boards to keep comic books in good shape.
Large location
The Warren store, which has snack and drink vending machines and video games, has 2,400 square feet of retail space and a 3,000-square-foot basement, enabling it to house large hobby-related gatherings. The extra store space allows Bartholomew to avoid hotel space rentals and thereby keep event costs down.
The 1,500-square-foot Boardman store carries comic books, sport cards and miniature games. Regular hours at both stores are from noon to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday; noon to 5 p.m. Saturdays; and noon to 3 p.m. Sundays.
Priding himself on having well-organized, neatly displayed merchandise and a knowledgeable and courteous staff, Bartholomew cultivates customers by encouraging them to browse in an uncrowded, unhurried atmosphere.
Ninety percent of Bartholomew's business is walk-in trade, with customers coming from as far away as Akron, Cleveland, western Pennsylvania and West Virginia. He also sells merchandise on e-Bay, filling the orders by mail.
'No. 1'
Bartholomew, who estimates he stocks 30,000 to 40,000 comic books in the two stores combined, calls his business "Ohio's No. 1 comic book store."
"We spend anywhere from $2,000 to $3,500 each Wednesday on new comic books between both stores," Bartholomew said, noting that Wednesday is the day new comic cooks arrive weekly at the stores.
Although other stores may feature more older comic books or more of certain types of comics, Bartholomew said his stores buy more new ones each week than any other store or chain in Ohio.
Most of Bartholomew's comic book and sports card trade comes from adult collectors, generally men ages 25 to 40 for comic books, and men ages 30 to 50 for sport cards.
"Most of my younger customers don't buy comic books. They buy the card games because they're more interactive," Bartholomew said.
Upcoming activities
Special events at the Warren store include: Yu-Gi-Oh card tournaments at noon Saturdays; Battetech Mechwarrior league games at 5 p.m. Mondays and noon Saturdays; comic panel drawing classes taught by Pete Smith, a full-time illustrator, at 5 p.m. Wednesdays; and a monthly card game called VS., which features comic book superheroes and which will be offered at 10 a.m. Feb. 11.
Events at the Boardman store include Yu-Gi-Oh tournaments at 4:30 p.m., Tuesdays and Thursdays; Magic the Gathering Tournaments at 5 p.m. Thursdays; and a miniature games workshop from 4 p.m. to closing on Fridays.
"We're customer-friendly," Bartholomew said. "I've been doing this for 12 years. I think people want to deal with people who know they're going to be there the next time they come down."
milliken@vindy.com