Too Big to Fail

So I saw this prompt on The Daily Post yesterday, and though I didn’t have time to respond to it then, I want to respond to it now because it’s a good one. The prompt is thus:

Tell us about something you would attempt if you were guaranteed not to fail (and tell us why you haven’t tried it yet).

The answer came to me the second I saw it: I’d find a location to rent, and with my husband by my side we would open up a “geek shop”. That phrasing is our little pet name for them, but what most of you would probably say is “comic shop”.

First of all, my husband and I are enormous nerds, which is pretty much a requirement to run such a shop successfully. Between the two of us we’ve got a huge variety of fandoms covered, from things like Star Trek, classic horror movie icons, and all the super-important video games (him), to Star Wars, Doctor Who, and anything Joss Whedon has ever been involved in (me), not to mention old-school anime and manga, the Marvel cinematic universe, and all the biggest shows like Game of Thrones (both of us). Basically, we’ve got tons of geek cred; at least enough so to have the knowledge to converse with customers and know what kinds of things to keep in stock.

I’m totally just using this post as an excuse to share this picture because omgdrool. (Credit for image to Sick Sentience!)

Second of all, we’re collectors ourselves, so we have a decent handle on what kinds of collectibles are popular, which are not worth the cost, and which ones are surprisingly nice for the price. We would not, for example, be the kind of store owner to fail to stock Funko Pop! figures because, “I didn’t realize they were popular.” (Yeah, fellow nerds, that totally happened at a local shop when my hubby went looking for Pop!s for me.)

Finally, though there is obviously a lot of work involved in running a business, I think it would be awesome for the hubby and I because we would be in our element, and we would also be able to pursue our other interests and make them a part of the business. Hubby could design and sell his nerdy shirts right out of the store, and I could be home (as in, not working out West), writing and selling my books right alongside the omnibus comics.

Of course, this is all a “perfect world” scenario. In real life it’s difficult to find a rental place that doesn’t gouge you, you have to put up tons of your own cash upfront to fill your store with items to attract customers in, and you have absolutely no guarantee that you’re going to sell enough product to be able to pay the bills, never mind make a profit. The hubby and I have seen multiple of these kinds of shops fail miserably in our area, and although many of those failures can be attributed to some pretty awful businessmen who had no idea what they were doing, it still gets you thinking that maybe such a business just isn’t viable in this location. So that pretty much covers why we haven’t tried it yet.

But if anyone out there wants to fork over the start-up costs, feel free to give me a call. We’ll talk.

Is there something you would try if there was no chance of failure? What’s keeping you from giving it a shot? Please share!

Also, a reminder that I am running a contest throughout the month of March. For each comment you post on my blog throughout the month, you will receive one entry toward a draw for a hard-copy of my zombie apocalypse novel, “Nowhere to Hide”! Please note that in order to accept the prize, I will need you to give me a mailing address where I can have the book sent. If the winner drawn did not intend to enter the contest and/or does not want the book, I will draw another name. Please also note that obvious spam/duplicate comments/etc. will not be counted toward an entry…play fair! And good luck! ❤