So How Did It Go?

We're moved in and the store is shaping up. I'm exhausted and now have a cold, so bullet points today:

• Broken. The point-of-sale bar code scanner and display both broke in the move. Expensive and inconvenient. The new scanner will arrive Monday.
• Employees. I had to terminate one this week. It's added some extra hours to my schedule.
• New Product Arrived. The GW paint rack arrived today. It had been shipped to the old address. We got an order in from US Playing Card Company, including all the varieties of KEM cards. Lagoon Group sent us our various novelty items. My single comic book arrived from Diamond today in a UPS box with five pounds of catalogs. Guess who pays shipping?
  
• Busy! Our first day was very busy, with record sales for the year. I learned I need bigger garbage cans in the game center and more than likely two employees at all time (eventually)
• GW Visit. Our Games Workshop rep from Chicago visited us today to talk about opportunities. As you probably know, we plan on doing a lot of GW events. We'll be adding some Lord of the Rings miniatures to complete our range.
  
• Phone Problem. Our old phone number wasn't forwarding to the new number, it was going to a full voice mail box. That's been fixed now. We also have a lot of static on the main line. I'm thinking it's the internal wiring.
  
• Exterior Sign. Goes up sometime late next week.
  
• Pests. We've got a strange problem with food in the store. Small gnats show up within a very short time. I'm thinking there's too big a gap under the back door

Yeah, but how does it feel?

The store is definitely big. It has a literal life of it's own. The store is separated into distinct sections and people can actually have little private conversations in these sections without others bumping into them or having to deal with noise from a game.

The game center itself seems to have it's own life. Since the center is open, people can come in and paint or play a game without us organizing an event. This "commons" type area, or third place is what we always envisioned, It's even in our business plan, but it's a new experience.

I'm mostly just busy at the store. There are all the usual things that have to be done: ordering, receiving, cleaning. Then there are all these projects and tasks on top of them: receiving new product and finding a place for them, ordering cleaning supplies, etc.

It should be an amazing store, but amazing because of the community it creates and supports. I suppose the predominant feeling is that Ive reached a higher professional level where my actions have an even bigger impact, yet I'm more reliant on others for help and support. It's no longer a one man show or mom and pop operation. Success will be determined on the efforts of a team of people.