The Kessel Run: Ottawa’s Newest and Best(?) Game Store
My home town of Ottawa is blessed with a huge selection of gaming and hobby stores. I don’t know what it is about this city but we are able to support a huge number of stores for our size. There are eleven stores which sell miniatures and today I lucked by the soft opening of the city’s twelfth: The Kessel Run Cards Comics and Games.
The Kessel Run storefront. The iconic font caught my attention as I drove by.
I dropped my wife off at home and brought my 6 year old daughter to investigate. It turns out that today is a soft opening and based on the number of people who passed through I think they’re off to a good start. Fortunately my daughter was very patient as I spoke with the owner, Jeff St. Pierre, about his plans for the future.
Currently the store stocks a selection of Pathfinder RPG material, Warmachine, X-Wing Miniature Game, Magic: The Gathering sealed and individual cards and a good selection on board games. He’s planning to bring in comics as well but has a few more hoops to jump through before he can make a deal with the distributor.
Inside The Kessel Run. Jeff St. Pierre serves customers at the counter while my daughter poses. Stock looks sparse but they are still waiting for approval to carry comics.
I spoke with Mr. St. Pierre about other games he might carry in the future. He tried to stock Games Workshop products but says he was denied because of the proximity of other stores also stocking GW. For me, this is no big loss. There are still plenty of places to get the stuff in Ottawa, including a Games Workshop retail store in the west end and they haven’t produced anything that interests me in a while.
The problem, of course, is supply and demand. There are some many different miniature games being played it’s very easy to pick the wrong one and have it sit on the shelves until the heat-death of the universe. Mr. St. Pierre suggested he would be able to bring in product based on demand.
Twelve hobby stores is a lot but The Kessel Rune Cards Comics and Games has a unique offering to put them ahead of any other store in the area. Currently under construction is a massive gaming area able to host all kinds of tournaments and events as well as provide a comfortable, uncrowded area to meet for miniature wargames. Other stores offer this kind of space but do not provide so much. The space is also not in a basement which should take some of the unholy pallor out of the gaming community. There’s also plans for a local Warmachine/Hordes group to build some high quality terrain for the store.
Down a short hall from the storefront is The Kessel Run gaming area. Currently under construction this huge open space will host Magic: The Gathering and X-Wing Miniatures tournaments and other games.
In addition to this large gaming space there was also tables in the front of the store which, based on their proximity to the shelves of board games, seem to be reserved for this purpose. There are also a number of private “party” rooms available. These would be perfect for an RPG group needing a space to play but not fully comfortable with, or perhaps too noisy for, an open store environment.
One of the private rooms that The Kessel Run plans to provide for RPGs and other events. You can see where the TV is going to be mounted near the ceiling.
Mr. St. Pierre is still trying to determine how best to handle the playing area. The current loose plan is to level some kind of usage fee for the back and private areas while leaving the front free for first-come-first served bring-and-play gaming. There is a plan to have TVs mounted in the various areas to give tech-savt customers a multimedia option for their games or simply to provide some entertainment while you wait for your opponent to make their moves.
Personally I’m very excited about the store. All I can say for sure is that it’s the closest store with gaming space to me and staff that are friendly and courteous. Only the future will tell whether Mr. St. Pierre has a winning business.
Any local readers excited about The Kessel Run? Would you pay for gaming space? Leave a comment, hit me up on Google+ or Twitter. Maybe check out The Kessel Run’s Facebook page. Also subscribe as I’m planning up a follow-up on what I would do if I was running the show.
The twelfth…? I kinda wish I lived in Ottawa.
That’s not counting the three board game cafes
Board game cafes are great, but I think Kessel Run will outdo them in sq footage, if memory serves. I too have been in the store and I can honestly say that this store is A) Already the talk of the town between geeks and B) The owners, Jeff and Tyler are the perfect team for this new venture. As a previous games/comics/cards/sporting goods shop owner in the valley, I bid them both the best of luck, although I don’t think they will need it. FOR THE HORDE!
They seem to have the most in town but it will be quickly consumed by 2 players on a 6×4 table playing a wargame. At least the newly popular games like Infinity, Warmachine and Deadzone use smaller tables.
Having supported Kessel Run for the last year, buying a lot of my board games through their Online store (as well as Tyler being a good personal friend, and fellow musician), I can honestly say these two guys have a passion for games, and are thrilled to finally get this store open. I think Jeff’s vision for the store is GREAT! But he’s attacking his vision through the eyes of a geek too ..
I think the Gaming area will be a local hotspot – akin to the old days when people went to the mall or the old barber shop to socialize and meet up with friends.. And i think that Tyler and Jeff have the right outlook to provide that kind of atmosphere and hospitality ,,, where people can show up at the store and hang out to watch games being played – and loiter just for the sake of loitering in a safe gaming environment.
Also – and most importantly, their price point on their board games are the lowest I’ve seen!!! I hope that the community supports this venture – as i really think they can be a social gaming mainstay in the Orleans area.
I hope so too. I’m tempted to just head out there with a couple of games and see if I can find some players. Bring Krosmaster Arena and maybe even Deadzone. Except I’m having people over for Dungeon World tomorrow and going out to play Magic at a buddy’s house on Thursday.
It looks like an amazing space. I can’t see myself ever just heading down there with some games to demo or to look for a random opponent – seeing as how you might end up paying $5 to sit down and never find anyone to get a game with.
Until your comment I hadn’t noticed that they’d decided on prices for their gaming area. My first reaction was similar to yours. It depends on what your life is like but $5 isn’t much. Sure, random drop-in gaming might be hit-or-miss but the dedicated nights are both cheaper and more likely to find you an opponent.
I think they should use the space as a draw to their store. Especially since they’re competing price-wise with other play-spaces more centrally located with better amenities. I have trouble supporting that position because they’re not currently stocking games I’m interested in.
If they are insisting on charging for the space they need to get some sort of supporters club where you can pay a flat-fee for all-you-can game access and discounts on private rooms.
Or perhaps charge for space after the use and waive the fee if they buy over a certain dollar-amount.
Or make a rewards card with two rows. One is ticked every time a set amount is spent at the store and the second is ticked to get free gaming.
Or, at the very least, only charge the cover if your customer finds an opponent.