Another in a series of short articles about local businesses.
As you have probably guessed by now, if you don’t already know me, I am very involved with hobby gaming. This includes both roleplaying games and board games. Indeed, as I’ve noted elsewhere, I run a monthly Game Night for my church, which is just one extension of my love for games.
However, these games can be somewhat hard to find. Often I have to go to specialty stores to find the games that I’m looking for. And, until recently, I was quite unhappy with the quality of the game stores in the area. The one was owned by a compulsive smoker, which didn’t improve the shopping experience at all. The other was in someone’s basement, which is a little too weird, even for me. And now, as far as I can tell, neither are still in business.
Perhaps Just For Fun Games is a part of the reason for this. Located at the intersection of Sheridan and Lake, this store has already surpassed the other competitors in the area.
First, they have a lit sign set up at the street intersection. This is how my wife and I discovered the store. This alone demonstrates some business savvy.
Second, the store itself is clean, well-lighted, smoke free, and family-friendly. I’ve been to enough game stores to know that this is an exception to the rule. I particularly appreciate that there are no cheesecake posters on the wall.
Third, they have a broad stock of games, well-displayed. Rather than trying to cram as many games onto a shelf as possible, they have most of their games arranged so that the box front faces outward. As a result, a browsing customer can walk down the aisles of the store and easily see what games are available.
Fourth, the staff is friendly. Of course, the staff is really just the owner and his wife, but they are both working on being helpful and knowledgeable about the games that they are selling. When I go into a small store of any kind, I’m hoping to find that the owner is an expert in his area who can assist me in making a purchasing decision. This is certainly true at Just For Fun Games.
I’m vaguely disappointed that, as of yet, Just For Fun does not have a website. Otherwise I’d be linking to them now. As it is, here is a Google Maps link that shows their location.
A quality game store is a rare find, and I’m pleased to say that Peoria finally has one. If you are at all interested in hobby gaming, please support Just For Fun Games.
