There's a reason I've put this in the Nostalgia area, which I will go into, but happy for it to be moved to OT if that's the better place for it.
There is often discussion in the Nostalgia area about our old computer or "Amiga" shops that we used to frequent, and the attached memories.
Sadly, as is also often discussed, most are now closed down, with a few still surviving here and there.
Many indie shops were of course killed off by unstoppable franchises like PC World, GAME, EB Games, etc etc.
And now, with the rise of the interwebs, DRM, and necessary evils like Steam, even those mighty giants look possibly set to falter, and many have closed individual under-achieving stores.
My question is, is there hope? With the demise of the larger chains, does that once again leave room for savvy independent to re-emerge, once again with the customer focus AND industry knowledge that was usually missing from the franchise stores?
In my view, a smart indi store in 2019 and beyond would of course ALSO be an online store. You'd have to be.
It would be across both modern AND historic hardware and software, catering primarily for the aging population of yesteryear. The Model Train store of our generation I guess.
BUT would also cater to the next gen, rather than being ONLY retro.
Trying to be 100% subjective and removing yourself from nostalgia and fandom, do you think it's viable? Is it needed? Would it be welcome?
Personally I also think global location is a key factor, and I 100% believe I'm living in the WRONG place to make such a thing work (Perth, Western Australia).
But life is short.
And I'm fkn bored
(in my current job)
Thoughts? Go!