I love the idea of a good brick and mortar store but the few magic shops I've had the pleasure of going to weren't good. At one place I had the owner constantly trying to upsell me products. It was really tough because magic is only a hobby and I have a family, money is tight and not a financial priority. I told him I was just a hobbyist and was looking for a cheap hotrod and color cube. It took almost 5 minutes of telling him I wasn't interested in spending $40 dollars on a brass hot rod for him to stop trying to push it on me. He immediately became unfriendly after. It really put me off. If he was nice I probably would have come back to spend more money when I had it but the experience was very uncomfortable. 5 minutes of talking with a pushy salesperson is longer than it sounds.

I did have good experiences at a few places and if they were close to my house I would support them but I have had more bad experiences than good at brick and mortar shops.

I apologize for remorting the thread, but I thought it be on topic instead of creating a whole new thread.

Anyone know of any brick and mortar shops in or near the central Texas area?

That is unfortunate Terry..of course the demonstrator is trying to upsell - to increase their avg ticket price - but there are basics in selling anything - you have to find out what the customer wants and what their 'budget'is - especially if they have no idea what magic costs.

Within the last three weeks we have purchased an acre of land right on the main highway here in Colon - we are in the process of constructing a new facility that will house our shop,showroom,workshop and a performance center/theater. Crazy? We think not..we believe if you build it they will STILL come ---- we want to build the premiere magic facility in the world - in our MAGIC CAPITAL OF THE WORLD.... stay tuned

The idea that all shopping will be online is crazy. Fresh food and those without Internet access need to be taken care of and that is only 2 reasons.

Supporting brick and mortar shops makes sense for many reasons. While you can buy things cheaper online there is something you can just not get online. Meeting people who show up at the shop. It can not be duplicated online. What is gained in saved money is lost by orders of magnitude.

That is the reason to support local magic shops.

Fresh food is already being sold online. It's a growing niche market, at least in major cities.

I too miss the brick and mortar days and would certainly support a local shop if I had the chance. I have no trouble paying a little more when in a shop. You don't have to buy 100% from the shop or mail order, why not split your business. As for me, I have not been to a real shop since Barry's closed up in Rockville, MD (after having to move from their original location); I do miss those trips and playing catch with their dog. I really need to make my way up to Denny and Lee's...have never been. I do the mail order thing, Penguin for the most part and usually books.

If you like books, you must make the trip to Denny's!

(Be sure to have a well stocked checkbook or debit card!)

Thanks Kabbalah, sounds like my kind of shop.

And, Denny loves to talk about books.

I miss the book shops, the record shops, the video stores, the game stores, the comic stores...in New York City where there was a store for everything...including a shop for just chess accessories...places to go to see, touch, and talk about the stuff we care about, are vanishing. And with vanishing, we have the fading of magic shops...the dream destination for countless young magic enthusiasts who for decades sought out the "magic shop" as the Eden of their newly found passion.

Such is life. And change. But, whenever possible, and whenever I can afford it, when traveling I seek out...to the determent of my wife and son...the local magic shop in the area of our stay, and visit...look around, actually take time to see what they are offering, and ultimately purchase something I want. It's not pity. It's support. Support of a commitment to an art that will live or die based on public interest, digitally, or physically.

Texas is a very big state. Central is a little vague but I googled "magic shop in central texas" and found one in McKinney and one in San Antonio if either are close to you.

I'm heading to NYC this weekend and looking forward to Tannens and Fantasma Magic Shops. It's always nice to go to a B&M and connect with new people at the shop. Will also be getting over to the "Magic Table" meeting for lunch which has been moved to the Times Square Diner. Looking forward to the weekend. I miss the old magic shops, although I've had good experiences with Penguin.