Local hobby and tabletop gaming shop moves to new digs after a year of rapid growth
One year after opening, a Colorado Springs hobby shop is forging ahead in a new location.
Hobby Smith, a store that specializes in tabletop games such as Warhammer: 40k and Bolt Action, opened last year at 3029 Jet Wing Drive. Now, after roughly a year in operation, the store run by Jessica and Rafael Rodriguez has moved into a space that’s larger in order to meet an enthusiastic community response.
The new location is nearby, a little over a mile away, at 1839 S. Academy Blvd. It has more than double the space than before, with about 2,500 square feet for shopping, gaming and painting, the two said. Hobby Smith had its last day at the Jet Wing location on Saturday and opened Tuesday in the South Academy location.
Hobby Smith previously offered limited space for gamers to build, paint and tweak their units, while also having three tables set up for gaming sessions. Given the popularity of the store, the Rodriguezes found themselves longing for more space.
“Everyone’s been super supportive. We’ve grown way faster than we thought we would in the first year, which has been awesome,” Jessica said.
The larger new location means the store can carry even more varieties of games, and may allow them to expand into other hobbies like plastic models. The two have coordinated with Japan-based giant Tamiya to bring its products, which includes paint, tools, glue and model kits, to their store.
Even with the limited space in the old location, Rafael and Jessica continued to bring in new brands and games as their customer base grew.
“Over the last year, we’ve brought in different brands that we didn’t have before. We have Star Wars Legion and now we have Monument (Hobbies) paints and Magic: The Gathering,” Rafael said. “We’ve brought in a lot of stuff.”
One of their best sellers right now is a game called Konflict: 47. Produced by British gaming company Warlord Games, it’s described as a “wargame of heroes, horrors, monsters and mechs.” In the game’s alternate history, humanity has harnesed a terrifying, but great, power to drive technological advances. World War II serves as the main setting, but, as the title suggests, extends into 1947.
Hobby Smith is a gathering place for many members of the military community, both active duty and retired. “We have so many military people who come in and this is their spot. … It’s been really nice to see,” Jessica said.
On June 13 – a Saturday – the hobby shop will host a grand reopening and one-year anniversary celebration.