Notable neighbor Adam McClamrock: Card, board games provide connection | Local News

He remembers the first time he went to Time Tunnel Comics in Hickory, where they spent hours buying VHS tapes and growing their passion together.

“I grew up in Time Tunnel,” McClamrock said. “All my life, I knew all the owners, I know the current owner of it. I’ve known every employee they’ve ever had, pretty much.”

McClamrock turned his love of gaming into a career. His brother and he often talked about opening a gaming store together. After his brother tried and didn’t succeed, McClamrock learned from his mistakes and set off to make a career of gaming.

McClamrock has opened, managed and worked at several gaming stores in the Catawba Valley area. All the while, he grew his collection.

McClamrock is always searching for the next find. If something is worth it, he’s willing to spend his savings to own a prized item. An uncut sheet of playing cards set him back thousands, but the item appraised at $75,000, several times over what he paid, he said.

“I’ve almost bankrupt myself several times buying stuff just for the investment,” he said.

In 2014, McClamrock started his own business, one month after marrying his wife Charlene. McClamrock started selling Yu-Gi-Oh! cards, a Japanese manga series that spawned a card game. He borrowed $700 from his mother to buy his first case of products. He’s been selling since.

In 2021, McClamrock decided to open his own store, The Otaku Hangout, off U.S. Highway 70 SW, in Hickory. With the support of his wife and brother, he’s grown a gaming community.

McClamrock recently spoke about his hobby-turned-business. The interview has been edited for length and clarity.

It’s really just talking to people. … One thing that’s lost in this day and age, and I say this as someone who plays on the computer, is we’ve lost some of the ability to sit down and just have a conversation with each other. If you pick up a deck of cards and you sit across from someone, it teaches you how to talk to anyone, whether you know them or not. It teaches social skills.

There’s something to be said about sitting across from someone and playing a game, playing a board game, learning a new set of rules and doing. It’s fun, and I feel at younger ages it helps develop a well-balanced person.

I enjoy the thrill of chasing down something that is rare or shouldn’t exist but does. Or just opening (card) packs. It’s the thrill of adding a new piece to the collection.

Charlene said, “Stop giving your knowledge to other people.”

She told me it was enough. I had already proved I could do it. She said, “Let’s stop doing for other people.” Because I’d been doing it for so long, I had so much stuff. I had boxes in my office, boxes in the hall, on the dining room table, on the sofa. It came to a point where it was either: get a storage shed or open a store. So I thought if I’m going to spend the money, I might as well get a store.

It was scary. It was a leap of faith. … The fear is still there. Everybody told us we were crazy to open during COVID. The distribution guys even laughed at me, they said, “Why are you going to do this right now?” It’s been a hard journey. But it’s a labor of love. This is our little child.

That’s the only way I’ve succeeded. On day one when I opened, I had customers from all over who I knew from working in the industry. I had customers from when I was dealing stuff out of the back of my car. Instantly, I had customers I’d met through all this time already in my store willing to support me. I’ve gained customers, I’ve gained friends. The core of my business is the people I’ve met throughout the years.

The store is meant to be a spot for people to sit and enjoy things, meet like-minded people and have somewhere where they can find stuff that they can afford within their interests.