My last job almost killed me.

Greg Thompson, the man behind the mask. Photo | Howard Tarpey | tarpeyphoto.com

I ran an auto repair shop, a place where people are pissed off before they even walk through the door.

I was a happy-go-lucky guy before the job blackened my soul. Seriously, it turned me into a complete asshole. My own wife couldn’t stand me, so she told me to do something else for a living or look for a new life partner.

“I want to open a comic book store in Virginia.”

“Fine,” she said. “As long as you’re happy and not the hateful prick you are today.”

My plan worked perfectly…

I knew I wanted to open a comic store in Ghent. I’ve always liked this area, the people, the small business-friendly atmosphere, the ability to touch a drugstore from any given location, and the fact that there wasn’t a comic store here already. After many a scouting trip, I finally found the location I wanted, which isn’t where I ended up (thankfully). So with the house sold, the wife and I moved from North Carolina back to the location of my birth to follow my dream of being a comic book retailer.

Then, the economy took a nosedive to the worst level in 80 years.

Photo | John Cachero | johncacherophotography.com

I freaked a little, but it was too late to cry about it. I placed all my hope in the hands of comic fans and hoped that the nerd dollar was strong. I’m not going to lie, every time the stock market dipped or someone I knew lost their job, my stomach flipped. The “Great Recession” forced me to re-evaluate how I spent money on the business. I was extra-frugal, knowing that cash would be hard to come by down the road. I think the business actually ending up benefiting from building this financially conservative base.

The end of the world wasn’t going to stop me from opening the coolest comic store that this area had ever seen. I’ve used the term “comic evangelists” to describe what we do here–spread the good word about how cool comics and graphic novels really are. I tried to build a place that was inviting, a place you could bring your significant other to show them that your weird little fascination was perfectly normal! It’s been said a million times, but comics really aren’t for kids. Those forward-thinking European hotshots know this, but most Americans still don’t quite believe it.

So we opened the doors in December of last year, and people showed up! They seemed to dig the place and were forthcoming with their praise…

Photo | Howard Tarpey | tarpeyphoto.com

“It doesn’t smell like cat piss in here.” “I don’t feel dirty when I leave.” “My girlfriend actually wants to come in.” “There’s enough space to walk around.” “I’m not embarrassed to be seen here.”

With accolades like those you might think we were content to rest on our laurels, but no, we soldier on.

Comics are fun, and selling comics is a blast. People complain about retail–how dealing with the public sucks or how selling anything is a drag–and I couldn’t disagree more. Local Heroes gets the coolest bunch of people here on a daily basis wanting to tell us about cool shit they read, watched or listened to–what could be better?

There really is a comic book renaissance going on as we speak, with really great stories at its core.

Famed indie cartoonist Harvey Pekar (American Splendor) said, “Comics are words and pictures. You can do anything with words and pictures.” I think this sums up my fascination with comics–there are no limits to the type of story you can tell.

Stop in and let us wow you or come back here and read about great comics and how we sell them, you might just find some words and pictures that suit you.

Local Heroes is located at 1905 Colonial Ave in Ghent, Norfolk.