04/05/2025
I’m sorry for the delay, this message is long overdue. I’m camera shy and it is embarrassing to admit that after a good long run I have failed. I have faced many challenges over the years and in many cases finding temporary solutions or making sacrifices to keep overhead costs low (I can’t even count how many years I lived in the basement or backroom), but eventually my debts have overwhelmed me. After having a computer crash and getting behind on taxes the state has suspended my license and short of a miracle or winning the lottery, I will not be able to reopen Level Up. There is a chance that it may reopen under new ownership and I will do everything in my power to help Jaysen reopen Level Up, but I can’t guarantee that it will be possible from a legal standpoint.
Many of you still remember me opening in late May 2006 with barely more than my personal collection and a bunch of stuff from the closed down Cindy’s video auction. With a trade in promotion giving away an Xbox360, Level Up quickly grew and within a few short years expanded to Tiffin. Man, the game market was awesome back then. I was doing so well that I even helped other competing small businesses open such as Gamer, Flag City Games and Game Express. I should have learned with each of those closing to be more careful, but I expanded into Fostoria anyway. Between the shifting game market from physical to digital and risking more than I was ready to take on with the opening of HiScores, challenges started to come faster than I could keep up with. The overhead of the Fostoria building was bigger than I was ready to take on and brick and mortar stores are facing greater competition, especially from giants like Amazon and Walmart. Also I have to take accountability that Matt (HiScores) and myself should have developed our leadership, management and marketing skills more, but it is what it is and at the same time my lifelong passion for games was changing.
Level Up was my baby, and I just couldn’t bring myself to close it down. The last few years I have been working full time trying to be able to pay the bills, at the expense of not being able to fully provide for my growing family. It has finally caught up to me and now even if I can sell for a decent price I will walk away with nothing but a massive debt over my head. Even so, if I were to go back and know this was going to be the end result, I would do it again. Maybe not exactly the same, but I would do it again without a doubt. This has been an amazing experience, I have met so many awesome people, customers and employees and there is nothing like the joy of seeing so many smiles knowing that my store has put more focus on treating customers right instead of trying to make the most money like these big corporations.
So once again, I am very sorry that I have had to close down. I extend a big thank you for being such great customers and if it’s not too much to ask, please pray for Jaysen and me to be able to open back up and provide the service and products you have come to love at Level Up.
