When we walked in, I was overwhelmed by all the toys, posters, clothes, TVs, and ad campaigns in the store. There were collectibles sitting on the floor, on shelves, and hanging from the ceiling (including a five foot long replica of the Millenium Falcon). The store was not set up like a store, more like a toyroom. After we walked in we saw an umbrella holder that was filled with lightsabers. There were TVs playing movies (the actual series, plus Family Guy's and Space Balls). And only the Lego sets (pre built and on display) and high-dollar items had signs that said "Don't Touch!" The Star Wars Shop was also like a museum with items spanning the whole life of the franchise. Some of the toys were even set up to recreate scenes from the movies. The most impressive was a giant glass case where you could rotate a recreation of the Ewok village built from 3 different 1970's Ewok village playsets! Besides a toyroom and museum, Sucher & Son's really took the extra step to make the place a temple for Star Wars fans. Not only did they have licensed paraphernalia on display, but they also had fan-made materials. There was an AT-AT walker made from plywood and plexiglass, so you could see into all the compartments, that I thought was cool. They even had a TV with bulbous speakers on top made to look like Jar-Jar that was playing Episode 1 (which I thought was less cool).
After a while, a man came in by the name of Don. I'm not sure on the history but I think he was the one that started the store (judging by the frequency of his appearance in the photos on the walls). He was an older guy with a well worn Family Guy Star Wars t-shirt. He was delighted to meet us and started talking to us about our Star Wars knowledge. Then he disappeared for a second and returned with post-cards and flyers for us to take with us. On our way out, he encouraged us to sign the guest-book. Definitely a curiosity shop.
As we walked back to my girlfriends place, I started to think about what it takes to run such a shop. I have a hard time believing that it could be making a lot of money. Especially, considering its niche audience in a small town. My guess is tourists and pilgrims are where they get their bread and butter. But besides the economics, how can someone be such a fan of the Star Wars franchise that s/he goes to work everyday selling the same stuff and watching/listening to the same movies? The reality is Don isn't just a fan, he's a fanatic. He loves Star Wars so much that he has dedicated his life to it. It probably isn't easy or lucrative, but it is his labor of love. And that gives me encouragement to keep working so that one day, I can have my own Star Wars Shop*.
*Metaphorically of course, cause I'd rather have a barcade (half bar, half arcade, all awesome).
I found this footage on Youtube of the Sucher & Sons Star Wars Shop.
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