Tuesday July 7, 2020 ~ VICTORIA, BC
by Mary Brooke, editor ~ West Shore Voice News
When the chips were down, the demand for comics, puzzles and games surged upward.
It was a natural response to the self-isolation of COVID-19 in March, April and May, satisfied in part by whiling time away with quiet at-home entertainment items that were flying off the shelves at Curious Comics.
While the three Curious Comics stores — one in each of Victoria, Langford and Nanaimo — closed on March 25 for two months, the shift in business mode was to taking orders online and by phone and making deliveries to people’s homes. There was also a mail-order service, sometimes with free delivery.
Back when the pandemic was declared, all 14 staff across the three store locations were laid off and they went onto CERB or EI, says Curious Comics owner James Watson, who as captain of his fantasy-products ship never stopped going into the stores.
The demand for his inventory was fueled by a need for escapism, says Watson.
“Every day I was taking orders and dropping items off,” said Watson today as he prepared to receive a fresh weekly shipment of inventory of toys, games and puzzles.
Things are inching back toward normal. Now about three-and-a-half months later there are only six employees are back on the job, so there’s a ways to go yet. Wages paid to the employees who are back on the job are made possible for Curious Comics thanks to their participation in the federal CEWS wage subsidy program.
The Curious Comics stores are located at 631 Johnson Street in downtown Vicdtoria, 844 Goldstream Avenue in central Langford, and in the Country Club Centre in Nanaimo.