Hallo everybody!
UPDATE:
OK everyone – it’s gonna have to be CURBSIDE PICKUP when you come to the shop! We cannot have folks in the shop as long as the SHELTER IN PLACE order is live.
COVID-19 has everybody a little worried, myself included. We seem to be in a relentless news cycle where everyday things are changing at a rapid pace.
In the last couple of weeks, we’ve gone from no large gatherings, to the temporary halt of the NBA & NHL, to no small gatherings of 250 or more people, to school closings through the end of the month, to no gatherings of more than 100 people, to the closure of restaurants, bars and pubs, to now no gatherings of more than 50 people..
Who knows what tomorrow will bring..?
We just had a ‘shelter in place’ order given for Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties. Meaning everyone is advised to stay home except for essential needs such as getting food, picking up medicine seeing a doctor or for work reasons.
As this pandemic has progressed, like you, I have been rigorously washing my hands and cleaning the shops surfaces with Clorox disinfecting wipes regularly throughout the day – our health (yours and mine) is very important to me and I don’t want ANY of us to get sick over their love of comic books.
No one in my house has contracted the virus yet. We’re keeping to ourselves like most, stepping out only for the most essential things. We will continue to lay low for the time being, like most of you are, too.
What does all of this mean for the shop?
I fully expect to be OPEN REGULAR HOURS on WEDNESDAYS for the sale of new books. I also expect to be OPEN REGULAR HOURS on FRIDAYS and SATURDAYS at this point – at least until someone tells me that I cannot. To not open the shop at all would be devastating, of course.
That being said, I think these are the BEST OPTIONS for the SHOP and US, going forwards:
- WEDNESDAYS, FRIDAYS & SATURDAYS: the shop will be available for
OPENCURBSIDE PICKUP ONLY during business hours (11a – 7p)unless directed to CLOSE (this has not happened yet), - DELIVERY to you if you live in the Tri-City area (Fremont, Newark & Union City),
- CURBSIDE PICK UP: drive up to the shop and I will run your comics out to you, and
- MAIL ORDER: I mail out to more than a dozen regular customers on a monthly basis and would be more than happy to include you in my monthly orders. If you’d like them mailed out weekly or bi-weekly, we can make those arrangements, too.
DELIVERY, MAIL ORDER and CURBSIDE PICKUP payment arrangements can be made in advance over the phone (PLEASE DO NOT email your debit/credit card infos to me!) – PLEASE ring me at the shop (510.744.9287) to make payment arrangements.
PLEASE consider purchasing a GIFT CERTIFICATE (they never expire!) if you want to support the shop but don’t want to pick up your books for a while.
Comics are a great hobby and distraction in times like this and I appreciate the friendship and business that we’ve built up over the last 17 years. I am happy to be a destination for you and want to have the comics you want to read during this time, so please let me know if I can get something for you.
A QUICK RECAP:
- ALL instore purchases will have to be CURBSIDE PICKUP ONLY as long as the SHELTER IN PLACE order is in effect.
- MAIL ORDER, DELIVERY and CURBSIDE PICKUP options are available to you at NO additional cost.
- ALL trades and hardcover collections are 25% OFF EVERYDAY – grab a few things and get some reading in (if you can).
- GIFT CERTIFICATES are available if you want to support the shop from a safe distance
If there is ANYTHING I can do or get for you, PLEASE do not hesitate to contact me. We are all in this together and together we will get through this as safely and calmly as possible.
PLEASE do not hesitate to email me or ring the shop at 510.744.9287.
STAY HEALTHY and CALM!
Peace!
Alex
