MANSFIELD — Mansfielders will still be able to shop for collectibles, music and games at 36 W. 4th St. but from a different business.
Following the closure of Uncommon Nostalgia, Operation: Fandom and Blackbird Records opened their store on Friday.
Owner Josh Lehman said the new space nearly doubles the floor space they had between City Grille and The Clubhouse.
“This will become the largest store of the three we have,” Lehman said. “It was our smallest store before. We have two different 1,000-square-foot stores in Wooster, and about 2,400 square feet in Medina.
“We had tall ceilings at the old place, but only 1,400 square feet. Here, we have 3,000 square feet.”
Lehman said the extended space will allow for more records, games and spread-out shopping aisles.
“I think we’ll have more space for Record Store Day and autograph events too,” he said. “It gives us the chance to sort of categorize each corner, we have a Harry Potter area and a Star Wars corner back there.”
Joe James, co-owner of Uncommon Nostalgia, said he and his brother Rodney Zellner decided to close their business under good circumstances.
“We appreciate everyone’s support and well wishes for the future,” James said. “The decision to close the store was as much of a choice as it was to open the store.
“We definitely appreciate Josh and Beth at Operation Fandom/ Blackbird Records taking the space over and allowing everyone to enjoy the space and to keep on curating their collections … and give people the opportunity to still enjoy the murals done by Allison Pence.
“I was thoroughly impressed by the support we got from neighboring businesses and their employees — downtown Mansfield definitely has a great momentum going.”
Lehman excited to be in Carrousel District
Lehman said his biggest sellers are probably stickers and Pokemon cards. The store carries a wide variety of action figures, Funko Pops, trading cards and other memorabilia.
Blackbird Records sells new and used records, CDs, cassettes, turntables and other accessories.
“I’m excited to be closer to the Carrousel and Richland Academy of the Arts, because that will hopefully bring some more kids and families in,” Lehman said. “We were between bars and restaurants at the old spot, which wasn’t bad, but I don’t think we got as much of that traffic of people just walking by.
“With Brasshouse right next door, maybe some kids will get a skateboard there and come over here to fill it with stickers.”
Operation: Fandom and Blackbird Records are both based in Wooster. Operation: Fandom started in 2018 and Blackbird opened two years later.
The store celebrated its third anniversary in Mansfield in October with a Star Wars cosplayer, special merchandise and giveaways.
“We’re planning a big grand opening for June at this new spot,” Lehman said. “I’m throwing some different ideas around for that. We’ve had DeLoreans downtown before and I hope we can do that again.
“Maybe we’ll host an autograph or meet-and-greet, with Tom Guiry, who played Scotty ‘Smalls’ in ‘The Sandlot.’”
Customers can stay updated on Operation: Fandom and Blackbird Records on Facebook or Instagram.
The store is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday. It is sometimes open later for special events.