In episode 21 of the podcast, we're talking with David Wheeler, the founder and franchisor of Dragon's Lair.
Dragon's Lair in Austin, Texas is the original store location dating back to 1986. It is 10,700 sq. ft. After selling ownership of this location in 2015, David decided he wanted to help people open stores and utilize his contacts in the industry to help others succeed.
With a wide variety of interests and not wanting to remain a game store owner forever - having done so for more than 20 years - David intentionally wanted to change professions. In taking steps to become a franchisor, he didn't think he could simultaneously be a game store owner. However, he wanted to help prospective game store owners find locations, negotiate with landlords for leasing agreements, build out store design/layouts, and build a culture.
As of the release of this episode, Dragon's Lair has locations in Columbus, Ohio, Houston, Texas, two locations in San Antonio, Texas, along with the original Austin, Texas store. Additionally, David is working on opening a store in San Marcos, Texas. As long as the prospective franchisee is qualified, David is willing to open two new stores a year at most.
Each store averages about 10 employees except for the Austin store which has 18. A unique touch of each store is what David calls a "Lair Beast".
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