feThinkGeek Will Open First Real-Life Store On September 25

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(Mikey)

Earlier this summer, GameStop acquired ThinkGeek in a $140 million transaction that observers thought might put great geeky collectibles inside GameStop stores. While the two companies have done that, there’s another phase to their plan: later this month, the first offline ThinkGeek store will open on September 25 at the Florida Mall in Orlando.

It’s not clear why they chose Orlando: neither company is based in Florida. The store is described as a “concept store,” which may or may not lead to even more ThinkGeek stores spreading worldwide, in addition to the geeky-collectible merchandise that GameStop stores already stock. Brands mentioned in the press release are Star Wars, Game of Thrones, Nintendo, Marvel, and Minecraft, and the store will offer “collectibles, gadgets, and apparel.”

“We are combining the power of the ThinkGeek brand with the retail expertise of GameStop to deliver a new store concept that will amaze and appeal to a broad range of customers from collectors to pop culture fans,” GameStop’s president of U.S. stores said in a statement in the announcement of this new team effort.

ThinkGeek has been an online retailer since 1999, but this will be its first real-life retail venture. GameStop is best known for its stores under that name, but also operates mobile phone stores that are resellers of AT&T Wireless and of Apple products.

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist