TAYLOR — When it comes to turning fun into a business, Brian O’Quinn plays for keeps.
He and his wife, Amy Ogrin, recently opened dual ventures Press Start Arcade and Mother’s Basement Games at Old Taylor High, 410 W. Seventh St., rooms 102 and 113 respectively.
“We always wanted Press Start and Mother’s Basement to kind of walk hand in hand,” O’Quinn said.
O’Quinn and Ogrin were selling curated games from a booth at Taylor Market Days when the opportunity to take over a pinball lounge in the former high school became available. In May, they opened Press Start as a full arcade with a variety of games.
In December, Mother’s Basement made the transition from pop-up shop to storefront, opening just down the hall from Press Start.
Mother’s Basement features a dedicated room where folks can play games including Dungeons & Dragons or hold group events.
“People spend $80 to $150 on these big board games they get to play maybe once a year. Now we can feature them and have a game library for people who want to rent the room and grab a game and come play with a group of friends,” O’Quinn said.
While he was running the pop-up site, the game master discovered Taylor has a large and enthusiastic gaming population.
He told his wife, “Let’s stick the landing here, because every time we did a pop-up, the very first question was, ‘Where are you located?’ Gamers have mainly had to go to Austin for games and accessories.”
O’Quinn added, “People were driving in from Round Rock and Elgin since the first week we were open just to see what we have.”
Patrons are watched over by an illustrated 1950s-style mom, the store’s namesake.
“Everyone thinks that people who are into this stuff are playing in their mother’s basement. We took on that moniker because it’s cool to be a nerd now and it’s way more exciting to play board games or have collectibles,” O’Quinn said.
In addition to board games, Mother’s Basement has plush toys, hand-painted miniatures, game accessories and pop culture and anime collectibles.
”It’s only going to grow from here,” O’Quinn said. “This is just the beginning.”
Hours for Mother’s Basement Games are 1 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday, and noon to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
Hours for Press Start Arcade are noon to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
MOTHER’S BASEMENT GAMES
410 W. Seventh St., Room 113, Old Taylor High, Taylor For more, visitmothersbasementgames.com or on Facebook & Instagram @mothersbasementgamestx.
PRESS START ARCADE
410 W. Seventh St., Room 102 Old Taylor High, Taylor Fore more, visit www.pressstarttaylor.com or facebook.com/pressstarttaylor; follow them on Instagram @press_start_taylor
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