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Date: 4/11/2023
GRANBY — Streaming and online commerce have created a new way we seek and consume media, but new Granby business Legends: Video Games, Movies & More is looking to keep alive the appeal of what was once the norm, and the owner is looking to share his love for different media avenues.
Whether it is binging shows through Netflix or downloading video games directly from online, the digital space has eliminated some of the charms many remember from renting a movie from Blockbuster or buying a new video game in store at a midnight release. Stepping into Legends, which opened in late March, gives that familiar feeling to movie lovers and gamers of youth and excitement to check out what’s on the shelves.
The shop, located on Route 202 across from the Dollar General, features new and classic video games, video game systems, VHS movie tapes, Blu-rays, DVDs and other collectible items from different areas of pop culture. Legends owner Christopher Silvestri grew up loving games and movies and began collecting different games, systems and movies in their physical copy form.
“I’ve been collecting since I was probably old enough to remember and I just wanted to bring this back,” Silvestri said. “There’s not a lot of stores like this and I wanted to bring this back to the community.”
Silvestri said he collected mainly video games while he was younger before getting a little older and expanding his collection to VHS tapes and DVDs. Many items from his collection have now found themselves on the shelves inside Legends.
The store screams nostalgia with an arcade machine, “Super Mario” decorations and Michael Myers figurines, but for Silvestri, part of the store’s mission is making sure it can also offer some of the latest and greatest consoles available, hopefully in a more accessible way that the sometimes impossible challenge of purchasing a hot item online.
“Basically what we’re gonna do here is anything from Atari all the way to today [will be available] for video games. Movies, anything from VHS all the way to 4K, and then Funko Pops, action figures, a little bit of toys, a little bit of everything,” Silvestri said.
He added they will also have used consoles for sale and he is considering purchasing VHS and DVD players for customers to make it easier to find these items that have fallen out of use for many. By the end of the year, he hopes to expand the store space into the back-room area, which appears at least the same size as the current space.
The store also offers the option of selling or trading in items similar to ones Silvestri is offering in-store.
Having grown up with family in the pizza business, Silvestri is happy to have opened his own business doing something related to his interests as well as bringing a business to Granby for gaming and movie lovers from any generation.
“I see all these places going out, [Video Game Castle, Blockbuster, Circuit City, Toys ‘R’ Us] and there’s nothing around here,” Silvestri said. “I wanted to bring this back.”
Legends: Video Games, Movies & More is open Wednesday through Sunday and is located at 183 State St. in Granby.