To Boardgames, Friends and Business

The Early Years

My love for modern board games grew way back when I was working in the metro in 2016, boardgaming cafes are a hit in my area in Maginhawa. I usually visit and I'm in awe with all the games on display. My cousin Kuya Jay back in 2018 invited us on a night out of tabletop gaming in a coworking space/cafe near us. They have a variety of collections that were all so new to me. My first gateway board game is his copy of Catan, an upgrade from my usual Monopoly game. Since board games are not cheap we tend to casually play whenever we are having a family gathering. Fast forward to 2024.  During the Pandemic Era, that is the time when we really started buying due to boredom and it started snowballing from there. My collection grew, with a new network of friends, players, and guests with a pile of notable moments to keep.

Since opening the Cafe, we've been trying to capture different markets. It was not easy. I'm happy that we created a community that made this journey less tasking than it should be. It's fun. Doing what I love the most does not feel like work at all.

Looking back I would never ever in my wildest dreams I'd own a boardgaming cafe. To be honest I don't even feel I own anything. I've been blessed to have good people around me. The support that I got from various networks, former colleagues, and high school classmates was enough to keep me standing. We are entering year 4 and we have established quite a brand. Slowly we are breaking the ice. Creating a separate, simple space away from the noise in this highly saturated market.

Now, themed cafes are popping up around the city and we need to step up. This March we are planning to have an interior overhaul. Maximizing the space, adding some sugar, spice, and everything nice.

I just remembered to create some visual posters for the cafe. (writes things on the whiteboard) There! Feeling the job is half done whenever I write it on the whiteboard. 

Oh, did you know that during our operations we successfully have 2 students who graduated already. that brings back my working students days. It's nice to give back. 

Man, I'm 35. Who would have thought this blog would last that long? Thank you for keeping up with my shenanigans. I'll be writing more about my wedding journey here. I'm excited to share that with you, my avid reader.

Check out my shirt designs for our boardgames, we have this loyalty card promotional thingy where you'll have freebies every time you dine in and I love designing things so yeah here you go.

Cheers!