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It appears the story of Kelowna’s beloved Leo’s Videos store is moving towards a trilogy.
In November, the movie rental store in the city’s Lower Mission announced it would be closing up shop after failing to find new owners despite an extensive search.
However, a last-minute deal between owner Leo Bartels and a store employee saved the business on New Year’s Day.
Fast forward a couple of weeks and the saga rambles on for Leo’s Videos.
According to Bartels, the employee who did agree to purchase the shop has since backed out due to personal reasons.
Although, the incredibly positive response Leo’s received after announcing the store saving deal has convinced Bartels to give the business another shot.
“The community let us know loud and clear that they want us to stay, so I will retain ownership and if over the next few months business is robust enough to make it worthwhile, we will hire a manager to run the shop since I still intend to go to school,” said Bartels.
While the store did begin to sell off inventory after failing to find new owners, the large majority remains on the shelves.
“We sold 6000 of our 27,000 films meaning we still have upwards of 20,000 movies, continuing to make us one of the largest video rental and sale stores in Canada,” explained Bartels.
Leo’s also continues to encourage anyone who has movies they no longer wish to keep to trade them in for shop credit.
There’s also some renovations in the works, with Bartels planning to turn the shop into more of an experience instead of a simple movie rental shop.
The new plans include dismantling the shelving near the back of the store and open up the space for tables and board games.
Bartels will also install a projector and movie screen, so the store can host movie nights for the community.
Despite having some recent staffing issues, the store is back to regular hours running from 11 am to 8 pm Sunday through Thursday and 10 am to 8 pm Friday to Saturday.
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