Rising Stars: Meet Adventure Ink, Milan

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeffrey Harvey

Hi Jeffrey, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I am a content creator and was working on a new podcast. A new comic book and games shop opened in town, and I wanted to work with them. Everything seemed to be a great fit, but after a few months, the shop owner told me he regretted opening the shop in Milan and wanted to sell. He asked if I was interested. I said no but that I would talk to my wife, Laura, about it.

She was a former Borders employee, and we had talked several times about opening a bookstore after Borders closed. Who didn’t? Well, we decided this was a great opportunity to own a gaming and comic shop, which are subjects I was passionate about, and bring the bookstore to life as well.

So, I called a few friends and borrowed the money to get started. I went back to the little shop, and we bought it.

Milan was very receptive to new owners and the expanded Books, Games, and Comics shop concept. We grew steadily until COVID hit. We struggled, but with the help of the local coffee shop letting us set up a “pop-up” shop in the space they could no longer use for customers, we survived, and both benefited. It showed us that Milan wasn’t just another town but a real community.

Another opportunity came when we got into our new (to us) building on Main Street. We had more space, more, options, and most important, a chance to reconnect in person with our friends and our community.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Nothing is ever smooth in the small business world. We’ve struggled with our location, distributors, political realities, social media, websites, inventory systems, and visibility. We are a small shop in a big, loud world. It’s difficult to be seen or heard in the world of instant gratification and cheap mega stores. And everyone struggles with companies like Amazon undercutting the little guy. It’s impossible to compete with them on prices, but we hope to bring something unique to small businesses—a sense of belonging and a connection to the community.

On a personal note, of course, there have been obstacles and struggles. I’ve worked hard my entire life and feel like I’ve always been just behind the curve. I also lost friends and family to the blights of our modern world, addiction, mental health, and cancer.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Adventure Ink is a new and used bookstore and an RPG and board game store. And comic shop. While those three things are somewhat complementary to a nerdy sort of people, It is a small segment of the overall population, and in a small town on top of that. But what sets us apart is our commitment to our passions.

Laura is a passionate bookseller with over twelve years of experience working for Borders, a company I think she would still be working for in a different world. She is maybe even a little obsessed with being a bookseller. She loves the people, the books, and the logistical zen she gets from building displays, organizing, and all that goes into being a bookstore.

Matt, our business partner, is a masterclass is patience, not only with the customers but also with Laura and I. He, like me, is also a broad-spectrum nerd who loves to read, play RPG, and is a board game aficionado. He is one of the most knowledgeable people about the trends in our niche offerings, and he puts up with mine and Laura’s sometimes taxing schedules to help keep the shop open, available, and accessible to our growing community.

I, on the other hand, have little experience in bookselling or retail, but I am passionate about community and helping others, and I am, of course, a “Nerd Extraordinaire.” I have spent most of my adult life serving my local community as a EMT Paramedic and/or firefighter. My father, who passed in 2016 from cancer, taught me that those who have the means to help need to help those who don’t. I have taken this both in the literal and the literary sense, working to help the people of my community when emergencies strike and help those in the nerd community find a place they can belong.

It’s that sense of community, support, and service that really drives all of us to make Adventure Ink a place for everyone. Whether it’s a new RPG player looking to come out of their shell, an avid reader looking to find a place to blather about their favorite next books, a parent looking to understand their new out LGBTQ child, or that child looking for a place that sees them and loves them as a part of this community, we want to be there… that’s our true passion, and I think that’s one of the many things that sets us apart.

Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
My advice would be to find what you love doing and do it. There is a caveat, though. It’s not just enough to love doing the thing. You need real passion when you turn something you enjoy into something you are obligated to do for money.

Don’t simply do something you like. You need to dream about it. You need to get a high from it. It needs to be a part of who you are. It needs to make you better as you make it better.

As for things I wish I knew starting, it’s hard to say. The things I didn’t know drove me to learn. If I’d known more, I probably wouldn’t have taken the risks I’ve taken to get me here. I mean, my other passion is film and tv production and the Muppets (I would almost do nearly terrible things to be a Muppet performer)… I suppose I wish I’d know how to get into those things at a younger age. But not knowing those things led me to start a podcast, reach out to a little local comic shop, and buy it. and then I wouldn’t be where I am right now. And hey, it gives me more to strive for, talk nerdy about, and maybe more ways to connect to our growing community.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://adventureink.xyz
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adventureinkbooks/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/adventureinkcomics
• Other: https://bsky.app/profile/adventureink.xyz