Memories for sale: Nostalgic game shop opens in Soldotna

Memories for sale: Nostalgic game shop opens in Soldotna

Remember the large Blockbuster banner sign outside of the now-closed shop? The 14-foot by 7-foot sign is now inside of Beetle Boss — a nostalgic media shop in Soldotna that opened Sunday.

A Blockbuster rug, candy cigarettes, laserdisc players, a Toys “R” Us checkout sign, game cubes and Mario T-shirts are just a few recognizable signs of childhood inside of Beetle Boss.

Beetle Boss owner Jami Sperry, a custodian with the Kenai Peninsula School District, had so many games in his house that he decided to open the store. The majority of Sperry’s games and memorabilia have been collected over the last six months.

“I wasn’t really into games, it was mostly my brother,” Sperry said. “I enjoyed watching him play. I wasn’t very close to him, but when he was playing games he allowed me to be in his room and just watch him. He would let me play once in awhile.”

Sperry said he created the shop to be a safe space.

“It gives a place around here where kids can come in and play games,” Sperry said. “It’s a safe place where if kids are on the street and they don’t know where to go, they can come here, play some games, be safe and stay out of trouble.”

The buy-sell-trade business will also have a back room where TVs will be set up and people can play games onsite.

The shop sells a hodgepodge of items including DVDs, video games, T-shirts, consoles, Magic cards and more. Sperry said he wants to bring the community together over retro products like laserdiscs. Similar in appearance to DVDs and about the size of vinyl records, the discs came out in the 70s and were manufactured until 2009.

For hobbyists interested in watching their laserdisc, Sperry has a couple of laserdisc players for sale as well.

Sperry said he’ll also carry international products, including the Chinese version of the Nintendo 64 console, called the IQue, and retro consoles like Sega and Nintendo.

Sperry wants to support local crafters that fit into his theme. Currently, he’s selling locally knitted stuffed toys shaped like popular cartoon characters.

Sperry said he will start a public Super Mario Kart tournament in September. The public will be able to enter into the six-month tournament, and every month the top three winners will advance. In March, the top 15 will battle it out for a grand prize. People who enter into the tournament will pay a nominal fee, which will, in turn, go into Sperry’s 1974 Miracle Whip jar. The jar is the repository for donations that go to Bridges Community Resource Network, an organization in Soldotna that focuses on social and welfare services for individuals and families.

“I just want to raise money to help people in need, and grow this community,” Sperry said.

Sperry said he hopes to have the shop open every day in the summer from Noon to 5 p.m., inside the Peninsula Center Mall.

Memories for sale: Nostalgic game shop opens in Soldotna

More in News

Kenai Middle School Principal Vaughn Dosko points out elements of a redesign plan for the front of the school on Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2022, in Kenai, Alaska. (Ashlyn O’Hara/Peninsula Clarion)
Work soon to begin on Kenai Middle security upgrades

The security upgrades are among several key KPBSD maintenance projects included in a bond approved by borough voters in October 2022.

The Kenai Fire Department headquarters are photographed on Feb. 13, 2018, in Kenai, Alaska. (Peninsula Clarion file)
Kenai adds funds, authorizes contract for study of emergency services facility

The building shared by Kenai’s police and fire departments hasn’t kept up with the needs of both departments, chief says.

Kenai Parks and Recreation Director Tyler Best shows off a new inclusive seesaw at Kenai Municipal Park in Kenai, Alaska, on Thursday, June 27, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Kenai awards contract to develop Parks and Rec master plan

The document is expected to guide the next 20 years of outdoors and recreation development in the city.

Balancing Act’s homepage for the Kenai Peninsula Borough School District’s Fiscal Year 2026 Budget. (Screenshot)
KPBSD launches ‘Balancing Act’ software, calls for public to balance $17 million deficit

The district and other education advocates have said that the base student allocation has failed to keep up with inflation.

Natural gas processing equipment is seen at Furie Operating Alaska’s central processing facility in Nikiski, Alaska, on Wednesday, July 10, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Harvest Alaska announces proposed redevelopment of Kenai LNG terminal

The project could deliver additional natural gas supplies to the Southcentral market as early as 2026, developers said.

A depth marker is almost entirely subsumed by the waters of the Kenai River in Soldotna, Alaska, on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
After delay, borough adopts updated flood insurance maps

The assembly had previously postponed the legislation amid outcry from the Kenai River Keys Property Owners Association.

Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor Peter Micciche points to where the disconnected baler ram has bent piping at the Central Peninsula Landfill in Soldotna, Alaska, on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Borough approves federal request to fund recycling redesign

A large baler that was used for recycling was recently left inoperable by a catastrophic failure in its main ram.

A person is detained in Anchorage in recent days by officials from the FBI and U.S. Department of Homeland Security. (FBI Anchorage Field Office photo)
Trump’s immigration raids arrive in Alaska, while Coast Guard in state help deportations at southern US border

Anchorage arrests touted by FBI, DEA; Coast Guard plane from Kodiak part of “alien expulsion flight operations.”

Jamiann S’eiltin Hasselquist asks participants to kneel as a gesture to “stay grounded in the community” during a protest in front of the Alaska State Capitol on Wednesday focused on President Donald Trump’s actions since the beginning of his second term. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
Trump protest rally at Alaska State Capitol targets Nazi-like salutes, challenges to Native rights

More than 120 people show up as part of nationwide protest to actions during onset of Trump’s second term.

Most Read