Photo: Laura Brookes
It’s the story that never ends, but sadly Kelowna’s beloved Leo’s Videos is once again facing the prospect of closing its doors.
The store announced on Jan. 1 it would remain open after striking a business deal with 21-year-old employee Nick Ksyniuk and family.
But just in the last week, the sale fell through due to Ksyniuk experiencing health issues, says owner Leo Bartels.
“It’s not over for us yet,” Bartels said. “We’re going to give it a really good run to keep it open.
“We had an overwhelming response on Facebook to the announcement saying we would be staying open. It was amazing. The business hasn’t quite followed that yet, but we’re hoping it will pick up.”
Bartels has a new vision for the store, to give the community more of a destination to visit and experience rather than simply a store from which to purchase.
He plans to dismantle shelving near the back of the store and open up the space for tables and board games.
After that, Bartels says he will install a projector and movie screen, so the store can host movie nights for the community.
He’ll hire a new manager for the store and step back into more of a supportive role.
To help the business stay open, Bartels is asking the community to trade in any movies they have for a credit and continue shopping at the store.
More than 6,000 videos were purchased by the public during discounted stock sales, and about 1,000 have been traded back in for credit since the store announced it would be staying open.
Leo’s Videos is operating on new business hours from Jan. 17 due to staffing shortages. It will be open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday to Thursday and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday to Saturday.
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