Kevin Clary recently opened Free Blockbuster 210 in San Antonio with the help of the Free Blockbuster Organization and Mike Strickaland, who provided the location for the store inside My Weekend World. The Paisano had the opportunity to chat with Clary and ask him some questions regarding his business model and inspiration to be part of such an interesting concept.
“We noticed that there wasn’t [a Free Blockbuster] in San Antonio, so I was like, ‘Shoot, let’s make one, you know? And let’s make one big,’” Clary said regarding why he decided to open the store.
The store does not have any “employees” per se. While there are supervisors to make sure nobody takes more than they should, the store runs on a moral system reliant on the patrons. The rules are simple: Patrons go in with a movie they want to swap, they leave it and take a movie they want in exchange.
“It’s basically run by the community,” Clary commented. “We have this bin here where you drop off the movies, and then we slap a smiley face sticker on it. So all the movies with the smiley face sticker are the ones you can swap in, swap out. It’s like a free book library.”
While the original Blockbuster has almost disappeared off the face of the earth, the Free Blockbuster Organization continues to expand every day. Clary shared his reason for joining the Free Blockbuster family.
“I loved going to Blockbuster as a kid, and I love movies,” Clary said. “It just works because you’re bringing that happiness and memories to a new generation, because they didn’t get to experience Blockbusters. It’s exciting to see people happy and excited to rent or swap movies again. That makes it worth it.”
Finally, Kevin was asked, “What are you trying to achieve with Free Blockbuster?” and he answered:
“Community, you know? Bringing people together, that’s what we are all about here,” Clary reflected. “It’s all about community and giving back, and that’s what we want to do.”
The Free Blockbuster 210 offers the experience of browsing through physical media to a community of movie lovers and collectors. Both Clary and Sprickland are very involved, and they love to talk and engage with customers. Located inside “My Weekend World Events” at 435 McCarthy Rd., it is a must-visit for San Antonio movie lovers and collectors.
