This is a GREAT idea. Do it! Friends of mine did this at a local coffee shop here in Seattle (Uptown Espresso on Delridge), and it really took off. The coffee shop wound up doing a complete renovation, and now the walls are just bookshelves lined with board games, and they installed large gaming tables. There is a "Game Concierge" on hand, who is a volunteer who can help people find a game they might like, teach people how to play different games, etc. It is amazingly cool, and has turned this little coffee shop in a "depressed area" into a hub of activity every day of the week. And now my friend Ashley is building a new pub that is based entirely around catering to the gaming community! It will be called, of course, Ashley's Pub: http://www.ashleys.pub/ Gamers are good people, and they have money to spend. Businesses that make room for this type of engaged activity are going to win, business-wise. I'm thinking about calling up the local comic shop I used to game at and ask them if they'd mind me borrowing one of their tables a few hours out of the week to play random people in pickup games of X-Wing, maybe MTG, or mini-instances or two of D&D.
Gamers are good people, and they have money to spend. Businesses that make room for this type of engaged activity are going to win, business-wise. Ever heard of eSports? Riot Games filled up LA's Staples Center, Chicago Theatre, and Madison Square Garden during their "Worlds" Tournament. If you saw the end of the Nintendo Switch Ad, then you saw Nintendo recognizing the same end point you brought up. There's a joke that Riot's goal is to get their game into the olympics. But in the here and now, they just started getting teams sponsored by NBA stars and teams, oh, and Rick Fox. On the point of gaming hubs, I just found out there's a gaming pub near me. :)And now my friend Ashley is building a new pub that is based entirely around catering to the gaming community! It will be called, of course, Ashley's Pub: http://www.ashleys.pub/
I'm planning on making maybe a monthly trip over there, once it opens. Take the ferry, weave through the islands, spend an hour or two there chilling, chatting, playing, and then take the ferry back home. Gives me a reason to get on a ferry boat more often, and that's always a good thing.