Employee profile
What was the name of your video store?
VideOasis
Where was the store located?
Fresno, California (United States)
When did you start working at this store?
1994
In your own words, how did you get started working in video retail? What
led you to choose the video industry, and this store in particular?
I started as a frequent customer always adding suggestions and talking with the owners. They finally asked me to join as an assistant manager. Would've loved to stay there if only the pay was higher. I really like supporting this store they had two locations at one point but consolidated to one once the Hollywoods/Blockbuster chains exploded.
Describe your store - what did it look like? What were its distinguishing
features?
It was a stand alone store in a strip-mall. The entry had a security system that never worked (thus we had a lot of theft) and a large space for the clerks to work. Once a person entered there was a new release section along the walls. Various subjects and catagories around the store. A family section complete with a play area. Laserdisc and video games in a center isle.
What were your customers like? What particularly memorable customers or events do you remember?
Various customers from Soccer-moms during the day to Gang members late at night. I had one customer that was married and knew us pretty well, show up with his wife and family sometimes then with his lover some others. At first I thought they were related until she was all over him one day. Things were always awkward from that point on.
What was your boss like? How did he or she divide the work in the store?
He was an accountant that had a filapino partner. Always bounced paychecks, claiming to forget to transfer funds from the savings to checking. I always thought, this guy is a CPA and can't even balance his own books?
What video formats did your store offer (i.e. VHS, Beta, Laserdisc)? Where were
different formats kept in the store?
VHS mostly, some Laserdiscs, the Video games were Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo when they were at their peak.
In addition to mainstream Hollywood movies, what other kinds of videotapes
(children's videos or X-rated tapes, for example) did you rent/sell? Where were these
videos found in your store, and how important were they to the business?
Had a large children's sell through selection. No Adult titles that were above NC-17. They would sell new and used titles. Rented video game machines and VCRs.
What other services/products did you offer besides the rental or sale of
programs? Did this change over time?
Had one of the first impulse sections that had sodas and lottery tickets.
Did you ever rent VCRs or other hardware to your customers? If so,
how important were hardware rentals to the business?
Very rarely did we rent the hardware, at one time there was a person who would go store to store renting video game machines then never coming back. It was a pretty big deal to get deposits after that, once that happened hardware rental dropped.
During the period that you worked at the store, what changes did you see take place?
The store went from one of the largest selections and a stand alone store to shrinking to a strip mall booth type store. The once strong Laserdisc rentals were dropped a year before DVDs went on sale.
Is this store still open? If not, when did it close?
No I believe it was closed around 1998.