The Weekly Grind - January 2nd, 2025

Welcome to 2025! I haven't made one of these since last year... and if it hadn't been at least 2 months, that would have been funnier.

I'm not going to lie, this whole post might get a little long. Last year I broke this into 2 posts. The first was a year in review and the second was looking ahead. I'm putting them both in this one. It was also supposed to be sent out yesterday, but I worked on it so long it became today and here we are.

A YEAR IN REVIEW

First a little lore:15 years ago, I started a tradition for the New Year that instead of creating resolutions I wouldn't keep, I would make a list of tangible goals. Some of them are measurable, and some of them are strictly opinion-based. And since it's like a bucket list, but it's only for the year... I've been calling it a Bowl List.

Here was Critical Grind's 2024 Bowl List and how well we did at accomplishing these goals.

*Do more with publishers and designers: We hosted a few designer days and Publisher Play Days. Not as many as I would have liked.

*Social Media Presence: 3,000 Followers on Facebook, 1,000 Followers on Instagram,

1,000 Followers on TikTok: We reached our 3K Facebook Followers, and our 1K TikTok Followers, but we're still 200 away from Instagram.

*Increased retail section: While we did increase our retail section quite a bit, that doesn't mean it was the best choice for the business. More on that later.

*Utilize the space during the day: The homeschoolers and the remote workers never really popped off. We had a few, occasionally... but not to the point I would have liked to see. And while our chess players were loyal, it would have been great to have seen more.

*50 Game Library subscribers: A change in our subscription system I think voids this one, but that's alright.

*More off-site events: 3 more regular Pop-Up Game Nights, 3 Employee Engagements, 2 Libraries. I would call this a mixed success. We did more with some local libraries, and the beginning of the year found some success with some Game Nights with some local breweries, but there weren't any Employee Engagement events.

*Visit 1 Big new-to-us Convention Shaun and I attended GAMA Expo back in March. GAMA stands for Game Manufacturers Association. We spent a week talking to publishers, designers, and retailers. We took seminars, play tested new games, and networked and made new friends.

*Participate in 3 new local events/conventions. Polar Vortex was a great local convention last February. We're sad we won't be participating again this year. Crossroads Fest in Shorewood was a fun time in August. Plainfield Fest in September was a success, despite the heat.

*Meet our new average daily sales goal. I'll be honest, I didn't right this down so I don't remember what I wanted that sales goal to be as of January of last year.

*Work with more local businesses to plan events and highlight our strengths. I think we did that. There is always more room for collaboration but there were several local businesses we worked together with this past year and I can't wait to add to that list new year.

*Bring more people together through gaming! I can confidently say we did this. It wasn't always gaming that brought people together at Critical Grind. Any regular knows, sometimes it's just the vibes. But we definitely created a space where people come together.

 In 2022 I started assigning a "word of the year." 2022 was Perserverance. 2023 was Flourish. My word of the year for 2024 was "Balance" I attempted to find a work-life balance. while I definitely made some progress, I don't think I completely figured it out. And while that isn't going to be my "word" for 2025, it's still something I'll be working on.

SHOUT OUTS - Getting a little sentimental

This part has started to become a little tradition. does two years make a tradition?. I would like to give a shout-out to some very special people in my life and the life of the cafe.

Shaun, my love: My partner in life of 13 years and in business for 6. Shaun works full-time, takes care of our kiddo, takes care of the house, and helps at Critical Grind when I need him. I see everything he has sacrificed and risked to make my dream a reality and I would not be here if it wasn't for him. He keeps me grounded and stable, but always reaching for bigger dreams.

Kim, my darling: Critical Grind brought this beautiful woman into my life just over a year ago. I am humbled and honored that Kim has joined our family. She calms my anxiety and keeps me silly.

Saphira, my pancake: Saphira is now 12 and a little spitfire. My silly goofy kid, my empathetic sweetheart, or my walking talking ball of sass... I wouldn't have her any other way. Okay, maybe a little less sassy. But I love her anyway and she knows it.

Ash [he/him]: Last year I gave Ash a shout-out as a mascot or cheerleader for the cafe. This year, Ash is the seniority. He's been on staff longer than anyone else and has been an integral part of keeping us going, growing, and having a silly-goofy-time.

Noah [he/him]: Noah joined the team as an inevitability. Once he moved out here, and was spending more time at the cafe, it wasn't a matter of if Noah would work here, it was when. And it's been a great decision. Always ready with a wager or negotiation, Noah has a way of gamifying even simple transactions.

Lauren [she/her]: When I interviewed Lauren it was obvious she was going to be a great addition to the team. Critical Grind needed someone with her experience and drive and she needed a place with adult conversation and stimulation. It was a perfect fit. Though she has technically given her notice and won't be with us through the end of January, she will always be welcomed back.

Rudy [he/him]: Rudy started around the same time as Lauren. He provides so much fun and excitement to the job. A wonderful curator and host, he can talk to anyone and does what he can to make sure everyone is having a great time. He's also been doing more with hosting our Lorcana Tournaments, filling in for Kid's D&D, and introducing people to their new favorite games.

Ava [she/they]: While Ava was around for the rest of her high school career in the spring, and through the summer, she left us to go off to college and get an education. Ava will be welcomed back with open arms when they come home for the summer.

Kevin [he/him]: While Kevin isn't a Critical Grind employee or a member of my family, he is a great friend of Critical Grind. A lot of regulars may not know him, but there are some pretty special ones that do. Kevin came to Critical Grind on behalf of a company he works for, to run some D&D sessions to introduce people to their products. That became our bi-monthly Kid's D&D nights. And while his company stopped this particular outreach project, he still comes back to run Dungeons & Dragons for these kids.

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EVENT HIGHLIGHTS

In absolutely no particular order, these are some of the highlight events from this year.

FREE RPG DAY: We hosted over 25 RPG sessions in 1 day with the help of 8 volunteer DMs

INTERNATIONAL LEGO DAY: We teamed up with our friends at Bricks & Minifigs Crest Hill and had a fun day of Lego building!

QUEER VARIETY SHOWS & FABULOUS BINGO: Despite some negative nancy keyboard warriors trying to bring us down, we held 3 relatively successful All-Ages Queer Variety Shows this year and we started hosting monthly Fabulous Bingo with the fabulous Jolene Jett. Each month a portion of the proceeds for the bingo cards go toward a different charity.

THEME TRIVIA: Our weekly Tuesday Night Trivia dissolved but having a monthly themed trivia has been working out pretty well. With themes like Lord of the Rings, Dungeons & Dragons, Taylor Swift, Parks & Rec, and more... we had some pretty successful nights.

MURDER MYSTERY DINNER: Our 2nd annual murder mystery dinner was a rousing success. From the fantastic catering, to our wonderful host, to the creative costumes by all our participants, it was a lot of fun and I hope we could do it again.

KIDS D&D: As mentioned above, Kids D&D has been going really well. We've actually expanded to 2 tables (thank you Jax!), and may be needing a 3rd in the near-ish future (anyone wanna DM?)

AFTER HOURS: We hosted our first After Hours event, Boozy Bluey Trivia. Teaming up with a trifecta of impressive women-owned businesses, Liquid Kourage Entertainment, Mauve Nosh & Libations, and Amanda's Character Creations.. this event was a lot of fun.

BIRTHDAY PARTIES, TEAM BUILDING, AND MISFIT GATHERINGS: Critical Grind had the honor of being a part of SO many people's birthdays this year. Young kids, teens, adults, and seniors. It was humbling to see so many people wanting to celebrate at Critical Grind. We also had reservations for recreational groups to gather, pride organizations, bachelor parties, online friends meeting in person, book clubs, and more. And another tradition we started a few years ago, Misfit Thanksgiving.

POP-UP BAKERIES: We hosted several pop-up bakeries this year.

Baby Doll Bakery, Poundcake Bakery, Sweet Traditions, Cookie's Kitchen, Biteable, Pound Cake Lady, Little Letty's Creations, and Sourdough You Know.

WORKSHOPS & MORE: It's not just bakeries we like to support. We hosted pretty successful collaborations this year with Blooming Succulents, Creative Art Workshops, Ten Cups Tarot, and Queering the Binary (formerly known as Out of the Closet)

BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTS & UPDATES

A few highlights most of our are already aware of this year.

1. Critical Grind officially became a WPN Store (Wizards Play Network). This means we can host Magic the Gathering Pre-Release Events, order more product, and get prize support.
   

2. We introduced the board game cafe, "Pay-To-Play" business model to this area back in May. While it is no surprise to places that already are familiar with Board Game Cafes, the pay-to-play model was a shock to those only familiar with board game stores. We aren't a library with free space and tax-payer dollars. We aren't a retailer with income generated by 100s of dollars of board games or trading cards. We are a cafe, with lots of space and games available to play. Monday through Thursday is only $5 per person, Friday through Sunday is only $8 per person, and kids 10 & under are free with a paid adult.

   
   

3. Along with that change, we implemented a Patreon. Doing away with the library subscriptions, we started a Patreon account where players can pay a monthly fee for various benefits around the cafe, including discounts on beverages, discounts on dice, free game rentals, no play fees, and free table reservations for them and their friends.
   

4. In 2023 Critical Grind won "one-of-the-best" in Family Recreation in Will County. In 2024, we won BEST in Family Recreation in Will County. Thank you to all of our community who voted for us and got us the award.

   

5. Speaking of Supportive Community, I reached out a couple months back when the cafe was really struggling. Between a few weeks of really bad sales, low-attendence, and some poor mental health, I was ready to pack it in. After the election and so many people coming up to me with what Critical Grind means to them, and how important our space is, it was really hard to face the possibility of closing. So I posted a Gofundme. It's not the first we posted and it was even harder the second time. I don't like asking for help. But when I talked to some friends wiser than me and the options were ask for help, or give up on my dream - potentially letting innumerable people down, including myself - I had to put my pride aside and ask. And wow did the community come through. The GoFundMe raised over 9,000 to help us catch up with back rent, settle some other supplier invoices, and implement some much-needed changes coming into 2025. While we still have a little ways to go until we're completely out of the woods, I can tell you we're not going anywhere and we have some big things coming down the pipe-line.

These are only a FEW of the wonderful things our community had to say about Critical Grind when we posted for help. I was so grateful for all the heartfelt words and it really helped me remember my purpose.

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THE YEAR AHEAD

If you made it this far, kudos to you. If you jumped to this point... I don't blame you, that was a lot.

I hope you at least read the bit about the Bowl List because that's where we're gonna start here. If not, jump back up real quick so you understand what's happening.

2025 Critical Grind Bowl List

*Take a class. Marketing, Accounting, Latte Art... whatever. Something to learn more.

*Social Media Presence: 5,000 Followers on Facebook, 1,250 Followers on Instagram,

2,000 Followers on TikTok [if it still exists]

*The Weekly Grind, this newsletter, returns weekly

*15% growth in customers

*Adjust the Patreon

*More & Accessible Merch

*More events with disability services, transition programs, and retirement facilities.

*More local business collaborations

*Start a podcast

*Grow Lodge Con

*More of the following events: To-the-table, Publisher Play, Designer Day, Craft Shows,

Painting Events, Literary Events, After Hours

*Bring more people together through gaming!

If you read the above you also read the part about the Word of the Year. If not, you can go back. But my word for 2025 is going to be Adaptability. Being able to bend instead of break. To listen to the input of those around me and take their ideas, suggestions, and help into account. And especially to be able to adapt to change without feelng blindsided or derailed.

CHANGES IN 2025

NEW HOURS:

The first, and most immediate change is that as of Monday, January 6th, Critical Grind will be open at 3pm Mondays through Thursdays. This will be in effect for the rest of the winter, and we'll reevaluate our hours come the spring. I do plan on being open our 9am regular during when schools are out. The first one coming up is Martin Luther King Jr Day, January 20th. I expect there will be a lot of people looking for a comfortable place to be that day. We WILL be open 9am-9pm.

IMPORTANT NOTE If you are with one of the local transition programs or disability services groups who come in for field trips... email me at dana@criticalgrind.com. Give me a heads-up that you want to come out, and I will come in for you.

NEW MENU ITEMS:

Some of you have already noticed our extended snacks and our new cooler. Pepsi was difficult to work with so we got our own cooler and will be stocking whatever we want. Coke, Pepsi, Gatorade, Body Armor, Liquid Death, Weird Yerba, and more.

Soup! A soup of the day option is not far behind this year. Soup and toast combos, anyone?

Late-Night Bites. Taquitos, Pizza Bagels, Tater Tots, Pizza Rolls, and more... we'll be adding these to our menu in the very near future.

NEW PARTNERS:

Critical Grind is excited to announce that we have formed an official partnership with Liquid Kourage Entertainment. We've worked very closely and well together in the past. When I put out our call for help, our dear friends, Jay & Quincy stepped up in a big way. Liquid Kourage Entertainment is investing in Critical Grind. We will continue to support each other's events, team up for events, and should Liquid Kourage need a place to host something specific (stream-a-thon anyone?) we will be their home base. We've been lucky enough to consider them friends for around 2 years now, and now we get to call them business partners too.

NEW VENTURE:

Alright, well technically this isn't a Critical Grind venture. But it's under the umbrella and still exciting. Shaun and our friend Brixton have started their own venture called Critical Cheat Codes, or CX3. It's eSports Tournament event hosting. They will be hosting eSports Tournaments at Critical Grind on Wednesday Nights starting January 22nd.

NEW PODCAST:

I'm starting a podcast. I'm not sure if anyone's gonna wanna listen to it. But I want to make it. I have a few ideas about what some of the segments or episodes are gonna be like, but for the most part, I want it to be a chance for people to get to know the other people in our community. I want to interview our staff, our regulars, our neighbors, other local business owners and organizations we work with. I want to hang out over a coffee and chat about who they are and what they do and why they do it. I want to learn about people's dreams and goals and favorite board games.

I think that's enough NEW for now. It's only the 2nd...

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I'm going to end this here with our January calendar, Specials, and new hours image for reference. Next week I'll have a new Weekly Grind for you with upcoming event reminders and weekly antecdotes.

Happy Birthday to Ash and Noah this month!