Metro Entertainment reopens for the first time in two months

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. — Following a two-month closure, longtime comic book shop Metro Entertainment has reopened to the public. 

With State Street closed to cars, many people walked around downtown throughout Memorial Day weekend.

This led to a good portion of these pedestrians wandering back into the local business for the first time in quite some time. 

"I think the idea of shutting down State Street was brilliant,” Metro Entertainment manager Jim Tourville said. “Today, we're already seeing a ton of foot traffic."

Many customers were thrilled to visit the shop in person.

"We just wanted to see if this was one of the places that happened to be opening up again and it's our lucky day,” customer Daniel Guerrero said.

"My Dad mentioned it to me and then I called and it was open,” customer Colton Gray said. “It’s just good to get more Pokemon cards."

Prior to this weekend, the local business had been enduring through a difficult time.

"2020 was going to be our best year ever,” Metro Entertainment Bob Ficarra owner said. “We were set up for great success and the rug was kind of pulled out from under us."

With their doors closed for over seven weeks, Ficarra started a GoFundMe page, which has helped the comic shop survive the COVID-19 pandemic. 

"GoFundMe seemed like the simplest easiest way to reachout to everybody,” Ficarra said. “To let them know how they could help keep the store going and keep the staff on payroll."

"I don't think any of us anticipated how quickly we'd get such a huge response,” Tourville said.

On Friday, Metro Entertainment reopened its Anapamu Street storefront with new safety measures. 

This means limiting the amount of people allowed into the shop at one time. They’re also requiring customers and employees to wear masks within the store. 

"We sanitize everything repeatedly from the moment we open till the moment we close,” Ficarra said.

"It's definitely different,” Tourville said. “It's not what we're used to but we are quickly adapting."

Looking ahead, Ficarra remains hopeful that this weekend is a glimpse of better times to come. 

"Just great to see people coming back in,” Ficarra said. “The weekend was great businesswise."

Metro Entertainment is now open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day of the week.