Building a community at Garb & Gizmos

SOAP LAKE — Garb & Gizmos, a hobby and gaming store in Soap Lake, recently celebrated one year of being in business. Kala Seim, who owns the business alongside her husband, Clark, said she wants to provide a comfortable space for people to come and enjoy their hobbies with others. 

“Basically, building a community in the area for the nerds,” said Seim. “We’re trying to build a fun, cozy space for people to come in, hang out, play games and purchase things that they need for (hobbies).” 

Garb & Gizmos grew out of Desert Oasis Design, the Seims’ commercial graphics business. Seim said they eventually grew large enough to purchase their current location. 

Seim said having a storefront allowed them to expand their products to include more of the 3D prints that they would sell at pop-up events. Over time customers would come in asking for other hobby items such as board games and trading cards which led to them expanding their wares further. 

“From there, we started to build more of a community place,” she said.  

They added a playroom on one side of the building where customers can come in and play games for a monthly subscription. Seim said she is also looking for people who can teach people how to play these tabletop games. 

The inspiration for starting this business came from Seim and her husband’s love for going to conventions where they would make their own cosplays, she said.  

“The 3D print started because we have 3D printers for our cosplays and we decided we wanted to do something with them, especially with 2020 when we couldn’t participate in Comic Cons because nobody could go anywhere,” said Seim. 

When cons reopened, she said, they became more expensive and had more limitations, which meant fewer people were attending the events. The Seims decided to transition the 3D printers to making toys. 

With the shop offering both custom prints and 3D-printed items, the Seims decided to just start taking inspiration from the community and adding items to Garb & Gizmos based on what was in demand. The shop is also one of the few local spaces in the area that people can go to find others who share their hobbies without having to travel far, said Seim. 

Garb & Gizmos has been seeing steady growth in the last year to the point where they are beginning to host event nights, she said. They host a women’s book club and plan to hold learn-to-play events every Tuesday for people unfamiliar with the games. 

“I think people are just looking for a place to come in and relax and not feel pressured to do something or to purchase anything,” said Seim. “So far we’ve seen a pretty good turnout.” 

Garb & Gizmos has some new offerings coming in with Mythical Meats, an exotic jerky brand, and a company that makes live action role play, or LARP, costumes and gear, something that is currently unavailable locally. 

“We’re hoping to see it grow into a full community,” said Seim. “Just a fun, safe place to come hang out and nerd with us.” 

Garb & Gizmos
227 Highway 28 W.
Soap Lake
509-797-5078
Garbngizmos.com
Tues.-Fri. 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
Sat. 12-6 p.m. 

    Garb & Gizmos sells products from larger brands but also features items created by locals in the Basin. The plush figures at the shop are sewn by the owners’ 17-year-old niece, Grace.
  

    A picture from the gaming room in Garb & Gizmos which features a variety of tabletop games that people can come in and play. The Seims want to create a fun and safe space where people can come in and find others who share their same hobbies.
  

    Garb & Gizmos still creates custom printed shirts and other merchandise within the store as one of their main products alongside 3D printed products. They are hoping to expand their wares even further to offer more products th