Check Out Madeline Davis’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Madeline Davis.

Hi Madeline, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
What began as an Instagram account has developed into a brand. After moving to Kansas City and buying our first home, Chase and I realized our love for hosting game nights and fostering a gaming community could not be contained in our four suburban walls.

After months of brainstorming and soul-searching, we realized gaming was not just a hobby, but how we wanted to spend our lives. We didn’t know quite what it would look like – a full restaurant with games? A cafe? An event center? We just knew we wanted a safe space to share games with others.

After a few months and a little bit of serendipity, we crossed paths with TableTop Game & Hobby and shop owners – Phil and Lynn Kilgore. We all met and discussed our plans. They wanted someone to open a cafe, to run events, and have an event space, and we wanted a place our customers could buy and learn about games. It was PERFECT.

It took us almost three years to develop our model with TableTop, but we opened January 5th, 2021 to an amazing community and have been loving it!

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Number one: the pandemic. We were slated to open in the summer of 2020, but right before we signed out the lease in February 2020, we started hearing about the pandemic and decided to take some time to see what happened. By March, we knew we had to wait. But the timing has been perfect and we’re glad to see our community supporting us through these crazy times.

We also worked for years prior to getting this off the ground. Chase and I initially tried to open in North Kansas City but had a very hard time securing funds because of our age. Everyone we presented to loved the idea but didn’t feel comfortable investing in someone so young. Then we met Phil and Lynn!

What’s neat about our story is the very same thing happened to Phil and Lynn. They opened TableTop in 1994 with an angel investor at our age and get to pass on the legacy!

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
We’re a game cafe! That itself is fun and unique. Then you add our unique menu, waffles, and nerdy drinks, and you’ve got a super fun environment. We’re proud of the community we’ve helped foster – they’re inviting, kind, passionate, and amazing!

What does success mean to you?
To me, I knew we were successful when we saw generations visit us. We have families come in where the great-grandma down to the grandbabies are playing games with us. It’s one of the best feelings to walk around and hear laughter in the space we created.

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: https://cardboardcornerkc.com/
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/cardboardcorner
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cardboardcorner
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/CB_Corner
• Other: https://discord.com/invite/ctReCRueZb