Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Kennedy.
Hi Michael, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My name is Michael Kennedy and I own Nerd Nation, a video game, trading card, and collectibles store in Shawnee, Kansas.
Our business journey is a little backwards. Most retail businesses open a brick and mortar storefront, then eventually expand to include online sales. In our case, we sold online for 4 years before I realized we’d grown too big not to open a storefront.
It started back in 2021 when I began selling cards on eBay to support my Pokemon card collecting hobby. While I was listing the cards on the platform, I’d frequently have YouTube videos going in the background. I stumbled across videos of people finding really cool, vintage things at garage sales and selling them on eBay. I had never been to a garage sale, but felt inspired so I thought I’d give it a try.
I started frequenting garage sales in my free time, picking up things that looked promising to sell on eBay. Looking back, there are so many items I would never mess with now. I came home with so many bulky items that were a pain to ship. But, I was hooked! I loved learning new things and the thrill of possibly finding a hidden gem. As I refined my skills and learned from my mistakes, I started to specialize in video games and Pokemon cards. I had played video games and collected Pokemon cards on and off my entire life, and the idea that both products were small, lightweight, easy to store, and easy to ship made them ideal.
At the time, I was working in my dream job doing web development and design, but I realized I no longer enjoyed it. I had fallen in love with the small business I was building and believed I could turn it into something real.
That leap of faith paid off, allowing me to focus on growing Nerd Nation to other online platforms. Selling on Amazon was a critical turning point for the business. Amazon allowed us to pay more to acquire inventory without having to worry about storing it ourselves. We were also early adopters for WhatNot, an online live auction platform. WhatNot allowed us to sell inventory quickly, which meant we were able to turn around and acquire more inventory.
During the first year in business, I had a few people supporting me who worked a handful of hours a week for extra cash. But as the business rapidly grew, we had to bring on more employees to support our online operations and I began thinking about opening a brick and mortar storefront.
By March 2025, we had found a great space in Shawnee, Kansas and opened our doors. It has been such an awesome experience and the local gaming community has been really supportive. We love getting to see customers find that “holy grail” they’ve been looking for or having someone come in for a trade in and leaving with more cash in their pocket than they expected. It has felt like such a natural extension of our business that really allows us to be connected with the KC community. Who knows, we may open additional Nerd Nation stores in other cities in the future!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Definitely not! Being a small business is incredibly stressful!
Anyone who runs an inventory-based business knows that there’s a tough balance between space and money. You need to have enough variety of inventory so that customers have a good experience and find what they’re looking for. We never want a customer to leave disappointed if they come in looking for something specific and we don’t have it. There’s no guarantee they’ll visit again, so you need to be strategic about predicting what customers will want. Sometimes you invest in a product that just isn’t as popular as you expected, so you aren’t making that money back very quickly and it takes up valuable space.
Our biggest struggle thus far though was an issue with Amazon in late 2024. Two of the video games we submitted, Guitar Hero and Grand Theft Auto 2, were flagged as inauthentic. We already knew they were authentic and were games that aren’t really faked anyway, but Amazon takes authenticity claims very seriously. Amazon calls these claims a Section 3 violation, which many Amazon sellers consider to be a death sentence. Our account was suspended during the months-long investigation process and we weren’t able to withdraw funds for any sales we had during that time period. The investigation process was intense!I had to provide a massive amount of documentation of our business processes, sourcing documents, etc. and report for multiple virtual interviews where they really gave me the third degree. I met with a lawyer that specializes in Section 3 violations and she really helped to prepare me, especially going in knowing that I’d be treated like a criminal in those virtual interviews. I’d heard of this happening to other Amazon sellers, but had never heard of anyone successfully fighting it. Somehow we successfully made it through and regained access to our account. After it was all said and done, we sent the two games that caused all the issues to a company that specializes in video game authentication. The games came back with the official stamp of approval from the authenticators and I have them on display by my desk as a reminder. We can laugh about it now, but that was definitely a huge wake-up call for me though and really validated the need to diversify our selling channels.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Nerd Nation sells video games, trading cards and nostalgia items. If you or your kids are looking for Pokemon cards, video games, trading cards, etc. our storefront is right at Shawnee Mission Parkway and Nieman Road (6224 Nieman Road). We also offer repair services for gaming consoles!
We are proud to have a strong trade-in program as well. We pay better than just about anyone in the country for your video games and we have folks who sell to us both locally and across the country. As a result, we get a lot of new, interesting inventory in all the time, so if customers are looking for something specific it’s likely we have it!
What matters most to you? Why?
Because we deal with a lot of retro/vintage products, we’re often buying directly from individuals. One of our core beliefs has always been paying people fairly. We pride ourselves on paying well, even if the person selling to us doesn’t know the value of their items. We want both sides to win. Whether someone is just looking for extra cash or is a reseller themselves, we believe in doing business transparently and fairly.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://nerdnation.us
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nerdnationus/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nerdnationus/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@NerdNationUS
