After 35 years of service on Clarence Street in Kingston, Tom Ivison is calling it a day for Classic Video.
He said financial struggles due to the COVID-19 pandemic ultimately led him to close it down.
“I’ve borrowed $200,000 — Classic Video has borrowed $200,000, which I’ve personally guaranteed, and … we were just burning through the cash too quickly,” said Ivison.
Classic Video began all the way back in 1987, when Ivison was just 22 years old.
He said he nearly went a different route, with a CD store instead, but his closest business associate changed his mind.
“It was my mom who said, ‘You know, Tom, look at a video store, there’s a future with that,” said a smiling Ivison.
Little did he know it would take him on a journey that would last 35 years, endearing himself to an entire community in the process.
Ivison grew with the business, ups and downs included — through the boom of the late ’80s and ’90s to tougher times, when competition was higher.
But, he said, one thing remained the whole time: the people.
He recalled realizing how important Classic Video was to people in the aftermath of 9/11, when he said he was surprised to see people pouring into the store.
“They only wanted to rent comedies, and it was just … they were so overwhelmed, and I realized there was a place for a store like Classic Video, they needed a connection,” he said.
Ivison said over the years, through good times and bad, the store remained a constant for him, something that kept him centred and busy.
It became a spot where, on any given Friday, families piled in and debated over which movie to rent, or what TV series to watch.
“They would all make their own little decisions and then huddle and come to the counter with one or two movies, but that was their highlight,” he said.
Ivison will spend the next month incrementally selling off what he can from the store’s stock before officially and finally closing up shop at the end of May.
While disappointed and sad, Ivison said he’s proud of the store and what it’s done for the community.
“I think the proof of the store is maybe the reaction from the community, the love that is felt, and the loss. I feel their loss.”
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