On the far end of the FanX Salt Lake vendor floor, a makeshift storefront draws curious conventiongoers as they walk by, some digging through bins filled to the brim with clamshell VHS tapes and DVDs.
To the side, an oversized ticket stub sign hangs overhead as paying visitors, quickly donning blue store vests, enter the pop-up space.
“Welcome to The Blockbuster Experience,” calls staff member Jesse Main. “You’re now part of the Blockbuster family.”
This is the first time the traveling store, specifically made for conventions and large events, has visited Utah, its physical location making a final stand in Bend, Ore. Since 2018, the Oregon location has been the last operating Blockbuster store in the United States.
Sandi Harding heads the pop-up and works as general manager of the colloquially known “Last Blockbuster.” Wearing a bright blue “BLOCKBUSTER” shirt, she said convention guests have come up to share their memories of the rental store chain.
Although she hasn’t kept count, Harding said “hundreds” have visited the booth at the Salt Palace Convention Center.
“Having people come tell me their stories, being able to remember through their eyes what it was like in the ‘90s, really makes me remember why I’m doing this every day,” said Harding, who recently celebrated 20 years with the company.
The Blockbuster Experience, running for over a year, has set up at other events (including FanX Tampa Bay), bringing the nostalgic storefront to those who can’t make it to the physical location.
Her son, Jeremy, joined her for this convention, taking a break from his day job as a microbiologist at Deschutes Brewery. He said he remembers tagging along with his mother as she ran the store before he was officially hired in 2008.
Parts of the traveling store bring Jeremy back to working at Blockbuster, he said as he handles the pop-up’s $5 movie transactions. But he’s also noticed the store experience has changed to people visiting for nostalgic reasons.
“When I first started, I’d go around and ask people if they were looking for something,” Jeremy said. “People are now going to Blockbuster to buy a T-shirt ... [The Blockbuster Experience is] similar, no one really asks about the movies.”
But, Jeremy added, “It’s nice to see all the people come in. They’re excited to see a movie store.”
As Lorna Payne walked around the temporary shop — pointing to movies from the 80s like “The Man with Two Brains” — she was taken back to times she walked to Blockbusters near her condo.
“They’re all gone,” she said. “I miss them.”
While Payne enjoyed browsing the booth’s selection of 10,000 tapes, she said streaming services have changed the way people consume media.
“[At video stores], you get to choose what you want and you’ll find things that you weren’t expecting,” Payne said. “I’m very in favor of not having all of your experiences … just provided to you from one source.”
Jeniece Tygesen and her cousin, Christian Hansen, dressed in the vests marking them as “temporary Blockbuster employees,” took a selfie in front of the store’s picture station, the space surrounded by “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “Lethal Weapon” movie posters. FanX visitors since 2015, they said “curiosity” made them come to the shop.
“I want[ed] to feel that feeling of walking in a Blockbuster again, chasing that nostalgia,” said Tygesen, whose last time in a video rental store was at 18.
“It’s wild to see so many VHSs,” added Hansen, who remembered visiting Blockbusters as a kid, on the hunt for PlayStation games.
As customers navigate through racks of old media or pretend to return movies through the “Quik Drop” box, Harding said the mobile experience acts as a “collection of memories,” often of times spent with loved ones.
“Spending time with your family, I think that’s been lost a lot in the last 10 years since the video stores and the music stores started to close,” Harding said. “So I think it’s important for personal connection.”
And, she adds, “Who doesn’t love a movie.”
Editor’s note • This story is available to Salt Lake Tribune subscribers only. Thank you for supporting local journalism.
