For many people, free time offers an opportunity to pursue their favorite activities, and when the same activity is involved on a frequent basis, it’s known as a hobby.
Many hobbies are enjoyed indoors and require specific supplies and parts, and for many years those products have been available in retail stores like Stratagem Hobbies LLC in Houston.
“We offer all kinds of different things for almost every hobby most people can have,” said store owner Lyndon Williams. “And what we don’t have, we’re hoping to get in the future because we’re still new.”
Stratagem Hobbies opened for business on April 1 of this year. The store’s shelves are stocked with numerous items supporting numerous hobbies, including board games, tabletop games (like Warhammer and Dungeons and Dragons), card games, scale models (from multiple manufacturers), remote control vehicles, train sets, slot cars, painting, sports cards and memorabilia, STEM projects for kids and more.
“I had been planning this for a few years,” Williams said. “I had seen for a long time that Houston didn’t have a place where people could get many of these products without driving for about an hour, and I wanted to provide a place where they could be found locally.
“When we had our grand opening, it was awesome; everyone who came in loved it.”
Williams, 28, is a Texas County native who lives in the Yukon area with his wife, Dell. He is a graduate of Summersville High School and spent four years in the U.S. Army.
Williams deals with a wide variety of clientele on a daily basis.
“We get all kinds of people,” he said, “from your stereotypical nerds – like myself – to older gentlemen who enjoy our military scale models, families looking at all the board games we have and women looking for art supplies or gifts.”
Growing up, Williams was a big fan of building scale models of tanks, planes and cars. When he was enlisted, he met cohorts who played games like Magic: The Gathering, Warhammer and Risk, and he developed an interest in that.
“We had Risk games that lasted for days,” Williams said.
Strategem Hobbies features a game room that’s available for public use whenever the store is open. The room can be rented for parties or other gatherings, and is also used for public competitions featuring end-of-the-month tournaments with prizes.
Williams said he can help people with sports cards collections get specific cards graded and assessed, and that special orders of certain items are possible (including model trains and parts and Estes model rockets and supplies).
“The best part of this is the people who come in,” Williams said. “I have so much fun with people asking questions and helping them with their current hobbies or to learn about something new.”
Stratagem Hobbies is located at 503 Holder Drive in Houston. Hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
For more information, call 417-260-0875 or go online to the store’s Facebook page (where newly-arriving products are often posted). “I’m really excited to see this store grow,” Williams said. “I’m hoping to expand to help satisfy as many people as possible.
