Lemont friends make games their business

LEMONT – While growing up together in Lemont, John Bertulis and Aaron Wendte enjoyed playing games such as the "Magic: The Gathering" card game.

Now both 32, they are the co-owners of GameStorm in Lemont, which provides an outlet for other gaming enthusiasts.

GameStorm, 1056 State St., offers PC, card and board gaming, as well as a PC repair service.They also own the Sprint Store at 1222 State St., Lemont.

Bertulis and Wendte both graduated from Lemont High School in 2000, but it was eight years before they went into business together.

Bertulis, who still lives in Lemont, opened a Nextel phone store in Lemont out of high school, before Nextel was bought by Sprint.

"I didn't really like school, to be honest," he said. "I had to do something different."

Wendte, who now lives in Westmont, got a degree in engineering from Purdue University and worked for Caterpillar for a couple of years.

Then, Bertulis and Wendte started talking about opening a business together in Lemont.

Bertulis wanted to branch out from his business, and Wendte thought he was young enough to take a chance on a new business venture.

"We wanted something unique with a market and we knew that there was a market for video games, card games – everything that we do there now," Wendte said.

Bertulis gave Wendte half ownership in the phone store and the two opened up GameStorm next door in late 2008.

They spent equal time managing the two stores for four years, until the lease was up on the Sprint Store and it moved to its current location.

Now, Bertulis manages GameStorm and Wendte manages the Sprint Store.

Bertulis said GameStorm started as a computer gaming store, but "Magic: The Gathering" has become the store's most popular game. He said the store holds five to six tournaments a week, which usually last four hours, draw around 30 people and go well past midnight.

A majority of the customers come from surrounding towns, such as Downers Grove, Lockport and Orland Park.

"One of the things that sets us apart [from other stores] is our vast inventory of cards," Bertulis said. "So, when [customers are] looking for some odd card, even a popular card that most other shops are out of, we usually have them."

With all of their forms of gaming, a store like GameStorm provides a social aspect that gamers do not get at home, he said.

"You can drink by yourself at home, or you can go to the bar and mingle and meet friends," he said. "It's the same concept."

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Learn more

For more information on GameStorm, call 630-243-9330 or visit www.gamestormgaming.com.

For more information on the Sprint Store, call 630-243-7467.