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Artegon Marketplace to include new comic book and collectible toy store [Orlando Sentinel](Orlando Sentinel (FL) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Sept. 17--A comic book and collectible toy store will be among the shops at the new Artegon Marketplace Orlando off International Drive in Orlando. Gods & Monsters is expected to welcome customers Nov. 20 when the shopping center opens, according to a post on the company's Facebook page. The brainchild of Anna Young and Todd Fisher, Gods & Monsters won't be just the standard comic book shop with walls of books and fan memorabilia. "Forget boring racks of worn-out back issues and the same old action figures gathering dust in shoddy displays," Young and Fisher said in a news release from Artegon. "We're doing something different." According to a video on crowdsourcing web site Indiegogo, the 19,000-square-foot shop also will have space for the Transmetropolitan Gallery, food service and space dedicated to gaming. "We're ready to bring comics, toys and collectibles to you the way they were meant to be," Fisher said in the video. The gallery will feature comic- and media-themed art from local and international artists. Artegon is a 1.1-million-square-foot shopping center that will host artisans as well as anchors from national retailers such as Ron Jon's Surf Shop and Bass Pro Shops. The facility is the old Festival Bay Mall, which owners decided in 2011 to revamp and modernize. Fisher and Young are using the crowdsourcing site hoping to raise $40,000 for the new store. As of 2 p.m. Wednesday, the duo had raised $3,836. The campaigning effort is open until Oct. 12. Money raised through the online campaign would be on top of funding already in place for construction. It will be used for publicity, marketing and any other needs of the store. Artegon Marketplace officials said the new store is a good fit for the retail center. "This is the perfect fit for the immersive, interactive experience we are creating here," said Steven Sless, executive vice president to Paragon Outlet Partners, LLC, the marketplace's developer. [email protected] or 407-420-5414 ___ (c)2014 The Orlando Sentinel (Orlando, Fla.) Visit The Orlando Sentinel (Orlando, Fla.) at www.OrlandoSentinel.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |