Joe is the founder of Spinners Pinball Arcade and of Pinball EDU, a nonprofit with the mission to build inclusive spaces that provide connection, skill development, and belonging through play. Most recently, he has been immersed in working long-distance with the Indiana School for the Blind and Visually Impaired on assistive technology for education.
Joe not only owns and operates the Arcade, but is highly skilled in game repair and restoration. He and his team are currently in the final stages of relocating to a larger, more versatile space. They will be opening soon!
Extracurriculars
When he isn’t working on the arcade space or coordinating with the team in Indiana, you can find him with his wife Meaghan, his two cats, and her dog. They love to travel and they love good food.
Fun fact about Joe: he always wanted to be a journalist because he finds observing other people and their skills to be fascinating. He would much rather watch someone explain how to make the perfect clay pot, than learn the skill himself. He values learning and is incredibly impressed with people who fully immerse themselves in a skill or a topic. “I’m impressed with nerds!”, he says!
Why we love Joe
Joe arrived at Cowork Frederick craving motivation and connection (and distance from all of those pet-shaped distractions at home). Every person that joins the community has a different way of integrating themselves and Joe’s method was, “All-In”. He immediately jumped into the community and brought his go-getter attitude with him; the way he gets excited about his business is infectious! This place was designed with collaboration in mind – Joe has invited multiple members, across multiple industries to be part of what Spinners is doing. This is what Coworking is all about and Joe has embodied that principle fully! Plus, we get to enjoy his witty banter and goofiness regularly. What else can you expect from a guy who’s passionate about games and making a difference, right?
Q&A with Joe
How did you get started running a Pinball Arcade?
I sold a completely different business in New York and, during that process, was invited by some friends to attend a pinball tournament. As a novice, I placed 7th out of 20 people and was immediately hooked. This was early in the Pinball scene, while things were still ramping up. I took the money from selling my previous business and traveled around, entering tournaments. From there, I started repairing pinball machines, and eventually opened my own arcade.
What led me to starting the nonprofit was the story of a fellow competitor, Robert, who is on the autism spectrum. He was nonverbal early in life and his father took him to a pinball tournament, where he was encouraged to play. He ended up getting hooked and eventually winning Nationals and Worlds in 2016. Seeing what that environment did for Robert and his personal growth inspired me to create space for others with accessibility needs.
What inspires you and keeps you going?
Professionally speaking, cornering a market like this has been incredible. It’s unique; it’s a small community; and there is demand for it. I truly enjoy what I’m doing – I drive a RAV4 specifically so I can drive anywhere to pick up a pinball machine to repair for someone or to place in my arcade.
On another level, caring for kids with disabilities is so rewarding. I’ve worked with them for most of my career – specifically blind children. We are currently working to build a unique braille device to help teachers educated children at the School of the Blind in Indiana. It’s pocket-sized, it can play games, and it can be used in classroom lessons. 200 devices are currently being used at the school to train teachers. It’s already making a huge difference!
Cowork Frederick members tend to be a little unconventional. How does that apply to you?
I approach my business in a way that builds a team strong enough to handle everything without micromanaging. Essentially the CEO should end up doing nothing because they’ve found the right people for each position. I want Spinners to run autonomously.
Which of the guiding values defined by Cowork Frederick members speaks to you?
Curiosity. I’m all about endless learning. I love learning about people and what makes them tick – particularly other cultures and the way they might approach something differently than I would.
Any tips for renovating a business space?
Renovating the new space has been hard because it’s challenged the balance of wanting to be cost-efficient by doing things myself, versus bringing in experts. It’s been a huge learning curve about renovations. In BUSINESS I feel like I’m an expert, but this hands-on process has given me a lot of respect for experts in this area. I should have hired a contractor from the beginning, which would have required a different process with the landlord, etc. But now I know how to do it in the future – and how to negotiate a different contract that balances DIY- and professionally-completed tasks.
Why Cowork Frederick?
The culture and the community. Everyone is doing SOMETHING and you can talk about what you’re doing, share in discussions, and compare notes. I feel like I have some solid business advice to offer to people here, and I love helping the small biz community. I feel like I really vibe and connect with everyone, which helps me be productive.
I feel like I have peers here to help me with ideas and completing projects.
For those who want to learn more, how can you be reached?