Who are we, and how did we get started?

Púca Púca Games was co-founded by directors Ciaran and Natasha in May 2020, and we started trading in July 2020.  At present it is still just the two of us, so every purchase you make is put towards supporting us and our small business.  However, we look forward to growing and taking on some staff in the future! 

Ciaran (pronounced Keer-ran for our non-Irish readers) and Natasha both have a number of years of experience working in a variety of retail stores, met when working together in a second hand video game / tech store.  Ciaran worked in a number of different industries including video rental, tech supply sales, and video game sales.  Ciaran then went on to get a BEng in Computer Games Development and worked in software development for a number of years.  This experience in software development aided Ciaran in designing our website.  It is also through his video game development that he met and worked with the artist who went on to design all of the amazing artwork for Púca Púca Games.

Ciaran has always had a love for video games, from the minute he received his first ever video games console, a NES, at the age of 5.  Later in life the nostalgia for these now older video games and their consoles sparked a new hobby for Ciaran in retro video game collection.  Ciaran amassed a large collection of retro video games and video game consoles over a period of around 10 years.  This collection formed the foundation upon which Púca Púca Games was founded.  We started out trading in second-hand video games alone, and gradually expanded out into the other areas we wanted to trade in. 

Ciaran also made Youtube videos on video game collecting in his spare time.  His channel Harry Atomic on Youtube focused mainly on his collection of Xbox 360 games - a console he was particularly passionate about due to having many fond memories of playing and modding this console in his teens.  This Youtube channel provided him with the skills that allowed him to leave his career in software development to pursue video editing as a full-time career.  He worked most notably on the CU Podcast by Pat Contri (Pat the NES Punk), and as the editor for the Spiffing Brit Youtube channel (a channel he still works on today).  This video editing experience helped build Púca Púca Games’ social media presence.  He now also runs the TCG channels ‘Poké Facts’ for Pokémon content and ‘The Ragamuffin Man’ for Trading Card Games.  Ciaran is also the co-host of the ‘1UPcast’ alongside his friend Daniel.  In this podcast Ciaran and Daniel talk about wrestling, video games, and anything else that happens to pop into their heads on the day! 

Natasha worked in a number of retail sectors including fast food, grocery, cinema, a pet store, and video game sales.  Natasha then achieved her BSc in Stratified Medicine and worked as a scientist for a few years before founding Púca Púca Games.  Natasha brought her love of biology into Púca Púca Games through environmentalism.  We worked very hard to make sure that all our packaging is environmentally friendly and curb side recyclable.  We bring this mentality into every new venture we undertake.  You can read more about this in our environmental policy.

Natasha and Ciaran both play trading card games, with their personal favourites being Pokémon and Flesh and Blood.  Over the years of playing TCG, Natasha noticed how uncomfortable some ‘geek culture’ spaces can be for some people.  Often women and other people are off put by the stereotypes of what they think these spaces are and who they think they are for.  Women make up around 49% of the Geek culture community but are not represented in these spaces most of the time, so they relegate themselves to enjoying their hobby at home.  We want to change this and make women and other groups of people not normally represented in these spaces feel welcome in them too.  With Púca Púca Games we aim to change this by creating a space that is inclusive and welcoming to everyone: especially beginners, families, parents, women, and members of the LGBTQIA+ community.

Natasha always enjoyed creating art as a hobby.  She wanted to integrate this love of art and the art community into the creation of Púca Púca Games.  This started off with the creation of the mascots and working with a local artist in the creation of them.  We also decided to work with local artists in creating an “artist’s alley” as part of our business plan.  We all love visiting the talented local artists in artist’s alleys during con season, so we decided we wanted a permanent space for creators in the geek culture space to advertise their work.  We also noticed a gap in the market when it comes to TCG accessories eg. Play mats, sleeves, and deck boxes.  Most were in plain colour.  We decided to team up with local artists to create some unique art prints to decorate these accessories with too.