Growing up in Seville, Mario Escobar had a difficult family background, but those feelings of anxiety melted away when he opened up a comic book or watched a fantasy movie.
After moving to the UK almost 30 years ago, Mario met his wife, who is from Northern Ireland. But after their son was diagnosed with ADHD, the pair felt it was the best option to move. They settled in Bangor, and watched as their son achieved three As in A-Level and go on to study Animation at university.
Throughout his son's ADHD journey, Mario also discovered that he had ADHD too. Both lovers of the comic book world, they decided they would put their passion for the genre into a new reality, and will open We Sell Heroes this weekend.
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Speaking to Belfast Live, Mario said the store, which is on Castle Street in Comber, will hopefully be a space where young people can come and express themselves.
"Our son has always been interested, like me, in comic books and science fiction. Because of his diagnosis, I found out that I had ADHD too," he said.
"We always knew we were different, and there were few places to go to enjoy what we liked to do.
"I thought, I can do something about this, and give it a go. We sold our house in Bangor, which was a big deal for us and then moved to Comber. We have always been very fond of Comber because it reminded us of where we lived in England. We made very good friends with some of the people who owns shops in Comber too and once we found a house and settled here in February, I decided it was time to open our own shop.
"Collecting comic books and action figures has always been an interest of mine. I walk around and just think, there's not much for kids to do, if they are interested in non-mainstream hobbies.
"We Sell Heroes is registered as a CIC, a community interest company, and that is one of the main ideas of the shop, for it to be a community hub for young kids. They can come and have a go at table-top gaming, which has become incredibly popular."
The store will open on Saturday, October 1, and during the opening celebrations, they'll be fundraising for a charity close to their hearts.
With children in the area already eagerly awaiting those doors to be open, Mario says he looks forward to allowing a place for those with similar interests to him, to enjoy themselves.
"On our opening day, on Saturday, we will have characters coming from the Cosplay Legion. There'll be Star Wars character helping me open the shop, and what we are also doing is a fundraiser for a local charity called Neurodiversity UK.
"This charity supports children and adults with ADHD and mental health issues too. We thought it would be appropriate that we invovled them within We Sell Heroes.
"I grew up in a very difficult family background and comic books and fantasy moves were always an escape from my reality. When I was reading about the characters, or watching the movies, I was in a different place, a better place. I want and hope the shop will be the same for others.
"For them to come, have a look, enjoy themselves. There is a dedicated seating area which will be reserved for people who want to play table top games. Some kids have already called in and asked that if they brought their own games, can they come in, and of course the answer is yes.
"We want to provide a safe space for anybody who wants to come in and express themselves, grab a coffee, and just have fun."
For more information on We Sell Heroes, visit their Facebook page here.
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