Black & Read Moving to New Arvada Location

The massive paradise for fans of music, books and games is relocating to an even larger space.

January 21, 2025

Black & Read is moving from 7821 Wadsworth to 6655 Wadsworth. Michael Emery Hecker

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Since opening in 1991, Black & Read Music, Book & Games has anchored an otherwise unassuming strip mall on the southwest corner of West 80th Avenue and Wadsworth Boulevard in Arvada. But now, the bastion for all forms of physical media — everything from vinyl LPs to DVDs to out-of-print books to tabletop role-playing games — is moving.

Fear not, though. The new locale is just down the street.

On January 20, Black & Read announced that the store at 7821 Wadsworth is gearing up to relocate to 6655 Wadsworth, in the freestanding building that had housed a Dollar Tree outlet until its closing in 2024.

"It’s going to be a little chaotic during the move," Black & Read posted in a Facebook announcement. "But everyone seems to be in agreement that we need more space."

The store's current location occupies 10,000 square feet, and the new spot will be 16,600 square feet — a relief to anyone who has had to dig (with great joy, admittedly) through crate upon crate of unshelved stock over the years.

This is Black & Read's biggest change since 2020, when Danny Graul, the store's founder and a longtime friendly presence behind the counter, passed away at the age of seventy.

To help thin its inventory and make the move lighter, Black & Read has instituted a store-wide, 20-percent-off sale through January 26; the store has not yet given a moving date.

"Thanks again for your loyalty and support over the decades," says Black & Read on its Facebook page. "You’ve stuck with us through some difficult times, and we are truly humbled by all the kind words over the years."

Jason Heller is a staff writer at Westword. He's the author of the book Strange Stars: David Bowie, Pop Music, and the Decade Sci-Fi Exploded (Melville House/Penguin Random House), and has contributed to the New Yorker, The Atlantic, Rolling Stone, Pitchfork and NPR.org. His work has won a Hugo Award and a Colorado Press Association Award.

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