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| Photos: Wicked Local Lexington/James Jesson |
The grand opening of Omar’s World of Comics & Hobbies of Lexington, MA, was covered on January 16 in Wicked Local Lexington.
Twenty-two-year-old Omar Masood developed an interest in comics about four years ago, which led his father, Sohail Masood, to open the store, for which Omar -- who was Born with Down syndrome -- serves as CEO as he works behind the counter and on the sales floor.
Masood recruited Sally Hoops, a former waitress with business experience, to be the new store’s manager “As soon as they told me about, I knew it was the right thing,” she said in the article.
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| Store Manager Sally Hoops (left) and CEO Omar Masood |
In addition to Omar, according to the article, “Three days each week, four LABBB [Educational Collaborative, which provides special education services at Lexington High School] students will work as interns at Omar’s World of Comics & Hobbies, stacking shelves, taking inventory and generally keeping tidy a space frequented, in part, by kids. Two part-time managers with ties to the LABBB program are also on staff.”
One of those part-time weekend managers — Rob McDonough, a LABBB physical education assistant — noted that students have limited opportunities to work in their communities after leaving that program.
“This is pretty unique,” McDonough said in the article, “and I just want to be a part of it."
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| Omar Masood on the store's opening day. |
