NILES — Three months after the historic flood nearly destroyed his brick and mortar storefront, business owner Michael Reed re-opened Custom Computer Company at 603 N. Second on June 4.

To celebrate, Reed is inviting the community to a ribbon cutting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, July 12, at the business. The Four Flags Chamber of Commerce will be there to help conduct the re-opening and there will be a hog roast for the community to enjoy.

“It feels good to get out of my basement, I started in my basement years and years ago and had to go back to that,” Reed said. “It feels good to be back open. It was 10 hours of me driving around a day to fix computers.”

In late February, severe rain and snowmelt caused the St. Joseph River, which is about a quarter of a mile from Reed’s business, to flood. About 4 feet of water poured into his business, destroying equipment and personal belongings and racking up more than $250,000 in damage.

Instead of giving up and shuttering his brick and mortar storefront to return permanently to his home office in the basement, Reed saw an opportunity to make his storefront, which serves the community as a free computer lab and gaming hub, even better than the last.

After three months of renovating, Reed was proud to show off those changes earlier this week. While a few finishing touches are in the works, Reed has re-opened the store front officially. The new store now is more like a cyber-café. Tables and countertops will seat up more than 60 people. The interior design features tables and later this week a high-top counter will be added.

“Instead of having random fold-up tables for our computer labs and gaming, we are going to have two 30-foot counters, custom built that we are [installing] ourselves,” Reed said. “These are features we pictured from day one. Since we had to [renovate], we just decided to do what we had pictured from the beginning.”

Another new feature added to the building is a virtual reality room and customer service area.

“We had VR before but it was so crowded that you would hit walls,” Reed said. “We wall mounted the server and now the kids have a room.”

The abundant seating will allow Reed to cap future lock-ins or all-night computer and gaming sessions at 30 instead of 20. Those who come to Custom Computer to use the equipment will also see bigger console screens than before and gaming chairs for use. 

Reed also wanted to share the new opportunities for students that are on the horizon. With the storefront open, he hopes to have an internship program where high school students can learn graphic design and web design skills. 

While Reed never ceased his businesses operations while repairs were being made, he said he was glad to have the storefront open once again so that the community can once again use it as a free computer lab or place for students to study. He said those who visit the business will have a selection of snacks and beverages to choose. They added frozen snacks to the menu that can be warmed in an air fryer or microwave.

While trying to make repairs to his store, Reed was continuing to operate his business, using a space in his basement as an office.

Insurance covered some of the damage to the building and Reed also collected about $4,500 in donations through a Go Fund Me account. A number of community members also showed up at the store during the repair process to donate to the cause. What was most helpful, he said, was the volunteers who helped to make repairs.

Reed said they also have Honor Credit Union and Abonmarche to thank. Honor Credit Union donated about 19 upgraded computers to Reed and Abonmarche donated eight to 10 servers.

To prepare, Reed said they made a few alterations that could help to make any future flood less severe. The parking lot was rebuilt to slant toward the road, rather than toward the building. They also installed water catch buildings. Electrical sockets were moved up to the 4-foot flood line.