Joshua DiGangi — a "Titanic" superfan and longtime Largo resident — has decided to turn his hobby into a business.
DiGangi has made viral videos about VHS tapes of the 1997 film "Titanic" for more than two years. He has been featured in Variety for his obsession and has thousands of followers across his social media accounts. His collection has become one of the world's most extensive collections, and he has made a name for himself as "the 'Titanic' on VHS guy," or as Titanicguy97 on TikTok, he said.
Now, he's hoping to turn this online fandom into a Dunedin roadside attraction — and, ultimately, a small business.
This month, DiGangi moved his collection of over 3,000 videotapes, homemade dummies of the movie's main character, Jack Dawson, and other novelties from a small room in his home to space in the back of his friend's smoke shop, Discount Smoke in Dunedin.
The move is a means to experiment with connecting with his fans, fuel his collecting and potentially make money, he told Tampa Bay Inno.
"I don't know if you know what a box of 100 'Titanic' on VHS feels like, but it was so heavy to move all those boxes, and I don't wish that upon anyone," DiGangi said.
DiGangi decided to pursue the venue after he hosted an event for his fans in December 2023, he said.
"We wanted to dip our toes in the water to see if it was even possible to have people come out to see 'Titanic' on VHS," DiGangi said. "It sounds silly, but it was a big success for us. We had tons of people come out. We collected so much 'Titanic' on VHS, and we made a pretty decent amount of money selling merch."
He earns profits from his online presence through selling merch and monetizing his content, he said. It's inconsistent, and a standard month yields a few hundred dollars, he said. Yet, he said he doesn't do it for the money, and he has a job besides the videos.
But the December event proved that an in-person concept would work, he said. Around that time, his friend Sead Neziri purchased the Dunedin smoke shop. DiGangi realized the ample storage space in that back of the shop would be perfect for renting to test out his attraction concept, he said.
"Any traffic that comes with the store is going to be great for both of us," said Neziri.
DiGangi's goal with the venue is to make enough to pay rent, he said. He plans to charge around $10 to visit — and a discounted rate if you bring a VHS tape, he said. The venue will move to a larger location if the business venture proves profitable, he said.
"Everyone wants to see the collection, but it's in my house, so that was always an issue with me," DiGangi said. "I'm not gonna let strangers come over the house."
He plans to register as a limited liability corporation if the business succeeds, he said. The space officially opens April 11. Fans and social media influencers have already reached out to attend and promote the event, he said.
To collect the tapes, DiGangi has established a network of local thrift stores — Retro Rat, Thrifting Things, Vintage Den, Mac Attack — that save the tapes for him to buy. It has become more difficult and expensive to find "Titanic" VHS tapes in the area, he said. Yet his goal is to collect 1 million tapes, he said.
"This is 100% the state this deserves to be in," DiGangi said.
