Danny: I got that you weren't suggesting we do a food truck; I was just giving a little too much info to point out that we don't have many (any, really, as the two in operation only go to two places). I should have been clearer.
I checked out the gaming tavern linked earlier in the thread, and it's cool. But I really don't think it'd work here. I mean, you'd get gamers in there and drinking, so your margins MIGHT change, but it adds a lot to the startup costs (here, you have to buy an existing license; new licenses are rarely issued and can take up to two years, during which time they can be stopped by nearly any objection. I remember one that got tanked because a lady lived within 10 blocks of the place and she was afraid her dog would be poisoned by liquor when she walked him by the place). It might be something to research, however.
I know about loss leaders, break evens, and money makers. I've taken that into account on my projections. The thing is, as GOB point out, that the margins on even the best are tight. I mean, it averages across all product lines as about 35%, with lines ranging from productivity of 47% all the way down to 5% (I'm glaring at you, GW and indie publishers). Add to that tight set of margins the fact that I don't have good data for purchases in our area, and it becomes a risky adventure with small and unsure gains.
Pogre: He'd need to hit that number in 18 to 24 mo. If he does that, he'll be profitable by year 5. No greatly profitable, but profitable.
GOB: Congratulations, GOB. It good to hear some one with a game store doing well.
John and I have discussed some of what you pointed out. He's looking at two different spots, one in each of the city's two major shopping areas. Both on one main roads, and both have parking. Site 1 is downtown, which has been revitalized and has access to the university, upscale condos, and is a high foot traffic area. Site two is the interstate shopping area, and that area doesn't have foot traffic at all for any store. Plus, it has a Books-A-Million on it.
The idea is a modern FLGS. That means a custom appointed, high tech store with nice tables, an arcade type area, pay to use gaming areas, and video displays. There will be live demos of shorter games, as well as scheduled demos of longer games.
Aside from sales of the traditional products of CCG, RPGs, miniatures, and board games, other ideas on the table are:
*Pay to Play Tournaments
*After hours special events
*Partnership Events (There is club in the area which I do work for; we spitballed the idea of a cross-promotion with prizes so there would be game that centered around a bard competition, and then the people would have to attend the club to hunt for clues with a free or reduced admission; another idea are theme dinners with local restaurants. There is a barbecue restaurant nearby that I'm sure we could sell on an "orc-b-que" night.)
*DM Daze: Several DM's running different games of different genre, and a customer pays a small fee to try there hand at whatever game they want.
John would also like to expand his product lines with small press/indie games, OSR support, and other things that can't be had in our area. At present, there isn't a lot of competition outside of BAM. There is one other game store in the town, but truth be told, I don't expect it to still be in business by the time he gets this set up. It isn't about the customers, or money, it's just that the owners have what I like to call Small Business Owner's Syndrome. The store is open when they feel like it, which makes it hard for people to shop there. They don't even try to keep normal hours; they post them on facebook, and it's a suggestion.
Example: I checked one day, and it said 10 to 2. I showed up at 11, and the place was closed. I waited half an hour, and no one showed. I went back to the office, and finally at 1:45 they posted on facebook that they'd be closed that day. That's happened several times to a lot of gamers that I know.
Anyway, I talked with John about it today, and he doesn't seem particularly dissuaded. As he pointed out, it doesn't have to make a lot of money for him; just enough to make it worth messing with. He's got other investments, pensions, etc, that provide living income. I don't know what he'll decide.
What does anyone think about the above? Any other suggestions?
Should we include comic books? The margin is bad, but it might be a draw for people..
Last time I picked up Lands of the Linnorm Kings from Paizo, ca £15 for 64 pp!
