Advice on Opening a Game Store

[jgbrowning]

Try to establish good relations with at least 2 distributors that carry the full range of what she plans to carry in the store. Place most of the orders with one, to get a better volume discount, and use the second to reduce problems with distributor out-of-stocks.

While she's at it, she should really pay attention to what thalmin's saying. Curt's been doing this since I was a wee lad and there's very few gaming stores that are as well run, and well-respected, and especially in this business still open.



joe b.

 

[BrooklynKnight]

The area she plans to open a store doesnt actually have one. They have a comic book store that "dabbles" in some gaming stuff, but they dont bother carrying most of the stuff, so she would have no real competition. At least so she claims.

When she comes here i'm sure she can explain more.

 

[Najo]

A couple of things have come up and I felt I should put my own 2 cents in on them briefly:

Regarding getting advice from here first, I disagree. Yeah, alot of gamers post here and most of the advice you may get you need to ignore or take some salt with it, but many of the manufacturers, distributors and retailers pay attention here as well, they just rarely post. No offense intended to anyone, but this place will lead Arthur to others who can help.

Second, the biggest deterant to theft and loss of profits to discounters is personalized customer service. Get to know the customers, communicate with them, take care of their needs and know their likes and dislikes. DO NOT think of them as a wallet, treat them as a person, see to their needs and they will spend their money in your store, not the other way around. With that said, still watch your over head. Instead of special ordering mutliple times a week, keep your store well stocked and be regular with your weekly orders. Know what is going on and do your best to stay on top of things, keeping your customers informed.

Third, there is a reason products do well nationally. Pay attention to national interests and ask yourself why or why not those things work in your area. Makes sure you have those things products well supported if your in a major metropolitain area, or near one. With that said, don't ignore local interests either. This falls into understanding the needs of your customers. But the big games are big for a reason, don't ignore that.

Finally, my wife and I have travelled ALL over the country checking out game stores to learn from their good and bad points. The number one strength and weakness of game stores is they are usually ran by gamers. That means great game knowledge but typically unprofessional customer service and poor business management. I have actaully been in two stores where the employees SMOKED while working in the store itself! Unbelievable. DO NOT DO THINGS LIKE THIS! Be professional, clean, have good customer service, organized product, the whole nine yards. There is alot more that can be said here, especially about the business management. But I think that your friend has to first accomplish the business research and planning. Likewise, if you need someone to look at her plan I don't mind throwing my thoughts in either.

Nate
Borderlands

 

[Felon]

The area she plans to open a store doesnt actually have one. They have a comic book store that "dabbles" in some gaming stuff, but they dont bother carrying most of the stuff, so she would have no real competition. At least so she claims.

The question that pops into my mind immediately is "is she sure there isn't a good reason there's no LGS in that area?" People can really let low rent rates tempt them into making very bad location decisions.

They can also often make equally poor choices reqarding employees. I know a few gaming shops where the owner is a great guy, but they have some lazy, surly creeps working for them, and I often wonder how their bosses let that slide. Do your customers and yourself the service of hiring people who are actually knowledgable and enthusiastic about the hobby. "Sorry, I just work here" is not an acceptable reply to a customer's question. Even assuming an employer is scraping the bottom of the barrel, I'm often amazed at how often gaming shops hire people who neither know or care about gaming products. It is not particularly difficult to find an unemployed gamer.

I suspect the answer is much the same as in any small retail business: a lot of people hire their nieces and nephews or their spouse's little brother or their friends' kids, an so on. Avoid the mistake of hiring people as favors. They're the toughest people to fire when they don't work out. If you're really serious about making your business work, then adopt professional hiring standards. Conduct interviews.

 

[johnsemlak]

It is not particularly difficult to find an unemployed gamer.

Ouch

 

[robaustin]

The area she plans to open a store doesnt actually have one. They have a comic book store that "dabbles" in some gaming stuff, but they dont bother carrying most of the stuff, so she would have no real competition. At least so she claims.

When she comes here i'm sure she can explain more.

Where in Philadelphia is she planning to open this store?

I'm asking because you say the area has no gaming store. Don't be so sure about that. About 25 minutes northeast of Philadelphia in Cinnaminson NJ is Gamer's Realm. Well known throughout the South Jersey/Philly Region as an excellent gaming store. If she's going to be in Philly proper, or on the western or southern suburbs - That's better. If she's looking at the more northern suburbs, or just over the bridge in NJ - she'll have some major competition!

Just pointing this out - you've got look at your location, then look again. And again.

--*Rob

 

[robaustin]

The area she plans to open a store doesnt actually have one. They have a comic book store that "dabbles" in some gaming stuff, but they dont bother carrying most of the stuff, so she would have no real competition. At least so she claims.

When she comes here i'm sure she can explain more.

Is she SURE there's no local gaming store? Because if she's looking at Philly proper - maybe there isn't. BUT - just over the bridge in Cinnaminson, NJ is Gamer's Realm - one of the best gaming stores around. Here's a map for reference:

http://www.mapblast.com/(lzsqy545z5npljbrhmmg1uiw)/map.aspx?L=USA&C=40.00519%2c-74.99124&A=35.83333&P=|40.00519%2c-74.99124|1|08077|L1|

Note Cinnaminson - A little bit north and east of Philly just the other side of the river!

Be VERY sure that her location is well away from competing with GR - I love 'em - and I know other people who come over from Philly to go there. It's only 15-20 minutes away...

--*Rob

 

[robaustin]

Sorry for the double post...the PC sat here and sat here while trying to send the first post...

 

[MarauderX]

- Pay attention in other stores as to what pisses people off, and what they like. for instance, try to get a store with room to run games, because then you have a captive audience. Listen to your customers.

This is good advice, but DO NOT let the players treat the materials on the racks as 'open resources'. And she better be willing to put in a lot of time and have plenty of help that she can trust to keep the store open relatively early and stay open late, nearly every night. From what I understand, most game store owners don't get out much to events, like sports, theater, concerts, shows, whatever. Be prepared to give that up, baby, since plenty of gamers just don't care about any of it.

I have to say the internet is probably one of the best cheap places to advertise. If she is getting bulk inventory, go straight to eBay and start selling there. It may eat up a lot of that time when she is sitting around her store waiting for the next pack of wargamers to waltz in. Set up a website and link everything you could ever get your hands on to it. Look at examples and get someone cheap and good to teach you how to maintain it yourself once it gets started.

Diversify. Be able to supply everything any fantasy/SF fan would want. Comic books, anime movies, trading cards, hard to find board games, paints & accessories, wargaming figures, minis, limited PS2 & Xbox games, etc. Make the promise that if you don't have it you will get it for someone, or at the minimum you will track down exactly how much it would cost.

Keep excellent records and document EVERYTHING. Everything. From everything like inventory, profits, taxes, new and upcoming products to what the game room is reserved for that night. This makes it easy for gamers to know when to show up for in-store sessions, as well as knowing what they are playing and who is invited. The more you do for them, the more you keep their loyalty and business.

Don't let them see you sweat, and don't them know when you are rolling in the money. It's like a poker game sometimes, and when someone sees you getting too successful they figure you can spare an item or two. Always reply as if the media were watching: "I'm doin' alright, can't complain as there's always something new coming out - like check out the new D&D Edition 4.0..." Don't whine either, as no one likes to hear it, whether you are in or out of the store.

Granted I have never owned or ran a game store, I am just sharing a bit of what I know from my MBA studies. I would like to see more game stores out there, as it seems to be an indicator of more players, which is a good thing IMO.

And if she does open it up, I would hope to hear about it... whether here or wizards or wherever.

Good luck to her.

 

[Thornir Alekeg]

Well, from my limited experience in retail, and having seen a couple of game stores come and go, my recommendation would be to remember that you need to target both the younger and the older gaming crowd, but focus a little more on the older crowd. Not only are they more likely to have the money to buy things, they also often have more appreciation for a good store and are more likely to develop some loyalty where they are willing to spend a bit more than they might get online.

One store I used to frequent was a general hobby shop. The owner focued the game stuff on the younger crowd and the train sets and the like on the older crowd. In the end he droppped the gaming materials because the kids had a tendency to go to another store that had cheaper prices to buy their materials, but then come play at his store. He wasn't making money, so he dropped it, and the kids lost a place to play.