Effects of tariffs on game sales (e.g. US/Canada shipments) (No Politics!)

[Thondor]

As a Canadian RPG distributor, marketplace and publisher, (Compose Dream Games - we do also operate in the UK) I feel like I can provide some context.
I don't know what any of this will cause, and I'm simply trying to provide a list of facts from our experience.

• Various print on demand services are often unclear as to whether they are printed in Canada, the US, or even the UK. This has always made things a little complicated for publishers who use them. It's one reason smaller titles often don't say where they are printed inside them.

• Larger print runs that we've handled are often done in China, Lithuania or Poland. Some are printed in Canada. At the moment, I can't think of a recent one that is printed in the USA, though I think we are expecting a mid-sized one in a couple months.

• It's common for a publisher to redirect stock to us from a USA warehouse/receiver, rather than split shipping from an overseas printer. Some of our Canadian publishers have shipped to us direct from the printer.

• Having product cross border back and forth is very common.

• A lot of Canadian game stores get at least some products direct from the USA.

• 4911.99.00 is on Canada's list. That's not good, as it is the most commonly declared HS code for publisher's sending us stuff, so a new 25% tariff on RPG books coming from the USA.

• There's always been a 5% import fee on books entering Canada (this is really just the GST - federal government sales tax that gets applied to everything.)

• About 3% of our sales are to the USA. We've never directly marketed to the USA, but have always shipped there. (We've actually sold more %$ to Germany and to Australia. But that's entirely because we've done events in those places.)


I hope that is useful context for folks looking for insights into how this could impact the RPG industry.

 

[Sacrosanct]

I don't know what any of this will cause, and I'm simply trying to provide a list of facts from our experience.

Thanks for this. This kind of thing helps the conversation because first hand knowledge rather than speculation is helpful.

 

[occam]

Huh. I guess we'll have to wait and see, then. I'll have to assume that those who told me otherwise are either uninformed, or were making it sound like it was something that was "impossible" when it's something that is "difficult" (at least for what they want to do).

I don't think they were uninformed; what you relayed about color printing being done in Canada for sale in the US does appear to be correct for comic books. Assuming some high level of tariffs remain in place, comic book publishers, distributors, retailers, and customers are going get hit real hard.

 

[jian]

My sincere sympathy and condolences to everyone making RPGs and running game stores who didn’t ask for this to happen and who don’t deserve to have their livelihoods smashed.

(The same to everyone else who’s going to suffer from those tariffs… which looks like pretty much everyone at this point.)

I mostly buy pdfs but I’m now thinking I should buy more dead tree games. There are plenty of good stores here in Vancouver.

 

[Thondor]

My sincere sympathy and condolences to everyone making RPGs and running game stores who didn’t ask for this to happen and who don’t deserve to have their livelihoods smashed.

(The same to everyone else who’s going to suffer from those tariffs… which looks like pretty much everyone at this point.)

I mostly buy pdfs but I’m now thinking I should buy more dead tree games. There are plenty of good stores here in Vancouver.

Indeed, there are four with accounts with us, who can order in anything we carry -- and you get the PDF too.
See Retailers

 

[FrogReaver]

I am not too worried in the short term although raw materials costs are going to be awful for my print suppliers if this goes before 3 months. The just in time inventory models are what may break us first. No one carries sufficient supply anymore.

Just in time is so great when it works. So terrible when it doesn’t.

 

[The Soloist]

Buying US RPG books via their online store or participating in KS campaigns has been a losing proposition for Canadians since long before these weird Trump Tariffs. The Canadian dollar is too low, while shipping and duty are too high.

If these tariffs go into effect, it's the end of me buying any gaming stuff from the US, even from local stores. All I can do against this is vote with my money.

I have a collection of games varied enough to play for the next 20 years without getting bored. FOMO and the new shiny things are not required.

 

[FitzTheRuke]

There are plenty of good stores here in Vancouver.

If you don't already, you could even come see ME!

 

[FitzTheRuke]

I don't think they were uninformed; what you relayed about color printing being done in Canada for sale in the US does appear to be correct for comic books. Assuming some high level of tariffs remain in place, comic book publishers, distributors, retailers, and customers are going get hit real hard.

Ah. There we have it. I should have made my original statement with the caveat "for the purposes of comic books".

We Canadian comic stores are likely to get hit TWICE on the tariffs, when it comes to comics. Once when they are printed here, causing the American companies that make them to hike the price to cover increased costs, and then again when they are sold to us by US suppliers (through Canada's retaliatory tariffs).

And then AGAIN when our dollar nose-dives. And AGAIN when shipping costs increase... and so on.

 

[jian]

If you don't already, you could even come see ME!

I already have - we don’t go up to Port Moody much but will be back.