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Message: <blockquote data-quote="timASW" data-source="post: 6072954" data-attributes="member: 6698787">I think any attempt by an FLGS to match big box and online on pricepoint is always doomed to failure. Complaining about it is not worth the effort because its simply never going to change. The big problem and 3catcircus brought it up already is that the industry is not as a whole run like businesses. They're run like grown up hangout places. Thats a doomed proposition at best. FLGS stores have exactly 2 advantages, neither one of which is generally used well. 1. Customer service could be a big advantage. It generally isnt though because they are low paying jobs and the stores generally staffed by smelly jerks who somehow manage to come off as elitist while working for minimum wage and seeming like they have never heard of soap or a razor..... how they do this is something that should be studied at length but not by me.     So in order for 1 to work the answer is again, think like a business for once. Dont only hire gamers. Hire pleasant people with customer service experience and TEACH them about the games you have. Thats called job training. Then pay them enough that they stick around rather then constantly having a revolving door of faces. and 2. Location.     Lots of games have a hard time getting off the ground because of not having a place to play at. Just between meetup.com and my local online gamers forum theres at least 5 games full of people who want to play but have been stymied for weeks because of not having a good place to play.    How does a game store take advantage of this? A. Get involved in social media. If you run an FLGS in an area you had better have your butt on meetup.com, warhorn, facebook and anyplace else where local gamers go to chat about stuff. When people are looking for a place to play YOU should immediately be popping saying "hey guys i have a place". With pictures. B. Have your game space not suck. Does this mean you might need more square footage? Almost certainly. But lots of people dont want to sit at a table in the middle of a public store gaming. Its often not a comfortable experience for a lot of people. So have at least 1 good private area for gaming. Try for 2.     Thats just basics that would help their existing model. Growing would involve thinking outside the box and finding sources of actual revenue besides books. If i were to open one of these things I would try to focus on the club style nature and use pool halls as an example, because I think its a good one. pretty much every city has several good pool halls. Their business model is focusing on one hobby, like gaming, and then going the extra mile of meeting ALL the needs associated with that hobby. Which FLGS's do not do. I would have a very small library of books, lots of game aids, and several private gaming rooms coming off a larger open room for congregating. This room would have comfortable places to sit and look at things and meet and hell a pool table. AND it would have the following 3 things. 1. Coffee and tea bar. Reasonably priced but heres one of your money makers2. Slurpee's and soda. Sans copyright infringing name. But those soda machines are a huge money     maker for stores. I used to run a  7-11 years and years ago and trust me, the profit on those       things per cup is through the roof. 3. Snack bar, with a few fryers and a pizza oven. Why?    Because every single game I've ever seen has people buying food and snacks to bring to the     game and often either ordering more food to the house or leaving mid game for grub. Give them    that food AT THE GAME and charge for it.       This doesnt have to be anything complicated, a pizza as good as the retail chains, french fries and chicken fingers, maybe nachos, hamburgers and sausage etc. 4. A nice comfortable dining area. Hell if you actually have GOOD food you might just make enough     that way to do very well anyway, but let people sit down and have lunch or something and     then ask you about the other games and the people hanging out, then tell them about the     gaming. Profit wont be huge but every avenue of money counts and it might bring new people        into trying gaming at your place.5. Beer. No you dont need a bartender and the full set up. Just a couple of kegs with common     beers that you serve on tap. Also a fairly high profit item although hard liquor mixed drinks are     better.    You set up the private rooms with nice tables, comfy chairs, put a stereo system that hooks up to something like pandora's movie soundtracks station and maybe you get crazy and have a small projector or white board in each one. Make it a really, really good gaming enviroment. The sort of place that people might actually prefer to gaming at a private home. Then you charge a dollar a head to use the room. Why? because all this costs money and some people (not many) wont want food, coffee, soda or beer. And because it gets the money spigot flowing. I know I would personally love a FLGS like that and would hang out there a lot, and buy stuff. Which is something I havent done at an existing FLGS for about 5 years.</blockquote>

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