How To
Opening a game store *should* be like opening any other type of business. You write a plan, you scout locations considering demographics, you raise funds, and you attempt to appeal to as many people as possible. You carry what your local community will buy and always try to expand that. Profit margins are thin, around 5-7% when all the bills are paid, and only then after a year or two of losing money. So if you write a business plan and think it's impossible, you're getting close. Generally it will cost $50,000-$100,000+ to open a game store with broad appeal. We're currently in a CCG boom, so you might try doing it for a lot less, with the understanding you'll need to reinvest so you can diversify before the bubble bursts, but it's a long shot.
The average game store does around $200,000/year in gross sales, perhaps a bit more. If it's profitable, it means the owner is making around $10,000 on top of their salary, assuming they work in the store. Successful stores that are properly capitalized make three to seven multiples of this. They make this money not be selling snacks, impulse purchases, or running events, they do it by serving regular customers who shop primarily at their store. There's no witch craft, no secret way to get people to avoid Amazon, and it's not about selling snacks. The truth is 90% of retail sales in the US occurs in brick and mortar stores. You might not shop in one, but the other 9 people in the room do. It's obviously not as simple as that, as many people do both, but you live to serve up as many things as possible to those who come through your doors.
We have about 1 million per 1/4th of the state. And I think that's a huge factor in how many businesses can even stay open in this sort of area. But I think most of what you're saying is still broadly applicable.
