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<blockquote data-quote="GMSkarka" data-source="post: 1951549" data-attributes="member: 763">RPGMall tried to do this, and RPG specialty retailers didn't really bite.Unless you get the products available through the distributor that they're already using, most gaming retailers won't bother to look at you, no matter how much you might sweeten the pot for them.&nbsp; It's simply too much of a &quot;hassle&quot; for them, supposedly.&nbsp;&nbsp; There are a minority of sharp retailers who go out of their way to take advantage of such things and run their businesses like a business, but unfortunately the overwhelming majority of retailers are barely more than a way for the owner and his pals to get gaming material at cost.The main reason that I made the switch to PDF this year is that I've worked in this business since 1988, as a retailer, a distributor, a publisher and a freelancer.&nbsp; I've done it all, and what I'm seeing, filtered through my experience, tells me that specialty niche gaming retailers are going to go the way of the ice-delivery man...probably in the next 10 years, as delivery of niche product direct to the consumer becomes more widespread.&nbsp;&nbsp; Right now, superstores like Borders are examining the feasability of Print-On-Demand kiosks on-site, in the store.&nbsp; You go in, find the title you want, and it prints and binds it for you right there.&nbsp; &nbsp; Once that happens, kiss the gaming store goodbye, unless the tech is cheap enough for a small business to afford a similar system.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="GMSkarka, post: 1951549, member: 763"] RPGMall tried to do this, and RPG specialty retailers didn't really bite. Unless you get the products available through the distributor that they're already using, most gaming retailers won't bother to look at you, no matter how much you might sweeten the pot for them. It's simply too much of a "hassle" for them, supposedly. There are a minority of sharp retailers who go out of their way to take advantage of such things and run their businesses like a business, but unfortunately the overwhelming majority of retailers are barely more than a way for the owner and his pals to get gaming material at cost. The main reason that I made the switch to PDF this year is that I've worked in this business since 1988, as a retailer, a distributor, a publisher and a freelancer. I've done it all, and what I'm seeing, filtered through my experience, tells me that specialty niche gaming retailers are going to go the way of the ice-delivery man...probably in the next 10 years, as delivery of niche product direct to the consumer becomes more widespread. Right now, superstores like Borders are examining the feasability of Print-On-Demand kiosks on-site, in the store. You go in, find the title you want, and it prints and binds it for you right there. Once that happens, kiss the gaming store goodbye, unless the tech is cheap enough for a small business to afford a similar system. [/QUOTE]

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