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Message: <blockquote data-quote="EditorBFG" data-source="post: 3394614" data-attributes="member: 24719">I was the main employee/assistant manager of a store that failed, so I have some insight.#1 - Try to make a small profit, but know there is no way you will make a large one. Just over enough to stay in business is a success store. And be prepared to operate at a loss your first year (both in actuality and for tax purposes), putting all money back into the business. Honestly, a game store is a rotten investment; this is a labor of love.That said, don't act like you hate money. Have lots of food or drink available. Most local authorities don't seem to mind selling sodas or candy out of a fridge. Allow outside food (unless you're gonna sell pizza) but not outside beverages except maybe water-- you should not have to compete with 7-11 to make money from the "hang out all day" people. Also, enforce strict rules about where food and beverage can be consumed-- pepperoni grease is not a selling point for the glossy color pages of $39.95 hardcover.Run it like a bookstore, not a comic book stoe. Let folks browse as much as they want, but also remind them you haven't forgotten they are there. Have exactly one clock, behind the counter, which brings people into your line of sight to check it.Make the gaming area and the browsing area as separate as possible. Demos are a little different, as you want people to get caught up, but for the most part games should not be played where people who may or may not enjoy interacting with strangers are shopping.You'll make money on minis and cards, not gamebooks, but carry enough gamebooks to make you the place people come to when they want to order something no one has locally. Competition will make this more complex. Also, for gamebooks, it is a good idea to have some kind preferred customer card that gives them a discount to compete with Internet prices. This card should probably cost money, and maybe come with some other cool bennie, but should probably not cost more than 10 bucks. Board game interest is hard to gauge, so you need to assess your local market.Be firm about the not letting kids in during school hours thing. Kids playing hooky are not good customers.For employees, have uniforms (not degrading ones) if you can help it. They should not be hard-selling customers, since some will be put off by social interaction of any kind, but they should make it clear they are there to answer questions, not sit behind the counter reading The Book of Erotic Fantasy. Enforce some kind of grooming standard-- you can't outlaw facial hair and beards, because this is a game store, but no employee should obviously not have showered that day (if they can skip a shower every so often without looking or smelling like a carny, that's okay). Deodorant should be mandatory for folks who work for you-- you might even want to have a spray can on the premises. I'm only half joking on that.Theft is a constant problem. Keep items likely to be stolen in easily watched places. Have a key for the restroom, and if possible have it near a workstation to let people in and out yourself-- much shoplifting is accomplished by sneaking the book into the bathroom, then moving it to a less conspicuous hiding place.If you can maintain the inventory, we found renting and selling anime profitable, with a lot of customer crossover.Cleaning the restroom will suck. Do so often anyway.The most successful game store I have ever seen is Endgame in Oakland, CA. They wear uniforms and operate a clean, well-lighted store with a memorable color scheme that enforces a strong brand identity. If you are not in the area (and therefore not a competitor) contacting them might not be a bad idea, they seem like nice folks. And unlike me, they might have a little bit of up-to-date market data.</blockquote>

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