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Any body here own an independent game store?
Topic Started: Feb 28 2012, 10:11 PM (686 Views)
DaftCody
Mandalore In Training
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I am seriously interested in what it takes to run a (at least some what) successful independent Video game store.
I can assume the basics, deal in older nostalgic games and focusing more on customer/employ interaction and dont try to shove pre orders down peoples throats.
So any tips?
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Narrasand436
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Closets
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"Successful independent Video game store." Not gonna happen......
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sdcpro
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DaftCody
Feb 28 2012, 10:11 PM
deal in older nostalgic games
Most game stores do not profit much on retro unless you do it really big. Retro just is to bring customers in, the current stuff is usually where they make the profit.

Give fair trade value. You don't have to go overboard but don't give crap either.

If you can get a reseller's license, you can give cash as well, which greatly increases your chances of people coming in for trades. I would give at least 30% less for a cash trade in.

Realize that stocking up New titles will be expensive and you won't make much on them at all. Be prepared to make about $3-5 on a brand new game.

I'm not sure what advertising would go into a game store, however it would be almost essential to do some good advertisement. I'd also strongly advise to include a facebook and twitter for the store. Post when something new comes out, some rare games come in, tournaments, or any specials you're having.
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LMG Gaming
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Still Alive an' Kicking
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Here in Sydney, Australia there is a great retro games store that I visit once every few months as it is out West. It is called "Retro Games" and is owned by a very nice man named Nick who has a *hot* daughter that helps out and runs the facebook page. The prices are usually fair, with most NES carts being 5 - 20 bucks. Here is it's website if you are interested.
http://www.retro-games.com.au/
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kuroi
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I actually just spoke with Muzz from L1Games about this subject yesterday morning.

He basically told me that he started with 14 games in a display case at a flea market many years ago. He suggested that it would be best to get in touch with a local distributor for newer game releases and products, as well as accessories/controllers and clone systems. Local distributors are nice because then you can save money on shipping, which gets expensive real quick (I used to do purchasing for a small business for a number of years. He's right). An initial order for basic stock could be anywhere in the $10,000 range if you want to start with a retail location (as opposed to a flea market setting).

Here is an exact quote from him as well:

Consider the following very carefully.

Do not take out any kind of loans. Start as small as possible and keep yourself out of debt with low overhead.
and remember, the retail video game industry is crumbling under DLC/online pass/ETC. and eventually when the consoles go to Fully digitally distributed business models, it will be a thing of the past. Have something to fall back on:)


As for some other advice, I have a friend that works for a used game store in another state. He says that retro is about 50% of their sales, and newer games (used/new) make up the other 50%. A lot of money also comes from system repairs on newer consoles, but it's something that can't be taken lightly.

I really, really want to push into my own space, but I'm just not sure the sales will pay for much more than the overhead. Going back to Muzz, I'm fairly certain he mentioned that his store started as a labor of love, and he worked at least one other job on top of his store at the beginning (as well as being in the armed forces).


Check his channel out, as it's a chronicle of his store leaving its first retail location across a couple of others and the growth it's experienced. It's pretty sweet.

LINK--->L1Games - YouTube

All of his videos are numbered, so you can watch them in order to see the growth. There's a lot of other stuff that goes on with his channel, but make sure to check him out.
Edited by kuroi, Feb 29 2012, 05:58 AM.
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