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Lately I've noticed a lot of FLGS with almost no merchandise, and/or hardly stocked. Maybe they'll have some of the newest releases, but nothing extensive. This has also bore witness to something very funny that I hear often; when they tell me they can order something for me that they don't have in stock, like it's 1990 and I can't go home and do that myself, and likely get it quicker and cheaper.

Seriously, I know it sucks, but if you have a store, you got to carry merchandise. Otherwise it's almost like trying to have your cake and eat it too. I'm all about helping the little guy, but you got to have it on your shelf for me to help you. That's me meeting you halfway.

Because space is at a premium and they don't want to stock something unless they know it will sell, I guess. My FLGS is absolutely tiny, but they manage to fit more stuff than you'd think on their shelves. However, there are kits like the Stompa that have been there since they got it and still haven't sold. I do order things through the store since I get a discount and get to help out a local business. Yeah, I have to wait a week or so, but I've got no shortage of cool stuff to paint as-is.

I hear what ou are saying I def do try to support my local FLGS. Most of the time I leave emtpy handed. Mainly because cost is at Full MSRP. I can buy stuff at full MSRP anywhere.... give me a reason to come in and spend money!

My local sells FOW at higher than MSRP. I buy nothing to do with FOW, but his Infinity stuff is a good price... So I buy that.

Even though I have to order it through his store.

Yeah, these aren't hole in the walls either. They got the space, but seemingly at some point decided not to stock them like I've seen FLGS do as I've come up through the hobby. I'd also suggest to someone opening up any store, to pick a location big enough to operate in.

I might be enticed if they ordered something they didn't have in stock at a discount, but that's never offered. It's full price, and I've even been asked to pay that in advance which I'd never consider in store.



Automatically Appended Next Post:

Milisim wrote:I hear what ou are saying I def do try to support my local FLGS. Most of the time I leave emtpy handed. Mainly because cost is at Full MSRP. I can buy stuff at full MSRP anywhere.... give me a reason to come in and spend money!

My local sells FOW at higher than MSRP. I buy nothing to do with FOW, but his Infinity stuff is a good price... So I buy that.

Even though I have to order it through his store.

I don't have a problem paying full MSRP at my FLGS, that's my way of helping them out, and helping the little guy. But to not have the merchandise, and obviously not make efforts to be fully or moderately stocked, that's lazy. I'm not helping that.


[

Several issues are driving this according to my FLGS.

1) GW wants you to pre-order stuff, but won't tell you what you are pre-ordering because they are afraid of leaks. Any sane store owner isn't ordering anything blind because they don't know if it will sell.

2) A lot of the Finecrap (Finecaste) and metal stuff is GW direct only, meaning the store can't stock it even if they wanted to. This pushes people from buying at the store even if they wanted to because if they are going to order, they might as well find a discount.

3) The prices are too high and my FLGS can't move it. In fact, they canceled their account and are dropping GW once again because GW stuff don't sell.

My local store has a fairly robust stock, and sell at MSRP, and I buy there quite frequently. There are two others in the area that have zero boxes on the shelf and do exactly what you are talking about. At MSRP. The few times I have wandered in there I have been amazed that they are still open.
My local store gets my business when they have the box on the shelf. If it's not, I don't even ask. I'll go home and order it myself, for 20% cheaper, and get it faster. They actually decided not to stock the new flamers and screamers. I went in, they didn't have any, I walked out.
If you ask me, the days of high profit margins for brick and mortar are gone, but it can still make a living if you have a proper business model. But you can't try and work both angles. It's not going to make you any new customers, and it's going to disappoint repeat customers like me.

MisterMoon wrote:Lately I've noticed a lot of FLGS with almost no merchandise, and/or hardly stocked. Maybe they'll have some of the newest releases, but nothing extensive. This has also bore witness to something very funny that I hear often; when they tell me they can order something for me that they don't have in stock, like it's 1990 and I can't go home and do that myself, and likely get it quicker and cheaper.

It's very true. It's hard to buy things that aren't on the shelf, and if I have to wait for it anyway, (ie order it), it makes it that much more difficult to justify.

Barfolomew wrote:Several issues are driving this according to my FLGS.

1) GW wants you to pre-order stuff, but won't tell you what you are pre-ordering because they are afraid of leaks. Any sane store owner isn't ordering anything blind because they don't know if it will sell.

2) A lot of the Finecrap (Finecaste) and metal stuff is GW direct only, meaning the store can't stock it even if they wanted to. This pushes people from buying at the store even if they wanted to because if they are going to order, they might as well find a discount.

3) The prices are too high and my FLGS can't move it. In fact, they canceled their account and are dropping GW once again because GW stuff don't sell.

Sadly, this is what my store said too, and I can't disagree. GW is hurting everyone with their B.S. model.

War Eagle!

Barfolomew wrote:Several issues are driving this according to my FLGS.

1) GW wants you to pre-order stuff, but won't tell you what you are pre-ordering because they are afraid of leaks. Any sane store owner isn't ordering anything blind because they don't know if it will sell.

2) A lot of the Finecrap (Finecaste) and metal stuff is GW direct only, meaning the store can't stock it even if they wanted to. This pushes people from buying at the store even if they wanted to because if they are going to order, they might as well find a discount.

3) The prices are too high and my FLGS can't move it. In fact, they canceled their account and are dropping GW once again because GW stuff don't sell.

Notice I didn't say EVERY FLGS. There are some I've been too who make every effort to be well stocked so they don't have these issues. They order new releases, so if there is an issue with "blind-ordering" they don't seem to mind. They have all the popular character models (Finecastes), so they don't have an issue with ordering those. Also if a store dropped GW, I'd just find somewhere else to game, but I see stuff moving off the shelf regularly at these FLGS, so it's selling fine.

There are some stores around here that push the "We can order it" line. I am surprised that they are still in business.

Stores need to start activities, leagues, etc. to get to know their customers. In doing so, they can better idea of the stock that will sell.

whitedragon wrote:

MisterMoon wrote:Lately I've noticed a lot of FLGS with almost no merchandise, and/or hardly stocked. Maybe they'll have some of the newest releases, but nothing extensive. This has also bore witness to something very funny that I hear often; when they tell me they can order something for me that they don't have in stock, like it's 1990 and I can't go home and do that myself, and likely get it quicker and cheaper.

It's very true. It's hard to buy things that aren't on the shelf, and if I have to wait for it anyway, (ie order it), it makes it that much more difficult to justify.

And for busy people, it's easier to plan ahead and mail order something and get it delivered than make an hour trip to pick something up that day.

Stuff with high shipping costs (like battlefoam) are different, and I suppose really small purchases like a blister might still be easier to order in store, but squad/vehicle boxes usually ship quickly and for a low cost. If it's not on the shelf on my gaming night, I can get it quicker by mail than the next time I get to the shop.

I think that's the deal. Most of us came up in gaming that on gaming night, you'd get a kit. You'd play a game, and say, boy I wish I had some more skimmers, or some tank support. It'd be there on the shelf in all it's glory, and you'd go home with it, and build/paint it up for the next game.

Now the store has, empty shelves, tables, MTG cards, smelly MTG players, and an owner more aloof to business acumen than a scarecrow.

Most GW stores around here seem to suffer the same problem. I refuse to order anything in a store. If the store cannot be bothered to stock things that I might want to buy, they don't get my impulse purchases. It's not much of an impulse buy if I have to wait a week for it to be delivered.

The GW store here is more than adequately stocked. Now, they don't have everything, but I don't expect a store to have everything- I never said they should. Not that GW stores shouldn't do a good list of things different. Store stock hasn't really been their issue.

I've just had it with stores who deliberately choose to carry very limited stock, make up these thinly veiled excuses for doing so, then give me the "we'll order it" line.

O good I thought it was just me. My local flgs does this as well. They still have all the old paint line. Won't buy the new tell they sell the old. Very strange.

On the plus side though I still have access to Devlan mud and Badab black

My local store is really bad about this. They have tons of space, the GW section is just barren shelves. They say they dont want to stock that much for merchandise that moves slow.

It has driven me from without question loyalty to only buying new releases there. If I pre-order it, I get it, otherwise I find other avenues. Most of the time I have an impulse buy need and can't get it, now it is like I dont even have the impulse buy needs anymore.

If the merchandise isn't moving, they aren't marketing it right. But I'm sure it's all GWs fault if you ask them about it.

Slightly off topic...
I think a lot of game store owners should have got in to other lines of work.
It's not like normal retail where you just put crap on shelves and wait for someone to come buy it.
You need to be a sales person, a game master, a rules lawyer, a fan boy. You need to be informed and excited about your products. You need to have the chops to build a community, hell SEVERAL communities.
If I walk in to your store, and half of the store is GW products, and I ask you "Where are the new Flamers and Screamers?" and you reply with "Where are the what?" you shouldn't be working in a game store with GW on the shelves.
Not if you want to stay in business.

matphat wrote:Slightly off topic...
I think a lot of game store owners should have got in to other lines of work.
It's not like normal retail where you just put crap on shelves and wait for someone to come buy it.
You need to be a sales person, a game master, a rules lawyer, a fan boy. You need to be informed and excited about your products. You need to have the chops to build a community, hell SEVERAL communities.
If I walk in to your store, and half of the store is GW products, and I ask you "Where are the new Flamers and Screamers?" and you reply with "Where are the what?" you shouldn't be working in a game store with GW on the shelves.
Not if you want to stay in business.

I'm totally with you on this. I have a BS in Business. So while I'm not some sort of business savy expert, I do know a thing or two about business and entrepreneurship. On that note, some of the crap I've heard from FLGS owners on this topic have been so deep in BS, I found it nearly insulting. I really wanted to tell them to save their excuses for the kidos. I've got cash, and you don't have merchandise, but a litany of excuses which don't add up.

On that note, the one best run FLGS in my area, which stays well stocked, has an owner who told me basically the same thing. There are a lot of folks in this industry who have NO BUSINESS in it.

I would like to support my FLGS, but I don't have one. I live in the middle of nowhere and the closest that SELLS models is 40 miles away (100 miles or so for a store that actually has gaming tables). I was in there the other day looking for Privateer Press stuff, and the only thing in the store is a beat-up copy of the Warmachine Two Player Battle Box that has been scotch-taped back together and has been sitting on the shelf since last December, at least, that they still want MSRP for. Not to be deterred, I asked if he would be getting the Hordes battle box when it was released and was told that he "could order it" and have it there for me 2 weeks after it is released. My options are to either drive a half-hour to a store that obviously doesn't care much about WarmaHordes and pay full retail + tax for an item that will have to be ordered, or get online and pay 20-30% less and have it delivered to me quicker than the store can get it. I'm all for supporting the little guy, and I understand that times are tough economically, but it seems like some store managers feel like they deserve your support, no matter what hoops you have to jump through to get the stuff you want.

MisterMoon wrote:I think that's the deal. Most of us came up in gaming that on gaming night, you'd get a kit. You'd play a game, and say, boy I wish I had some more skimmers, or some tank support. It'd be there on the shelf in all it's glory, and you'd go home with it, and build/paint it up for the next game.

Now the store has, empty shelves, tables, MTG cards, smelly MTG players, and an owner more aloof to business acumen than a scarecrow.

What store is this? Most ATL stores I been to have been pretty good. Gigabytes has low stock sometimes but they carry all kinds of stuff which I like.

MisterMoon wrote:Lately I've noticed a lot of FLGS with almost no merchandise, and/or hardly stocked. Maybe they'll have some of the newest releases, but nothing extensive. This has also bore witness to something very funny that I hear often; when they tell me they can order something for me that they don't have in stock, like it's 1990 and I can't go home and do that myself, and likely get it quicker and cheaper.

Seriously, I know it sucks, but if you have a store, you got to carry merchandise. Otherwise it's almost like trying to have your cake and eat it too. I'm all about helping the little guy, but you got to have it on your shelf for me to help you. That's me meeting you halfway.

Same. I don't normally order things through my local store, because it 1) is more expensive and 2) takes longer to get in.

Still, if I don't really need a model, but just kinda want it for my collection, I'll order it from them. Like I just ordered a Commander Dante from my LGS. I don't need him, I won't use him in any forseeable games, but I wanted the model for my collection. So I don't mind waiting a month to get him.

I agree, There is a store that has 20% off near me, but selection is so well, small. And ordering something off GW is expensive for 10$ shipping(unless i take it somewhere else.

My LGS stores feth all.

More insight at 11.

Not my local store, but there is one down on the coast who no longer really stocks anything GW. My mate told me, the guy was told not to open boxes to paint and sell on ebay or they'd remove his account or some such.

Guy chose to dump GW and continue to paint and sell on ebay, getting his minis from another party/2nd hand.

MisterMoon wrote:Lately I've noticed a lot of FLGS with almost no merchandise, and/or hardly stocked. Maybe they'll have some of the newest releases, but nothing extensive.

This is often a sign of a dying store, without sufficient operating capital to maintain proper stock levels.

The FLGS that I go to here rarely has any open space. It's almost a battle for them to find space to put new things up. They don't like ordering items when needed by customers because they then give a 10% discount, which means their making very little profit on the deal, so they make better money by providing a wide selection of merchandise in store to buy.

Unfortunately for them, most of what I buy is the lest purchased items, so they usually end up having to special order it.

And then these stores wonder why they struggle. I travel a lot and I have noticed the same thing all over the US. I love the line f how they can order it for you. I have the internet and have been able to do that myself since the 90's. One day I broke down and decided to order from my FLGS, so they wait for there normal weekly order to place my order with their distributor then I have to wait until the following week to get the item. So I have to wait 1.5 to 2 weeks to get something I could easily order on the internet for cheaper and get it in 3-5 days. yea right.

There's a new store near me that carries only GW, PP, Dust Tactics and a few RPG's. No CCG's, no other figure brands like reaper. and the result is alot of empty areas where shelves could be.

I asked the owner and he said they hoped to add more as the traffic grows, but I wonder if this will work. The best Game store (they stock nearly every brand of minis you can imagine) in the state is only about a half hour away.

Maybe they're hoping to be conservative and only stock what sells, but when you go in there and it looks nearly vacant it doesn't make you want to come back.