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jonolikespie wrote: That doesn't seem to be uncommon in Australia, if a GW opens a store on the same street as a FLGS it's the GW that withers and dies.
Heh. That's the truth.
I mean, Para GW store vs the gaming store right next to it.
He could of left out the flgs part and it would still be the truth, if GW open a store, it withers and dies.
There’s a difference between having a hobby and being a narcissist.
In the good old days of the 80s and 90s, GW sold a wide range of games and related products that competed directly on all levels with independents. It's since GW became a Warhammer monoculture that their competition strategy has stopped being so successful. It's possible that neither GW selling only GW stuff, nor a local shop selling no GW stuff, can be successful in the same town. But it depends on the local environment. In my nearest lareg town, Reading in Berkshire (population about 250,000) there is a GW and an indy shop (Eclectic Games) both apparently doing pretty well. Reading has a huge university, though, and several local wargame clubs, to help sustain demand.
jonolikespie wrote: That doesn't seem to be uncommon in Australia, if a GW opens a store on the same street as a FLGS it's the GW that withers and dies.
Heh. That's the truth.
I mean, Para GW store vs the gaming store right next to it.
He could of left out the flgs part and it would still be the truth, if GW open a store, it withers and dies.
I'd suggest GW stores have done pretty well in Australia over the years otherwise GW wouldn't have bothered opening so many of them. If memory serves, they have vastly more stores per head of population than anywhere but the UK and each major city has several stores, most US cities I went to only had 1 or 2 stores. According to the GW store locator there's 6 stores within 50km of Melbourne's CBD, and I know 1 store that isn't on that list, so 7 stores. That's the same number of stores that is servicing NYC AND Philly AND Baltimore AND Washington DC. So there's the same number of stores servicing 4 million Australians as there is servicing roughly 40 million 'muricans.
So for some reason GW has decided that their stores are a good idea in Australia. I imagine they did REALLY well in the 90's and early 00's.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2016/01/11 12:28:13
jonolikespie wrote: That doesn't seem to be uncommon in Australia, if a GW opens a store on the same street as a FLGS it's the GW that withers and dies.
Heh. That's the truth.
I mean, Para GW store vs the gaming store right next to it.
He could of left out the flgs part and it would still be the truth, if GW open a store, it withers and dies.
I'd suggest GW stores have done pretty well in Australia over the years otherwise GW wouldn't have bothered opening so many of them. If memory serves, they have vastly more stores per head of population than anywhere but the UK and each major city has several stores, most US cities I went to only had 1 or 2 stores. According to the GW store locator there's 6 stores within 50km of Melbourne's CBD, and I know 1 store that isn't on that list, so 7 stores. That's the same number of stores that is servicing NYC AND Philly AND Baltimore AND Washington DC. So there's the same number of stores servicing 4 million Australians as there is servicing roughly 40 million 'muricans.
So for some reason GW has decided that their stores are a good idea in Australia. I imagine they did REALLY well in the 90's and early 00's.
Historically GWs response to stores not doing well has been to open more of them
Or rather, more accurately, under Kirby they believed the store on every street corner method that worked for them in the UK would work in the rest of the world despite vastly different population densities and areas to cover. For at least a few years there at the height of that they were throwing stores out left right and center without them pulling their weight, but were assuming the problem was that there weren't enough stores to reach critical mass.
Fafnir wrote: Oh, I certainly vote with my dollar, but the problem is that that is not enough. The problem with the 'vote with your dollar' response is that it doesn't take into account why we're not buying the product. I want to enjoy 40k enough to buy back in. It was my introduction to traditional games, and there was a time when I enjoyed it very much. I want to buy 40k, but Gamesworkshop is doing their very best to push me away, and simply not buying their product won't tell them that.
jonolikespie wrote: That doesn't seem to be uncommon in Australia, if a GW opens a store on the same street as a FLGS it's the GW that withers and dies.
Heh. That's the truth.
I mean, Para GW store vs the gaming store right next to it.
He could of left out the flgs part and it would still be the truth, if GW open a store, it withers and dies.
I'd suggest GW stores have done pretty well in Australia over the years otherwise GW wouldn't have bothered opening so many of them. If memory serves, they have vastly more stores per head of population than anywhere but the UK and each major city has several stores, most US cities I went to only had 1 or 2 stores. According to the GW store locator there's 6 stores within 50km of Melbourne's CBD, and I know 1 store that isn't on that list, so 7 stores. That's the same number of stores that is servicing NYC AND Philly AND Baltimore AND Washington DC. So there's the same number of stores servicing 4 million Australians as there is servicing roughly 40 million 'muricans.
So for some reason GW has decided that their stores are a good idea in Australia. I imagine they did REALLY well in the 90's and early 00's.
Historically GWs response to stores not doing well has been to open more of them
Or rather, more accurately, under Kirby they believed the store on every street corner method that worked for them in the UK would work in the rest of the world despite vastly different population densities and areas to cover. For at least a few years there at the height of that they were throwing stores out left right and center without them pulling their weight, but were assuming the problem was that there weren't enough stores to reach critical mass.
Not really, GW were closing stores for a while in the USA while still opening them in Oz, I think they are just now embarking on another push to open stores in the USA (presumably they think they have a better idea of how to do it now).
I can definitely believe some stores have been successful in Australia. My local GW has been up and down over the years, a hive of activity in the 90's, dying out a bit in the late 00's and early 10's and now it's picked up again.
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2016/01/11 14:00:37
Kilkrazy wrote: Bundles are something you can put together very quickly. You just need to design and print new boxes, and have the content kits on hand. It's much easier than designing a new kit from scratch.
Especially when you are sitting on TWICE as much inventory as you were a year ago...
I'm just glad to see it seems like Roundtree isn't a Kirby drone like so many were worried about and also glad to see he seems to have some sense of how to run a gaming business.
I'm in the same camp of believing that a 6-month period halfway devoted to Fantasy and a near flat line vs. the last report/year is a good indicator that they are improving.
Best Painted (2015 Adepticon 40k Champs)
They Shall Know Fear - Adepticon 40k TT Champion (2012 & 2013) & 40k TT Best Sport (2014), 40k TT Best Tactician (2015 & 2016)
Hulksmash wrote: I'm just glad to see it seems like Roundtree isn't a Kirby drone like so many were worried about and also glad to see he seems to have some sense of how to run a gaming business.
I'm in the same camp of believing that a 6-month period halfway devoted to Fantasy and a near flat line vs. the last report/year is a good indicator that they are improving.
While I'm not one to get overly optimistic, you're right that it does seem they've flipped on the retro-rockets to try and slow their descent
That said, it wasn't a good report from what I can tell - they have a lot of work to do if they want to truly turn things around, IMHO.
It takes a couple of years minimum to turn around a large company. For example, if Rountree decides to open more large hobby centres, he first needs to convince the board (who've spent the past 10 years closing large hobby centres) then there is a long process to identify likely sites, acquire retail space, fit it out, recruit and train staff, etc.
Kilkrazy wrote: Bundles are something you can put together very quickly. You just need to design and print new boxes, and have the content kits on hand. It's much easier than designing a new kit from scratch.
Especially when you are sitting on TWICE as much inventory as you were a year ago...
T
That's a worrying figure; so does that mean they produced the same amount of stuff and sold half of it, or is it likely they ramped up production expecting a boost that never came?
Or worse, they've reduced production and still aren't selling it?
Kilkrazy wrote: It takes a couple of years minimum to turn around a large company. For example, if Rountree decides to open more large hobby centres, he first needs to convince the board (who've spent the past 10 years closing large hobby centres) then there is a long process to identify likely sites, acquire retail space, fit it out, recruit and train staff, etc.
IIRC he does open two "experimental" hobby centers in Australia from all places.
I found the mention funny, they already had those in the past and closed them, dressing them as an experiment to reopen such stores is hiding behind ones fingers.
Imagine what the GW report would look like if written by Warren Buffet.
It would highlight the Horus Heresy and 30k developments calling out successes from the authors and designers, acknowledge weaknesses in the launch process of AoS, and discuss the approach for the new stores and why good store managers are tough to find . It would probably invite all the shareholders to warhammer world for the AGM for a special shareholders weekender.
Kilkrazy wrote: Bundles are something you can put together very quickly. You just need to design and print new boxes, and have the content kits on hand. It's much easier than designing a new kit from scratch.
Especially when you are sitting on TWICE as much inventory as you were a year ago...
T
That's a worrying figure; so does that mean they produced the same amount of stuff and sold half of it, or is it likely they ramped up production expecting a boost that never came?
Or worse, they've reduced production and still aren't selling it?
It could mean any number of things, unfortunately we don't know without further data.
Six mistakes mankind keeps making century after century: Believing that personal gain is made by crushing others; Worrying about things that cannot be changed or corrected; Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it; Refusing to set aside trivial preferences; Neglecting development and refinement of the mind; Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do
Any half-year or annual report is a snapshot of a moment in time, so the situation presented is in some ways artificial.
One guess is that they built a lot of Battle of Cattle boxes and stockpiled them ahead of launch. The stockpile of inventory would have quickly been converted into sales during December, but this would not show up in the report, as it closed on 26th November..
Kilkrazy wrote: Any half-year or annual report is a snapshot of a moment in time, so the situation presented is in some ways artificial.
One guess is that they built a lot of Battle of Cattle boxes and stockpiled them ahead of launch. The stockpile of inventory would have quickly been converted into sales during December, but this would not show up in the report, as it closed on 26th November..
Unsold AoS is another likely culprit.
Most likely both.
The Auld Grump
Kilkrazy wrote:When I was a young boy all my wargames were narratively based because I played with my toy soldiers and vehicles without the use of any rules.
The reason I bought rules and became a real wargamer was because I wanted a properly thought out structure to govern the action instead of just making things up as I went along.
Half-Year Report wrote:To broaden our core trade product reach, in the period, we have designed a small new product range and are at present actively signing up distribution agents to sell this product into North America. We continue to work on other product formats to optimise other opportunities.
Is this referring to Age of Sigmar, or something else that is coming...?
Half-Year Report wrote:To broaden our core trade product reach, in the period, we have designed a small new product range and are at present actively signing up distribution agents to sell this product into North America. We continue to work on other product formats to optimise other opportunities.
Is this referring to Age of Sigmar, or something else that is coming...?
I'd assume since AoS is using the old fantasy kits it's not really a "new" product range. I'd think it's something else-perhaps involving the specialist games?
Wasn't there a rumour about something new 40K related back before Christmas in News and Rumours? Something about people being called in to be trained on it in order to be able to sell into channels?
This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2016/01/12 17:50:15
We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark
The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.
The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox
Azreal13 wrote: Wasn't there a rumour about something new 40K related back before Christmas in News and Rumours? Something about people being called in to be trained on it in order to be able to sell into channels?
We know, for a fact as far as it is possible, that BB isn't until much later this year.
We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark
The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.
The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox
Azreal13 wrote: We know, for a fact as far as it is possible, that BB isn't until much later this year.
True enough, that.
But BB seems like the only thing that fits the description. Unless of course the rumour was really just a rumour.
*Shrug*
Lady Atila (sp?) posted in a thread that BB will come after Epic, so maybe it's Epic.
Six mistakes mankind keeps making century after century: Believing that personal gain is made by crushing others; Worrying about things that cannot be changed or corrected; Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it; Refusing to set aside trivial preferences; Neglecting development and refinement of the mind; Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do
Kilkrazy wrote: In the good old days of the 80s and 90s, GW sold a wide range of games and related products that competed directly on all levels with independents. It's since GW became a Warhammer monoculture that their competition strategy has stopped being so successful. It's possible that neither GW selling only GW stuff, nor a local shop selling no GW stuff, can be successful in the same town. But it depends on the local environment. In my nearest lareg town, Reading in Berkshire (population about 250,000) there is a GW and an indy shop (Eclectic Games) both apparently doing pretty well. Reading has a huge university, though, and several local wargame clubs, to help sustain demand.
From what I've seen of their management, GW would probably be able to make some serious gains if they decided to become a hobby store company rather than a model company (of course neither is actually a GAMES company but whatever). They make good money on their supplies from what I've heard, so why not double down on that? Retail chain management from a business perspective is also easier than running a creativity based business. There's a lot more availability in the management department for them to rob from other companies as well.
So I agree, I think they should drop the GW only marketplace, and retool all their Games Workshop stores into just general FLGS. if its profitable for all the individual FLGS, then they could make some serious gains. And maybe their upper management wouldn't have to be so embarrassed about being a toy company anymore (the impression I get from all their financial reports), since they'd be a toy retailer instead. They may see losses on their own merchandise, but if they're as good of sales company as they think they are, then they should see some pretty serious gains in general sales. And if you can sell 1 inch tall plastic dwarves for $6 each, hell I'm sure you can find a way to sell X-Wing miniatures too.
Not enough people have quit buying overpriced miniatures to use with the gak rules produced by GW.
C'mon people!
Give them nothing! Take from them everything!
Captain Killhammer McFighterson stared down at the surface of Earth from his high vantage point on the bridge of Starship Facemelter. Something ominous was looming on the surface. He could see a great shadow looming just underneath the waters of the Gulf of Mexico, slowly spreading northward. "That can't be good..." he muttered to himself while rubbing the super manly stubble on his chin with one hand. "But... on the other hand..." he looked at his shiny new bionic murder-arm. "This could be the perfect chance for that promotion." A perfect roundhouse kick slammed the ship's throttle into full gear. Soon orange jets of superheated plasma were visible from the space-windshield as Facemelter reentered the atmosphere at breakneck speed.
I vote with my wallet. If they produce a product that is a good value (to me) and that I'm interested in, I buy it to reward their good behavior.
Case-in-point, the new "get started" bundles. The price was right (at discount) and so bought some.
The problem historically is that GW seems dense when it comes to such things and incapable of realizing why items sell so well.
Six mistakes mankind keeps making century after century: Believing that personal gain is made by crushing others; Worrying about things that cannot be changed or corrected; Insisting that a thing is impossible because we cannot accomplish it; Refusing to set aside trivial preferences; Neglecting development and refinement of the mind; Attempting to compel others to believe and live as we do
A good deal of what GW is doing now would have done them a lot more good if they had done it five years ago.
Bundles with a discount, Specialist Games, BaC - all are good moves, but with the possible exception of BaC, they would have been better to help prevent GW from getting to the point where they are.
I was skeptical of Rountree - I am among the people that thought that he would be nothing but another footstool for Mr. Kirby.
But is seems that he has a bit more push than I had expected.
Again, something that would have been good four or five years ago.
The Auld Grump
Kilkrazy wrote:When I was a young boy all my wargames were narratively based because I played with my toy soldiers and vehicles without the use of any rules.
The reason I bought rules and became a real wargamer was because I wanted a properly thought out structure to govern the action instead of just making things up as I went along.
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