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Any truth to the rumour that GW is closing their east Coast US stores? This should help in controlling their operational costs, wouldnt it?

Where did you hear this rumor?

Someone's been asking over at the discussion board over at a Stock site......thought I scount around.

Well, considering Glen Burnie, an east coast store not too far from me, is their US HQ, I doubt it.

I have heard of two or three GW stores in that area closing suddenly from posts over on warseer, but I dont think all the stores in that area are closing.

There were rumors another store was opening in the Philadelphia area, but I haven't heard a whiff about it in some time. 

It wouldn't surprise me that they close some number of stores on the East Coast, in some places, they have 2 or 3 stores in pretty close proximity.

While the stores are a huge money-pit, they also provide GW with a lot of wiggle room by being able to liquidate them and save on salaries and operating costs.  I would be surprised if they didn't close some of them.

They closed down the Nashville store on the 27th here in Tennessee; also heard that the Atlanta stores were closing as well and that the plan was to have roughly 10 stores nationally.

Not sure on this however....

The whole "Eastern rumor" is kinda far fetched. I have seen this same rumor roaming around 4 other sites. Not much credibility behind it.

Now, GW closing shops around the country, that I can believe, but in one tight section of the country...I am skeptical.

Serves them right for trying to edge out the middleman. There was a day when GW was very persitent in asking you if you have gone to your local shop before calling them to order. Nowadays, they barely even seem to recognize the FLGS.

 Here is a quote from GW's investor relations site.

How do you sell market and sell products?

We don?t tv advertise!  The Hobby is nurtured via:

• Games Workshop Hobby Centres, where people learn how to play, how to paint miniature soldiers, how to create tabletop battlefields.
• White Dwarf, our monthly Hobby magazine published in seven different international editions in five different languages.
• Games Workshop Events ? a global series of national Grand Tournaments, regional Conflict Tournaments, Games Days, Golden Demon Painting Competitions.
• Our Online Community.
• Gaming Club networks.
• Rogue Traders ? trade customers around the world.

 

Notice how indy retailers are last to be mentioned? Also notice how their own shops are the first to be mentioned? I could be blowing it all out of proportion and reading more into it that I should, but recent trends make me feel this isnt merely coincidental paranoia.

Interesting, I had heard that the Atlanta stores didn't do very well and not surprised they are closing. What will be interesting is that the Detroit Metro Area has 2 GW stores (within an hour 15 min of each other) and both are very well supported. If one (or both) of those are closed, it will say a lot about the state of things for GW.

Posted By ThirdUltra on 07/07/2006 8:04 AM

They closed down the Nashville store on the 27th here in Tennessee; also heard that the Atlanta stores were closing as well and that the plan was to have roughly 10 stores nationally.

Not sure on this however....

The Nashville store was closed due to high rent costs in Opry Mills and bad mall managers. It was basically a battle between GW and mall management. They are planning on opening a store early-mid next year in a strip-mall. This way they can have more controll over their hours of operation and don't have to worry as much about pissing off the neighbors.

Would not surprise me. The gw stores in the us can in no way be profitable. They are too specialized too narrow of market to ever turn a profit. If they ran it as a gaming specialized store carring a diveristy of products it be redicoulousily profitable but the geniuses at gw are far too short sighted to mak compendiant business choices.

If they ran it as a gaming specialized store carring a diveristy of products it be redicoulousily profitable but the geniuses at gw are far too short sighted to mak compendiant business choices.

Unintentional humor is the best kind.

Seriously though, I don't think the stores are intended to be profit centers so much as a means to spread the hobby. And if that's the business plan (right or wrong), selling your competitors' products doesn't make any sense.

I've noticed many of the GW stores around here (Maryland) are in fact in relatively 'upscale' areas, like the larger malls. While I appreciate the gamer-friendly stores in the malls, the rent and other requirements have to be impressive.

The Glenn Burnie location, on the other hand, is on the edge of an industrial park area as I remember. Probably works out well: Most of the business are 9-5 M-F shops, but the large lots are there for GW events on the weekend.

I've never understood how GW expected the shops to be profitable. As Balance stated, mall rents are expensive, which has lead GW to create tiny stores with tiny tables (does anyone else think that those tiny stores and tiny tables have influenced the last two generations of rules?) that aren't friendly to hard-core players who want big 2000 point games. I've also noticed that at the stores I've visited, the staff are pretty unfriendly to anyone who isn't a teenage boy, which reinforces the belief that GW wants to exclusively target the 14-17 crowd, and given the cost of the hobby, going after 14-17 year-olds who hang out at the mall all day is a dreadful business strategy.

...sigh. I guess the best we can hope for is that once GW finally goes under, a bunch of old gamers can pick up the pieces, fire all the people who screwed it up, and try to clean up the mess.

Posted by gorgon on 07/07/2006 12:41 PM
And if that's the business plan (right or wrong), selling your competitors' products doesn't make any sense.

Reaper Miniatures owns Nord's Games. They sell Battletech, Warmachine and Games Workshop in the Cincinnati store.

Some of the stores are prety profitable. The ones that I know are tend to have the large gaming area (the people who get to play big games are the more hard core guys who will grab a box or two on the way out) and arent in the malls (where you cant play much at all.
Your right about the general gaming store thing being far far more profitable but I dont know the legalities of selling other guys stuff in your store.

Reaper Miniatures owns Nord's Games. They sell Battletech, Warmachine and Games Workshop in the Cincinnati store.

It's a different business plan though, as evidenced by the fact that they don't even brand the store with the Reaper name. I'm sure GW would love for all its stores to be profitable. But just running a profitable chain of retail stores isn't the end goal, or they would never have stopped selling other companies' games in the first place. Those stores are there to advertise their products, create new hobbyists, and then hopefully turn a profit.

Store closings could just be strategic, also. Personally, I think GW oughta close the Franklin Mills (Philadelphia) location and open a new store in a more upscale mall. I'm sure the rent is cheaper there, but the demographics are all wrong for their audience (most of the other mall stores are of the outlet/discount variety) and it's a pain to get to from some of the wealthier suburbs. Then again, they probably have fewer complaints about noise, etc. than they would in the snootier malls.

Posted By supabeast on 07/07/2006 12:00 PM
I've never understood how GW expected the shops to be profitable. As Balance stated, mall rents are expensive, which has lead GW to create tiny stores with tiny tables (does anyone else think that those tiny stores and tiny tables have influenced the last two generations of rules?) that aren't friendly to hard-core players who want big 2000 point games. I've also noticed that at the stores I've visited, the staff are pretty unfriendly to anyone who isn't a teenage boy, which reinforces the belief that GW wants to exclusively target the 14-17 crowd, and given the cost of the hobby, going after 14-17 year-olds who hang out at the mall all day is a dreadful business strategy.

I'm sure GW, like any retailer, will have quotas, whether it be profits or units moved, in order to justify maintaining stores, especially in high-cost areas. Sure GW probably has some stores that don't do as well as others, but overall I would expect them to be close to breaking even if not in the black

I don't know what stores you've been in, but I've been to a couple of GW stores, including Glenn Burnie, and have always found their staff friendly, and I'm 32. In fact, GW Red shirts have talked to me at length about different armies, minis I could use in lieu of other minis, etc. While I agree GW's strategy tends to focus on the younger crowd, I haven't seen that translate to neglect by Red Shirt staff. Just my opinion. -Jmz

I don't know what stores you've been in, but I've been to a couple of GW stores, including Glenn Burnie, and have always found their staff friendly, and I'm 32. In fact, GW Red shirts have talked to me at length about different armies, minis I could use in lieu of other minis, etc

I second that. If anything, I get the impression a lot of red shirts are happy to have a calm, adult conversation.

About toy soldiers.

*erm*

Hey everyone, new to these forums from the Cyber Cathedral, a great forum for the local san diego gaming community.
http://www.starbasejeff.com/cybercathedral/forums/index.php

I just recently moved to Huntington Beach from san diego and my local game store is the LA battle Bunker. I know that the Bunker is probably much different than a smaller GW mall store, but ours is highly succesful. I am friends with the manager and he has told me in no uncertain terms that his store is kicking butt.

The place is always packed, the register is always going and it is a truly a fun place to game. they have dozens of huge tables that are always busy.

The staff is great too, and i am deffinately not a 17 year old. I think it all just depends on the particular store and staff in question. But i think that it is absolutely a must to have gaming room, that draws so much attention to the store and it also fosters a community. If anything, my advice would be to dump the little sotres and in vest only in battle bunker style facilities.

I'm surprised the GW in Orland Park Illinois is still open. What with the new Battle Bunker in the north burbs now. I myself avoid it like the plague. Too many little kids. The manager is cool, but they're still too pushy. It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. How I miss my beloved Warhammer Fantasy.

Why dose my gut tell me that GW will fold before the orks come out..

Some of the stores are prety profitable. The ones that I know are tend to have the large gaming area (the people who get to play big games are the more hard core guys who will grab a box or two on the way out) and arent in the malls (where you cant play much at all.
Your right about the general gaming store thing being far far more profitable but I dont know the legalities of selling other guys stuff in your store.

True, but some are not AS profitable as they could be or *use* to be, due to GW's management style. Oh the horro stories....

10 stores in all of the US?!?

Australia with a 15th of the population of the US has over 20 currently...

Gonads,

That's the point I always make when we talk about GW stores. I used to visit one once a year when I made my annual trip to Atlanta, but now that it's closed, I haven't seen one in 3 years. The FLGS is the main way for GW to get the word out and get sales in the US, that's why they need to take care of the FLGS as much as possible.

They've changed their order policy recently to help out the smaller stores and it's a good thing as stores are folding left and right in the US right now as the gaming industry is in a slump.

10 stores in all of the US?!?

Australia with a 15th of the population of the US has over 20 currently...

Where did you get that number? I think the total is more like 50. It's still not enough coverage compared to what they can do in the UK, but they do have some metro areas pretty well covered. Now if they could just explain why New Jersey and Pennsylvania each have the same number of stores (1) as Tennessee...

No truth to that rumor at all. With over 50 stores in the US, you can expect a couple will close in some locations each year, and new ones opened elsewhere. That's going to be common for a chain that size.

Part of what they are doing is taking a look at stores that are un profitable, or have a bad location. Those stores will get moved or changed, or closed, as their leases allow. Similar to how any other chain opperates.

I know they want to focus more on certain metro areas for the next couple of years, (chicago, philadelphis, NYC etc). Reason being that it's a lot easier to have a cell manager keep track of 2 to 5 stores within one large city, than scattered over 5 states.

Philadelphia has a new shop opening in August, if construction and other plans keep on track. They plan to add another store to the Philly metro over the next year or two. What they want in each metro area is to have a number of solid independents and GW stores that cover the whole city. Having a good independent store in an area is as good as having a GW store there, under this plan. The plans they have in Philly have new GW stores going in about pretty far away from both of my shops, about a 30 to 45 minute drive. Close enough that we can work together on events, but far enough apart to not really be competing.

Posted by gorgon on 07/07/2006 2:30 PM
It's a different business plan though, as evidenced by the fact that they don't even brand the store with the Reaper name.

Although it's not called the 'Reaper Miniatures store' it's pretty clear that it's owned by Reaper.

As for the number of US stores and the relevant management issue, I know that GW games had a big boom in popularity around my area(Across the Pontchatrain bridge from New Orleans in Southern Louisiana, if anyone knows what I am talking about). The boom has died down a bit, partly because of the crowd that fueled it grew up and went away for college, but in any case it has been pretty significant. Never once in my entire life and travels have I ever even seen, heard of, or bumped into a GW Hobby Center. Never

I, for one, know there are 6+ stores in the chicagoland area. So there has to be 20+ stores in the U.S. And regarding GW Orland Park, which one of my best friends manage, has killer profits and an excellent veterans night every second sunday. The store stays open after mall hours and its a blast with all 18+ players. Check it out!

On the other topics, I haven't heard anything about swathes of eastern closures. Just the usual openings and closings due to market changes. Some of GW's sales choices baffle me, but I can't understand their methods as I'm not an exec of a globe-spanning wargame company. There has to be reasons I don't see, but I also have been at odds with GW employees before, so you never know.

Bjorn, who can't wait for the Eldar.