Since posting my original three-part series on The Retail Game, I have received voluminous correspondence in formats digital from people who were left with no shortage of comments and questions. Apparently there was some interest in the seemingly nefarious inner workings of gaming retail, though the truth is neither nefarious nor particularly secret. Most common among the messages have been inquiries from would-be entrepreneurs who want to play David and Goliath against the established purveyors of video-gaming accoutrements if, in this particular case, David were an asthmatic, if plucky, gamer and Goliath were an angry, noxious planet hurtling at superluminal speeds toward that gamer. Apparently my articles, which were full of knowledge essentially common to any competent manager of a gaming retail location, established me as an informed resource, and the sort of person you'd ask for advice in starting a small-scale gaming retail business. So, partly in the interest of sharing what remaining information I can impart, and partly so that I don't have to keep writing the same email over and over, I present an addendum to The Retail Game series.

So, you want to start a small video-game retail location, and you want some advice.

* Don't do it! – No kidding, if you have the start-up money, the time, the freedom, and the desire to start your own business, pick something better like independent tech-support or prostitution. The number of hurdles in your way when starting any new business, particularly if it's your first attempt at entrepreneurship is staggering and unpredictable, but when you consider the multiplicity of additional difficulties involved in staring a gaming retail outlet, you'd be better off dumping your money into Amway or Quixtar.

The problems with starting a gaming outlet are legion, but none so serious as how to put games on the shelves. If there were a food chain in the world of distribution then places like Best Buy and Wal Mart would be the Great White Shark and Lion while small, single-location retailers would be whatever the hell a paramecium eats. Major retailers will get the latest and greatest releases, while you will have the option of buying as many copies of Whacked! as you could ever desire. The $4.99 special standees of ancient and terrible PS2 games found relegated between the bakery and checkout lines at the local Kroger Supermarket will be something to which you will aspire.

In short, at every turn, you will not be able to compete with Best Buy, Target, Wal-Mart, Gamestop, Amazon, Fry's, and every other retailer on the planet. It will be exhausting, frustrating, and not very profitable, like dating.

Worse, even should you be able to put new product on the shelves, you won't be able to charge a competitive price. And, even that won't be that big of a deal considering how difficult it will be to convince potential customers to switch from the convenient and familiar places they have been shopping for years, places for which they may have a credit card and special discounts, and risk visiting a smaller location with higher prices and less selection.

"…

So, you're stubborn enough to still be reading. You're not willing to be talked out of your dream. You won't be bullied around by the big-box locations, and know that someone somewhere will put together a fantastic small gaming store, and it might as well be you, huh? Well, don't say I didn't warn you.

* Don't compete – If the big stores are going to define the terms under which you can do business, then do your best to make those terms work to your advantage. If they won't let you compete against them, then don't try.

Your best opportunity to dodge the fight comes in finding an advantageous location where there are no nearby competitors. You can't sell games at the same price as Wal-Mart of Gamestop and turn a profit, so you want to be as far physically from them as possible, perhaps another continent entirely. Why? Because distributors will not sell games to you for the same price. Consumers love to talk a big game about service and supporting local businesses, but they say that with all other things being equal, which is funny because all things will never be equal. It's safe to say that consumers are much like politicians, full of righteous sincerity only when it's convenient. Don't count on a reliable customer base if you're a half-mile from Wal-Mart that sells the same stock at a lower price.

Don't compete means more than picking a location, though. It means sell the items that are not available everywhere else. Support older consoles, from Jaguar to PS1, Sega CD to N64. Become the underground shop where you can find the items you can't find anywhere else. Consider a graphic novel and comic book section. Consider working in the collectible card market. Sell indie games, and board games, and anything that fits your target customer. I don't care if you have to sell Bawls and porn, just do something to distinguish yourself. Make your shop a kind of nerd heaven. Hell, call it Nerd Heaven for all I care, but provide what the big retailers cannot. Provide an experience, a sense of camaraderie, an underground thing to be supported and nurtured by loyal customers.

* Deal in Used – You can set your own terms on this, but if you're ever going to turn a profit then you must follow the axiom buy low/sell high. The more distance you can put between the price at which you buy a thing and the price at which you sell it, the better you can do. Not only is this the only way that you can put contemporary games on the shelf, but it is also the only place where you can be price competitive.

Be exhaustive and annoying in researching the price you set for trades as well as the price you should resell them at. If you don't get thrown out of every EB and Gamestop in town, caught writing down what prices they have for their games, then you're not working hard enough. They should have little pictures of you in the backroom of every gaming store near you with demon horns drawn in red Sharpie and little black Xs across your eyes. These guys are the people who will drive you out of business if you're not careful so be unapologetic in getting the information you need. When people show up in your store to trade in or buy used, you need to make sure that you can tell them you're giving better prices.

The culture of used gaming that the specialty retailers have fostered in the hearts and minds of consumers works to your advantage. It's also the only market you have a real shot of pulling away. Let them deal with the soccer moms and absentee fathers that are trying to buy a little love from their fourteen year-old malcontent with a brand new version of the latest Grand Theft Auto ("…reaching stereotype critical mass"…), you want to appeal to gamers who are looking for good games at a good price and who are fed up with the poor pricing structure of Gamestop.

* Accept Returns and Exchanges – Ok, this one is going to hurt, but you must find a way to distinguish yourself in the retail environment, and this is a way to do it. It's a trade off. You have to grow your customer base at the expense and headaches that returns will cause. You will certainly need to fine-tune the return policy to best match your stock and customer base, but this is another one of those opportunities to fight the battles you can win.

If there were a retailer local to me where I could buy used games, and then exchange those games if I didn't like them, then that's the only place I'd shop.

* Prepare! – This ain't gonna be cheap, so don't kid yourself. If you've never started up a business, then you're in for a huge shock. Starting a business, any business, is a lot like putting a pile of money on the street and inviting people to take what they need from it. There are fees and costs that you've never had the creativity to think of, and when they pile up you'll be struggling enough just to keep the business afloat much less paying yourself or employees anything. It can cost a thousand dollars in lawyer fees just to organize all the proper documentation in forming your company, and these are critical steps that you simply can not afford to skip.

But, when you're setting up a retail shop you have dozens more places to dump money, time and effort, from leasing space, to getting insurance, to buying equipment, to paying for utilities, to marketing and advertising, to paying for design and installation of a sign, and you haven't even gotten to the part where you have to buy inventory and pay employees. Spend the money to sit down with a professional accountant to go over your financial position to even see if you're in a position to start the business. Here's a hint: if you can't afford a decent accountant then you're not.

* The Big One – Be creative! From how you get your inventory, to how you staff the location, to how you advertise, to how you keep your customers, you're going to have to inventive. You will have to overcome the general urge potential customers have for convenience and familiarity even when that comes at the price of service. Despite my best inclinations to support local businesses, when it comes time to just buy a quick shirt, a DVD player, some new shoes, or video games, I end up just running up to the convenient Best Buy or Target instead of seeking out smaller operation or local alternatives.

You don't just have to be creative in stocking your store and keeping it running, but also in bringing new customers in, and then keeping them. Part of this can be addressed with the location you choose, but the rest of it comes from generating word of mouth and interest. Be a pain in the ass (they seem to get surprisingly far in life). Put flyers on cars at college parking lots. Leave some coupons sitting outside the local electronics store. Find every bulletin board in your city and make sure your shop is on it. Put a cheap ad in a small local newspaper. Hand out flyers in front of local amateur or professional sports events. If you have the inventory, sponsor a gaming tournament at a local bar. Be daring, and inventive. Don't just sit behind your counter waiting for someone to notice you.

All of these tips could probably be condensed to a few even simpler ideas. Work hard. Be Prepared. Fight only the fights you can win. It's certainly possible to start a local gaming store, though they rarely seem to succeed. The industry, like most of retail in the modern age, is simply not interested in the single proprietor anymore, because in the final analysis, customers are too willing to capitulate and simply go to wherever is the most convenient.

Understand that hard work and the best effort is not a vaccine against failure. Despite your best efforts, it may all come crashing down in frustration and disappointment, which is why my last piece of advice would simply be not to put yourself in a position where the failure of the store ruins you. Protect yourself at every turn, because this is a far more difficult proposition than you might imagine; more so than I can probably even imagine, and I imagine it's pretty damn bad. But, someone out there will be able to pull it off, and be successful with a great store. Might as well be you, right?

- Elysium