Waffle
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Post by Waffle on Apr 10, 2013 14:16:02 GMT -5
George Jefferson. EVERYBODY knows George Jefferson. You may be too young to have seen it the first time around - but surely you saw the Jeffersons in reruns.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 14:16:35 GMT -5
Excuse you? The Jeffersons were black!
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Apr 10, 2013 14:16:54 GMT -5
George was Tiger's mother.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 14:22:46 GMT -5
wooooowwwww.....
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Apr 10, 2013 14:25:55 GMT -5
Dark- are you talking about a game/toy store? Like you wanted to do before? I told you about the store in my town that DH and DS hang out at. They outgrew their current store in a year and are moving in June to one that's more than double the size of the current store. They have done way better than they expected BUT they are both still working their other part time jobs while working at the store from noon until midnight nearly every day. They have a part time kid that closes on Wednesdays and Saturday nights. And the store is closed on Sundays.
They are making it work but they are busting their asses (not saying that you wouldn't bust your ass too). They have a regular weekly schedule and events to bring people in. For example- on the 30th of March it was "International Table Top Gaming Day" so they had an all day event at the store. They were giving out door prizes and had games for people to demo. Huge success. I stopped in a few times during the day (DH was there and I dropped of my nephews twice and stopped in to hang out after dinner at my mom's). However, the event they had in Feburary with the town's new Roller Derby Girls was less successful.
Our town is about the same size as yours.
Good luck.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 14:28:31 GMT -5
Do you have a lot of homeschooling in the area? Advertise/ run day events for them, get on their local group sites, Tailer some things to that population. They often will come to things when other people aren't around.
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Apr 10, 2013 14:30:22 GMT -5
Nope. The Cosby show was big when I was a kid, and Nick at Night had I Love Lucy, Green Acres, and the Andy Griffith Show.
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Apr 10, 2013 14:33:06 GMT -5
If I'm going to lose it all, it'll probably happen in the first 12-18 months. That's when most businesses fail.
I was saying my current exit strategy is to sell at the 6-10 year mark. That's when the kids go to college, and should graduate college. I could see myself doing something else once they're out of the house.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 14:34:51 GMT -5
Aren't there less risky things though? I mean, just saying...
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Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Apr 10, 2013 14:37:37 GMT -5
Aren't there less risky things though? I mean, just saying... He's already quit a 6 figure job with no plan. Why on earth would he start worrying about risk now?
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Apr 10, 2013 14:39:47 GMT -5
Similar, but different. I don't think this area is big enough for a game store. It'll be a toy store. I want to carry games and a small young adult literature section as well, but first and foremost it's an independent toy store. I'm not planning on having an in store play area for games.
If I lived in a bigger city I might do a pure game store, but I don't like it here. Gamers are fickle anyway. They all want to hang out in your store all day playing, but they do half their shopping online.
I won't be open late running events either. The soccer moms are done buying little Johnny his birthday presents by 8. That's when the store closes. I'm not going to sit there for another four hours while six people finish their Pathfinders scenario without spending a penny.
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Apr 10, 2013 14:41:46 GMT -5
Would you rather have a tomb stone that read "Here lies oped, who never took a risk", or one that said, "Here lies oped, who did what she loved"?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 14:45:16 GMT -5
Well, because I didn't honestly see that as horrible. He has good skills, $ put away, etc.
This idea gives me heartburn and I'm just listening...
Ie. I don't think quitting your job is necessarily irresponsible, esp. given the resources. However, I think risking all those resources in one fell swoop is iffy.
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Formerly SK
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Post by Formerly SK on Apr 10, 2013 14:47:35 GMT -5
Do you have a lot of homeschooling in the area? Advertise/ run day events for them, get on their local group sites, Tailer some things to that population. They often will come to things when other people aren't around. We have a local chain (5-6 locations) here in Portland that sells educational toys and supplies. Lots of Melissa & Doug, Playmobil, etc as well as TONS of math/science/reading stuff. Excellent puzzles. This is all stuff a Target would never sell, and I know I can go in there and for $15 find something cool for a bday gift for someone. All the teachers around here use them to supply their classrooms. Something like this may broaden your customer base. www.learningpalace.com/
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 14:47:42 GMT -5
Oped does what she loves. It took me 4 years of planning and working two jobs the last year and less and less freelancing the next four before I got there though... I'm pulling for you. I am. I had complete confidence when you quit. I am nervous for you now, but you are younger than me .... So?
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Chocolate Lover
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Post by Chocolate Lover on Apr 10, 2013 14:53:59 GMT -5
George Jefferson. EVERYBODY knows George Jefferson. You may be too young to have seen it the first time around - but surely you saw the Jeffersons in reruns. Jeffersons are currently in reruns in my area.
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sheilaincali
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Post by sheilaincali on Apr 10, 2013 14:56:39 GMT -5
Dark- that makes sense. I agree with Oped about advertising to the home school parents- find events during the day to bring them in then. Story time if you are going to sell books, etc. Train Day if you are going to sell like Thomas the Tank Engine stuff. Parents of little kids eat that stuff up. DS loved that shit when he was little.
Even if you don't have traditional gaming space I think you should still have a space for the kids to be able to sit down and try out a store copy of a puzzle or something.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 15:19:21 GMT -5
One of the leading causes of divorce is money problems. If that was the case for them, they would have gotten a divorce a long time ago: wasn't he like 18 when she was pregnant with his first? Signed up for military earning peanuts?
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SVT
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Post by SVT on Apr 10, 2013 15:27:27 GMT -5
So have you considered e-commerce instead? High profit margins, extremely low expenses, no leasing of a building unless you want to, etc. You would want to learn about internet marketing and SEO though. That's the key to making money online. But it's less of a risk going the e-commerce route.
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Apr 10, 2013 15:29:34 GMT -5
I want to lay the store out so there's room to demo some product, a new board game, Lego set, or whatever, but I won't have a dedicated game room that could host a Magic tournament or something.
That's the plan. For the most part you can't compete with Toys R Us or the Target toy aisles by selling the same product mix. They probably get the stuff cheaper than I'll be able too. I compete by selling the stuff they don't carry. Traditional wooden toys, learning toys, higher end RC cars and planes instead of the low end Chinese junk you see in most bigger stores, board games from a company other than Hasbro, the top 25-50 YA book titles, baby and pre-school toys, and a little candy counter near the register.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 15:31:05 GMT -5
I thought you were looking at tournament stuff? Sounds like a plan. Do you have space yet?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 15:46:38 GMT -5
Sounds like a plan, dark. Just wondering...during your researching, did you ever look into the import/export business(es)? I do like the thought of e-commerce businesses, as well...and agree w/SVT, less startup, low to no overhead and more than likely less risk.
I know you've already gotten your "plan" started, just wondered if you thought about those as you've been researching...
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Apr 10, 2013 15:50:14 GMT -5
If I were opening a game store I'd have to. In store events are the competitive advantage. Every product you sell can be bought for less online. The reason people go to your store is to get what they can't get online, tournaments, events, a place to play with their friends. The problem is the more play space you have the less useable retail space you get. The in store play area is essential, but it's also a large investment in leased square footage that doesn't earn you any money.
I'm looking at a couple locations right now. One is a larger end unit in a strip mall so it's got tons of visibility from the intersection. The other is a smaller middle unit in the busiest strip mall in town. Off probably the busiest intersection in town.
If I take the corner unit I get a bigger store and more visibility, but I'd be in a less busy location overall. There are several units in that building that are empty, and have been for a while, so I can probably negotiate a better lease. My neighbors would be a pet store, insurance office, 99 cent store, and our new microbrewery.
If I take the smaller unit I'm in the busiest retail location in town my building would be a Baskin Robbins, Papy Murphy's, Me, Gamestop, and Panda Express. The anchors are Target and a busy grocery store. We don't have a Walmart, so Target is the biggest retailer here. My store would have less visibility, but I'd have more potential customers parked outside every day frequenting my neighbors. Obviously a toy store near the ice cream shop and Gamestop isn't a bad setup either. I would hopefully get some customer traffic from those two.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 15:56:00 GMT -5
easy decision there
the smaller location to start.....
you can always move if the place takes off
shelf space will be an issue....so what you stock will be one of your biggest decisions
but busy locale with 2 other stores catering to that demographic.....ez peasy
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Rocky Mtn Saver
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Post by Rocky Mtn Saver on Apr 10, 2013 15:57:44 GMT -5
Would you rather have a tomb stone that read "Here lies oped, who never took a risk", or one that said, "Here lies oped, who did what she loved"? That assumes you have enough money when you die to *have* a tombstone...
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 15:59:51 GMT -5
Would you rather have a tomb stone that read "Here lies oped, who never took a risk", or one that said, "Here lies oped, who did what she loved"? That assumes you have enough money when you die to *have* a tombstone... I'm sure this community could scrape together a few bucks to get Dark a proper headstone.
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Rocky Mtn Saver
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Post by Rocky Mtn Saver on Apr 10, 2013 16:02:32 GMT -5
That assumes you have enough money when you die to *have* a tombstone... I'm sure this community could scrape together a few bucks to get Dark a proper headstone. I'll bet it would be very.... imaginative.... too!
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 16:06:53 GMT -5
Do you ever want to carry video games?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 16:07:27 GMT -5
Or does game stop sell anything you might want to?
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Phoenix84
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Post by Phoenix84 on Apr 10, 2013 16:16:31 GMT -5
I don't know much about business. So I'm not sure if it would be good to be located next to a gamestop because it's likely that the dmographic that buys video games will also want to play table top RPG's and the like. On the other hand, you don't want to compete with gamestop.
Though I wouldn't count on gamestop being there for much longer. Online sales are likely going to gradually take over the traditional brick and morter game stores. Plus all the rumors of the next consoles point that they are going to heavily restrict used game sales, which will hurt gamestop even more.
I wouldn't be surprised if gamestop goes the way of blockbuster within the next decade. Basically steam, playstation network, and xobox live are going to do to gamestop (and stores like it) what netflix did to blockbuster.
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