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Soul Glo posted:Well, I just mean don't mark poo poo up to the point where it's double the price of what people could find on Amazon. I've found loads of stuff I would have bought in retro stores had they not been priced to absurd levels. The problem with running a retro shop is you have to compete with online markets like Amazon, Craigslist and ebay, and pricing something like most of the stores in my area do leads to product just sitting on shelves for years instead of putting food on the owners' tables. That's the biggest issue I see with nearly every retro store I've ever seen. As was said earlier, if I'm going to get it on ebay or amazon for the same amount, why am I driving to your store? There's a retro store in my area, but they also do tabletop games and CCGs to keep money coming in. They have fantastic pricing, to the point that every time I go in I end up grabbing some interesting looking but maybe not great games because they're normally pretty cheap. Additionally, all of the prices on good/popular games are normally below online sites by a good ten percent or so. This is good too because it keeps there stock fluid, and obviously you have to sell things to make money. If it's sitting on a shelf for two years it's not doing you any good. It's probably a good idea to play up your retro carts and repairs too, most retro shops I've gone into don't offer services like that.
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Jan 27, 2013 06:37
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I guess since we're on the subject of retro stores.. The stores around the Atlanta metro have been dwindling, I think there's mostly just Play N' Trades now. CC Gaming was okay, but I feel a botched location move did them in. I have some relatives up there, so just about every month I'd stop in and pick up something. Then one day the store front was empty and remodeling signs everywhere. Turns out they were in a new location but no indication that they moved at all at the old one. I discovered Super Gater Games on some random excursion looking for something else, and while their prices were okay and I picked up a few games, the dude had a huge case of all this great stuff that wasn't for sale! It wasn't even on a haggle me for it sort of deal. So if you open up something that has a case full of neat stuff, or even good cardboard standups or whatever, have a notebook where some ballpark prices are written down for your employees to consult.
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Jan 27, 2013 06:46
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Chainclaw posted:Hey, JJJJJS, why don't you do repro NES carts for Nekketsu! Street Basket - Ganbare Dunk Heroes? I was thinking about ordering that and Recca soon, but didn't see it on your site. I mentioned this in the last thread, but there's a play n trade near me that has schizophrenic prices. I've found D2 and Illbleed for 8 bucks a pop. On the nes, something like SMB 3 can be 30-odd bucks.
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Jan 27, 2013 06:57
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Chainclaw posted:Hey, JJJJJS, why don't you do repro NES carts for Nekketsu! Street Basket - Ganbare Dunk Heroes? I was thinking about ordering that and Recca soon, but didn't see it on your site. I can't believe that I haven't played this before. Thanks for the suggestion, I'm going to add it to the site this week.
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Jan 27, 2013 07:01
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As far as GBA flashcarts go, EZ-Flash IV runs games way better than the Supercard SD, right? Why are EZ-Flash IV's going for $60-70 on ebay when you can find it for $35 at Chinese sites? Am I safe if I buy from one of these links? http://ebluar.com/ez-flash-iv-4-mini-ez-card-for-gba-gba-sp-nds.html http://www.realhotstuff.hk/EZ-Flash-IV-Flashcardout-off-stock_p_76.html http://www.r4ds-ds.com/products/EZ-Flash-iV-mini-GBA-Card-For-GBA-gameboy-advance-sp-p-239.html wa27 fucked around with this message at 07:32 on Jan 27, 2013 |
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Jan 27, 2013 07:03
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JJJJJS posted:I have a serious question. Since we're all retro goons and most of us have been to a few retro game stores, I figure this might be the best place to ask. What do you want to see in a primarily retro game store? What sort of things do you like or dislike? I ran my own mobile computer repair business for a while, and while it didn't do great, it did alright [until I got a fulltime job that paid more] and I learnt a lot. This is a mix of my own experiences and what I've seen other retailers do wrong from a customer point of view. Take this as tips not full on advice from someone successful: Keep your website updated constantly with new stock, even if it's daily, just keep it updated asap. Got nothing to do for five minutes? Add stock! Make sure your site is secure and don't use any CMS. Joomla is easy to break, Wordpress is like leaving your front door open and going on a weeks holiday. If you do use a CMS [lots of benefits and easy to use / maintain] invest in security plugins that are well reviewed and used. Use a site good host and backup every night. Use offsite backups for your website and your register computer. Price stuff accordingly, not the outrageous prices some places like to charge. This will mean more customers and therefore more turnover. Carry new stock where possible. Loyal / return / hardcore customers will soon be your income basis. Take requests if possible and do your best to fill them. Don't put all your effort into it, just do it when you can and worry about people buying poo poo here and now, so you don't get lumped with something you paid a shitload for and now the guy who wanted it has pissed off and not come back. Brighten the place up and have lots of good light where possible. Dingy stores are unwelcoming and no one will know what you do. Make sure your signage is big, bright and eye catching. Offer shipping to Australia.  Hope this doesn't come across like I'm trying to tell you how you should run it, just what I've done and seen in the past from various shops. Our local EB's are nearly always full of people because they are jam packed with stock and big bright banners / posters / advertising, which seems to do the trick. Can't wait to see this started, it sounds like it's going to be awesome. Good luck! 
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Jan 27, 2013 07:26
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Chainclaw posted:Seattle stuff I'll add that there's also an Al's in Federal Way that has some games, but even better there's a dedicated retro games shop in Federal Way named GameLobster that actually has a ton of stuff. The only downside is that it seems really cluttered and poorly organized, at least compared to Pink Gorilla.
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Jan 27, 2013 07:29
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Someone mentioned a retro store in Australia where you couldn't look at the merchandise, you had to ask the dude at the counter to show it to you. As long as you don't make a store as lovely as that I think you can do well. But Portland is a pretty clogged place. There's Ground Kontrol arcade which has a little display rack that never moves anything and a retro shop that I can't remember the name of about 15 minutes outside the metro area.
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Jan 27, 2013 07:53
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wa27 posted:As far as GBA flashcarts go, EZ-Flash IV runs games way better than the Supercard SD, right? Why are EZ-Flash IV's going for $60-70 on ebay when you can find it for $35 at Chinese sites? Am I safe if I buy from one of these links? Get it from realhotstuff.com (not .hk) http://realhotstuff.com/EZ-Flash-iV_p_76.html It ships from New Jersey, and is only a few dollars more. Their hk website (obviously) ships from China, so you'll have to wait longer, but the price isn't worth the extra wait. I've ordered several times from realhotstuff without any problems.
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Jan 27, 2013 08:43
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al-azad posted:Someone mentioned a retro store in Australia where you couldn't look at the merchandise, you had to ask the dude at the counter to show it to you. As long as you don't make a store as lovely as that I think you can do well.
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Jan 27, 2013 08:50
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Random Stranger posted:Sell Trinitrons you get from Goodwill for $30 each as "Specialty Retro Gaming Televisions". My local gameshop does this, and I commented before that it was a pretty clever idea. It suckered me, after all.  Anyway, a lot of good advice has been given here, I especially agree with the repair service idea. Not only is it a very, very handy thing for retrogamers who aren't good at fixing and maintaining their stuff(such as myself), but it will also give customers more faith in the products they buy, knowing that people in the store will actually know their stuff and won't just toss things on the shelves and tell customers "It probably works, whatever". I know I've actively passed over retro gear that looks dirty or I merely suspected was in poor repair, since I was dubious as to how well it'd end up working, and I know I've been burned a few times by bringing home crap that didn't work. Also, seconding the part about having a good website. Even if you don't want to do online orders for stuff in your store, at LEAST have a working e-mail address that you check very regularly, to help out people who want to get in touch with you about things who have weird hours. Also definitely seconding the suggestion about no waiting lists, otherwise you're just begging for E-bay scalpers to circle your store like vultures and denying all the normal walk-in buyers anything neat. Finally, on pricing and stock.. This is my weakest area to suggest anything in, but it did occur to me that I think the mindset some retro stores use is that if they overprice a big-hit title like Megaman X, it will not only net them some good change once it finally sells to the desperate nerd who still doesn't know how online shopping works and how good prices can be(of which there are MANY, I still meet them everywhere), but for the duration of it's sit on the shelf, will serve as advertisement that "Hey, this shop has those really cool titles from my childhood!". I guess the point is that if they price low and all the good games basically fly out the door instantly, then most customers may never actually see them there whenever they show up. And given how getting new copies of the better games is going to be rare if you rely on customers selling them, and still isn't going to be easy and cheap if you do it online manually, you might run into circumstances where 80% of your customers think you never have the high-end titles ever. They might just see rows and rows of the usual stuff, and then think back to that other gameshop they saw on the other side of the city that had stuff like Chrono Trigger and EVO on the shelf. It's flawed thinking, but I guess it's something to keep in mind about customers. And about how you'll keep the shelves full of things customers want to see, where and how you're actually going to find that inventory if you let it fly off the shelves.
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Jan 27, 2013 09:01
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al-azad posted:But Portland is a pretty clogged place. There's Ground Kontrol arcade which has a little display rack that never moves anything and a retro shop that I can't remember the name of about 15 minutes outside the metro area. Portland is packed but we're not too worried about it. Ground Kontrol isn't a competitor really. They've carved out an awesome niche for themselves but hardly sell anything anymore. Last time I talked with them they were planning on phasing out that part of their business as well. I would say that the main competitor would be Wizards. Fortunately the owners are good friends with myself and my partner in this whole thing. They have collaborated with his former store for years and I've been working with them for awhile now. They've been very supportive to say the least. We've received help from many of the other local guys as well. My main interest in this project is in trying to improve on some of the things I'm not too fond of when visiting stores. Stuff like actually having an inventory system, having prices on everything, presenting the games in a pleasing manner. It's boring crap to most and it seems that many of the retro stores don't even bother with it. For me though? Designing databases, having nice presentation and creating an atmosphere that a customer actually wants to be in? FASCINATING! I've also noticed some places seem to keep the good stuff at a ridiculous price. I've asked around and many times it is just so that they have good stuff to show off. We don't plan on doing that. I'd rather make money off of E.V.O. than have it sit for 6 months at $150. So the question is how does one balance having top shelf stock with sell-able prices? It's a tough question really and something that we've been thinking about a lot. Says the guy who just bought E.V.O. for $100. JJJJJS fucked around with this message at 09:39 on Jan 27, 2013 |
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Jan 27, 2013 09:30
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Ambitious Spider posted:I mentioned this in the last thread, but there's a play n trade near me that has schizophrenic prices. I've found D2 and Illbleed for 8 bucks a pop. On the nes, something like SMB 3 can be 30-odd bucks. I think a lot of Play 'n Trades are like this. I had one in my area that's since closed down, but yeah, schizophrenia was the name of the game there. $50 for a loose Einhander? $18 for a loose Ghosts 'n Goblins? And yet, the dudes there marked any Turbografx game at $5, as far as I could tell. That's how I ended up with complete copies of Air Zonk and Jackie Chan, along with other cool poo poo like Valis 2 and Blazing Lazers, all at $5 a piece.  Kinda miss that store. Another retro store opened in my area not too long ago, but they're one of those overpriced stores where stuff just sits around, and most of the poo poo's not priced so you have to wait for the guy behind the counter to check online for the prices. Haven't been back, hopefully they've improved things somewhat.
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Jan 27, 2013 09:46
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HKR posted:Man, there's a lot of us Seattle retro goons, we should have some sort of meet or something. I think we're all too old for a Seattle Retro Goons meetup. I would be up for one if it was on a day I could make it, my current main game group don't care about NEO-GEO stuff, so my MVS sits unused.
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Jan 27, 2013 09:50
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Play 'n Trades were the weirdest stores in my area. The one closest to me lasted the longest, and I was surprised that it lasted as long as it did before finally shutting down last year. I was able to grab a Dreamcast Fishing Controller with Sega Bass Fishing 1 and 2 for $15, everything complete, as well as a loose copy of SNK vs. Capcom on the Neo Geo Pocket Color for a scant $3, among many other things. Meanwhile, Final Fantasy VII and Dragon Warrior VII were sitting high on the hog at $60 a piece. One of the employees that worked there used to joke that I bought so many of their more obscure items that customers got bored of visiting the store due to lack of variety. I don't think they ever got many trade-ins as their last several months in business had a stagnating stock of crap that never moved.
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Jan 27, 2013 09:54
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JJJJJS, if your shop's online store allows international shipping with maybe a tiny Goon discount I would not buy my US carts/discs from anywhere else. 
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Jan 27, 2013 10:11
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al-azad posted:Someone mentioned a retro store in Australia where you couldn't look at the merchandise, you had to ask the dude at the counter to show it to you. As long as you don't make a store as lovely as that I think you can do well. That was me. This guy didn't just not show you the items- you had to put a minimum of $50 down (non refundable) before you even got to see it.  He removed his business from all Aus online business directories in a poor effort to try and curb the backlash of angry feedback people were writing, most of which was correct. A shame, because he actually have some good stuff...We don't have good retro stores in Aus like you do (or at least none that i am aware of). I always get jealous looking at the games you guys in the thread are getting!
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Jan 27, 2013 10:15
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the_lion posted:We don't have good retro stores in Aus like you do (or at least none that i am aware of). Pretty much. There used to be one in my old town (Penrith, NSW) that was pretty cool, but they got broken into, all the good stuff was taken and they folded.
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Jan 27, 2013 10:22
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JJJJJS posted:Portland is packed but we're not too worried about it. Ground Kontrol isn't a competitor really. They've carved out an awesome niche for themselves but hardly sell anything anymore. Last time I talked with them they were planning on phasing out that part of their business as well. I would say that the main competitor would be Wizards. Fortunately the owners are good friends with myself and my partner in this whole thing. They have collaborated with his former store for years and I've been working with them for awhile now. They've been very supportive to say the least. We've received help from many of the other local guys as well. If you actually make a pleasing shop then I will back it 101%. Last time I was in Wizards (2009?) they had a good selection of the desirable games in display cases but a bunch of consoles and "undesirable" stuff thrown in boxes on the top of shelves. It was cluttered, messy, and difficult to browse. I asked for help and the dude just shrugged at me because I'm sure he didn't know where a single item was. This is a problem with nerd stores in general and I'm glad my local hobby shop knows exactly where everything is at all times. I did walk away with Might & Magic VI special edition for $20. When my roommate worked at Gamestop I suggested they should put all their loose DS games in a cd binder because their display cases get tipped over easy, games will be knocked over, and managing the thing is a nightmare. The district manager basically said that made too much sense and customers like browsing messy glass cases (no they loving don't). al-azad fucked around with this message at 10:31 on Jan 27, 2013 |
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Jan 27, 2013 10:28
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JJJJJS posted:I have a serious question. Since we're all retro goons and most of us have been to a few retro game stores, I figure this might be the best place to ask. What do you want to see in a primarily retro game store? What sort of things do you like or dislike? You're on the right track with not keeping copies of games for sale at high prices for years on end, but if I could ask for one thing, it'd be pricing stickers that are easy to take off. It really sucks buying a game and having to pull out some Goo Gone or whatever to get the residue off from the stickers.
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Jan 27, 2013 10:53
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I don't know where major bookstores get their stickers from but they are magical stickers that can be removed easily from any surface. Do not get stickers from anywhere Gamestop gets them. Gamestop stickers may as well be superglued on.
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Jan 27, 2013 10:58
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al-azad posted:I don't know where major bookstores get their stickers from but they are magical stickers that can be removed easily from any surface. Do not get stickers from anywhere Gamestop gets them. Gamestop stickers may as well be superglued on. The Goo Gone Sprayable Gel(not the liquid) destroys the gamestop adhesive. Let it sit for about 5-10 minutes and the stickers don't even need to be peeled off, they slide right off. Allthough I don't get the reason they put that stuff on the interior cover instead of the outer sleeve for the spine sticker. I was getting a Wii game and asked for a proper white case, they switched it. However they had to reapply the stickers to the back of the new case, and put a new sticker on the cover spine. The Taint Reaper fucked around with this message at 11:09 on Jan 27, 2013 |
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Jan 27, 2013 11:06
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JJJJJS posted:I've also noticed some places seem to keep the good stuff at a ridiculous price. I've asked around and many times it is just so that they have good stuff to show off. We don't plan on doing that. I'd rather make money off of E.V.O. than have it sit for 6 months at $150. So the question is how does one balance having top shelf stock with sell-able prices? It's a tough question really and something that we've been thinking about a lot. You pretty much nailed my biggest thought, but without all the  . It's definitely about setting a mindset for the customer, if they never see what they want(high-end prize games) because they're always snapped up in a hurry, then they'll just associate you as that store where they never actually see any cool games. "Ive never even seen anything there more rare than a third-string JRPG" is probably something you don't want floating in your store reviews. As mentioned before in regards to retro games being different than retro movies or music, it's an issue when you have a limited supply and it can be a painful and expensive mess to keep them in stock, so I can totally see why stores do that.
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Jan 27, 2013 11:24
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One thing I really like about the only retro store in my area is that they import stuff from Japan. Not any games, but anime, posters, game-related toys and miniatures, CCG stuff (it's called weiß/schwartz I think), game-related soundtracks and artbooks, all kinds of interesting stuff. It seems like they sell it too, because I don't see it in there week after week when I go to browse.
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Jan 27, 2013 11:57
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Crimson Harvest posted:One thing I really like about the only retro store in my area is that they import stuff from Japan. Not any games, but anime, posters, game-related toys and miniatures, CCG stuff (it's called weiß/schwartz I think), game-related soundtracks and artbooks, all kinds of interesting stuff. It seems like they sell it too, because I don't see it in there week after week when I go to browse. Oh yeah you could totally do this, and import a handful of games as well. Have a random import on demo in the shop, build an audience for import games, then offer to "mod" their Super NES systems to allow them to play SFC games for a nominal fee. $$$$
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Jan 27, 2013 12:17
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There's been a retro shop in the town I grew up in since forever named Software Seconds but they're also an eBay seller and you can tell from their prices. A new store recently opened up called Pixels And Pawns with even worse prices, but excellent service. They refurbish their stock really well, have decent prices on accessories, and the employees have a generally good attitude (they even let me bring in a model 1 Sega CD to test with their games). Like all good retro shop they also sell non-video stuff such as board games and some TCG's. Prices aren't all that's important in a retro shop.
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Jan 27, 2013 13:05
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Here in Louisville, KY we have a local retro book/music/game chain that never seems to move inventory much at all. They never price games under $6 unless it's like loving NBA Live 2003 on Xbox, in which case they'll still try to get like $3 for. They have an enormous NES set and I've bought a number of games from them, because literally every common NES game they sell is priced at $6. This has just led to dumb situations where they have like 15 copies of Gyromite and Gotcha that have been sitting around for years and years and YEARS and years. Also at one point they had a copy of Clayfighter 63 1/3rd Sculpter's Cut for $100 but it's long since been sold  But at least I got Chiller from them for $50, back in like November.  But it's since gone up to $80, so I'm pretty happy I pulled the trigger then.
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Jan 27, 2013 13:27
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JJJJJS posted:I've also noticed some places seem to keep the good stuff at a ridiculous price. I've asked around and many times it is just so that they have good stuff to show off. We don't plan on doing that. I'd rather make money off of E.V.O. than have it sit for 6 months at $150. So the question is how does one balance having top shelf stock with sell-able prices? It's a tough question really and something that we've been thinking about a lot. I'd had this long post written up about hitting a sweet spot between not making it too high that a person who really wants the game will run away to ebay but not making it too low so that a flipper will see it as flip fodder, when I went to check ebay prices to provide an example of what E.V.O. should probably be priced at and it dawned on me: One of the things I loved about Japanese used game stores vs. American used game stores is that Japanese stores price their games on a sliding scale based on condition and completeness. You should employ this ideology in your store. Have a beat to poo poo copy of E.V.O. with the label pealing off? $80 A cart only copy with a pristine label? $130 A mint CIB copy? $300 An ebayer would likely not waste their time buying them at those prices since the risk/reward is probably too low, while a person who has been looking to put E.V.O. in their collection (and knows how much it goes for on ebay) would likely see your prices as fair and take advantage of the ability to buy it immediately.
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Jan 27, 2013 13:50
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Oh, and about a year ago I embarked on a quest to collect every Zapper game for NES. I thought it'd be a fun little adventure to collect a subset of not-too-rare games, and as a result I've kept a nifty little spreadsheet. I just averaged out the prices for the last 5 carts sold of almost every Zapper game on eBay and added them to my list, so here's my neat little spreadsheet guide to Zapper games. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AnYA4I9uG8vxdGduc0VfVGJTTXdXeURiSjFyazl4dkE Did you know that: -The Lone Ranger is the most valuable, officially licensed Zapper game? -There were two unlicensed Zapper games (that I know of) released in the NES days, and they're the most valuable by far? -There are four black label Zapper games total? -Zapper games were released for six years, from 1985 to 1991, but there were only 17 total? I think there were only 17 total. Correct me if I'm wrong there. gay skull fucked around with this message at 14:13 on Jan 27, 2013 |
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Jan 27, 2013 14:09
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The Joe Man posted:Quality controllers for a decent price. Tons of good discussion about the retro store possibilities, but I think this needs more love. Astonishingly few retro stores will have official controllers at all, let alone in good condition, and this is something I'd gladly pay a price premium for. Random Stranger posted:That reminds me: you're now in the business of selling things, not collecting them. You've got to cut that collector out of your heart and be the stone cold businessman or you're going to get crushed. In this situation you'd need to be thinking about how much value you're losing off of Chrono Trigger by removing the map, how likely you are to sell the complete set, and how long that may take since time it spends sitting around your shop is time that you're losing money. You cannot be thinking about how nice a complete set it (though you should be telling your customer that to run up the price This too; if anything would theoretically be your undoing, it's this. Also the bit about employees or specific people buying everything worthwhile: definitely set up counter-measures. Someone who's there every day and clearly an eBay seller needs to be dealt with lest your store turn into a buyer's club.
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Jan 27, 2013 14:20
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Stone Age Gamer appear to have some SD2SNES in stock, but the board only. If you've been waiting for a chance to just get the board then maybe this is it. I know some of you in this thread also bought just the board and used your own shell, I'm wondering what the SD slot is like. Does the SD card stick up or is that slot at the top of the shell they put there simply to get at the SD card easier?
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Jan 27, 2013 14:27
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Xik posted:Stone Age Gamer appear to have some SD2SNES in stock, but the board only. If you've been waiting for a chance to just get the board then maybe this is it. Not entirely sure what you're asking; a normal SD card sticks out from the top of a slot by about half an inch, and some people reported if you get one of those flush microSD card adaptors for Macbook use, they'll allow you to put the board + SD card into an unmodified shell.
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Jan 27, 2013 14:37
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baka posted:I guess since we're on the subject of retro stores.. CC gaming closed down their storefront and moved to online. Their prices were kinda bad (I didn't get to see the old store much so I don't know if the prices got worse after the new location) The Play N Trade at Woodstock is the best thing now. Lots of good cheap NES/SNES/N64 games. Only thing is, they want slightly under eBay prices for popular stuff, which is understandable.
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Jan 27, 2013 14:43
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This goes back a couple pages, but I'm catching up with the thread - I see the written-on cartridge thing differently. If I find a cartridge with "JOEY CARBONE AGE 8" on it, I'm often MORE likely to buy that one than one that's unmarked. I find buying a CIB retro game a nearly-alien experience, since when I did get games in earlier days, the carts would often come out of the cardboard and immediately go into a shoebox, or later, into plastic rental-style cases that would then go in the same shoebox. Boxes would be a vague memory, especially since the stores that stocked the games often had the boxes behind the counter and then placards on the wall with box art and descriptions. I dunno. I don't mind buying some super-mint or CIB stuff, but, like, as long as the game is in half-decent shape and still plays, I'm good. e: One of the best things in my and my girlfriend's collection is a Frogger cartridge for the 2600 where the label has been stripped off completely, down to the black plastic, and the word "FROG" painted along the top slanted bit of the case (Parker Brothers game, so, the case is angular) in silver nail polish. Just thinking about FROG makes me chuckle a little. hexwren fucked around with this message at 14:49 on Jan 27, 2013 |
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Jan 27, 2013 14:46
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univbee posted:Not entirely sure what you're asking; a normal SD card sticks out from the top of a slot by about half an inch, and some people reported if you get one of those flush microSD card adaptors for Macbook use, they'll allow you to put the board + SD card into an unmodified shell. Basically, I was asking if you can fit an SD card in there without modifying the shell. Allen Wren posted:This goes back a couple pages, but I'm catching up with the thread - I see the written-on cartridge thing differently. If I find a cartridge with "JOEY CARBONE AGE 8" on it, I'm often MORE likely to buy that one than one that's unmarked. I find buying a CIB retro game a nearly-alien experience, since when I did get games in earlier days, the carts would often come out of the cardboard and immediately go into a shoebox, or later, into plastic rental-style cases that would then go in the same shoebox. Boxes would be a vague memory, especially since the stores that stocked the games often had the boxes behind the counter and then placards on the wall with box art and descriptions. I dunno. I don't mind buying some super-mint or CIB stuff, but, like, as long as the game is in half-decent shape and still plays, I'm good. I think I can get behind that point of view, like preserving the history/story of the cart. Someone made their mark on that game and it's sort of nice to think about how that item was probably responsible for bringing them some joy.
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Jan 27, 2013 15:03
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Let me present to you a tale of two retro stores in Columbia, SC. One of these is a junky mess, but they have an amazing selection and higher prices to boot. The other store just opened a few months back, and is immaculate like a goddamn museum, but has a little bit more higher prices on the common stuff and fair prices on the collector stuff. My advice? Keep your store clean. I can't tell you how many times I've bought a game from the newer store over the other one merely because I could actually find what I wanted. The junky store has everything locked away in glass cases where you can't pick up and look at the games you want to buy. The newer store keeps their glass cases open so you can pick it up and see if it's what you're after. My advice? Keep your merchandise accessible, but don't be afraid to put the good stuff behind a glass case. The junky store has one guy that staffs on the weekends that's so unfriendly and goony, I never like to go in there because I think he's watching me. The newer store is staffed by a younger crowd of folks that know my name already despite only being open for a few months. My advice? Don't staff your store with the goony, unfriendly fucks. I will go to the newer store just to hang out and say hello to the staff when I am out in that direction. The junky store doesn't really like to haggle on prices despite the fact some of their collector stuff has been sitting on the shelf for years. The newer store isn't afraid to bargain with you a little because he'd rather have your business than no business at all. My advice? Don't be afraid to bargain a little, but don't be like a flea market where you undercut yourself just to clean product off your shelf. In all, just be the newer store. Also: please stock your store with UGCs. I'd buy a lot more from my new favorite store if they had those to purchase. And repros are nice. I finally bought myself a repro copy of EarthBound from the guy a few months ago because he had a copy of it. He's interested in maybe getting a copy of Sweet Home for me as well. Technowrite fucked around with this message at 15:06 on Jan 27, 2013 |
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Jan 27, 2013 15:03
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al-azad posted:
Binders suck. I like the glass case for ds games better.
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Jan 27, 2013 15:24
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The store I shop at has a four-sided countertop rotating case for GB and GBA games. The DS games are at about knee-level like 6 rows deep behind glass, all tiny black squares with impossible-to-read labels. I don't browse the DS games much.
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Jan 27, 2013 15:33
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Take a cue from High Fidelity and showcase obscure items on your demo units as a way to sell things that would otherwise probably go unnoticed. Perfect example is Armada for Dreamcast: most people probably don't even know what it is, but if you have it out for demo someone who likes both Sci-Fi and/or open-world (Elder Scrolls-esque) RPGs would probably buy it on the spot if they had the chance to play it for 5 minutes. This is much more effective at actually selling games than simply throwing on Mario or Sonic or whatever other super popular game that everyone in the world already loves... since people will buy those without needing to play them again in your store.
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Jan 27, 2013 15:38
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When you can, I'd recommend investing in retro fixtures. My favorite retro game store in Chicago is loaded with stuff like '90s demo kiosks (that are always running) and advertisements, posters, etc., and when you go in, it gets you so excited about everything that you just want to buy it all. As far as more business-oriented advice, if you're going to display run-of-the-mill games in glass cases, have some sort of accessible pricing system. At that same game store I love so much, all of their incomplete handheld carts are in a glass case, and you can't see the price, so you have to ask someone for the price of every single thing you're thinking about. It's a real turn-off, because sometimes, there are half a dozen things in there you're thinking about buying and you don't want to Bogart a busy sales associate by continuously asking, "Well how much is that? And that? And that?"
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Jan 27, 2013 15:57
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