Latest financials from Granny.

[Fassbinder75]

One day we'll read how you'll have to spray GW minis with a special varnish, quarterly to prevent them from degrading. It will be $80 a can, does half an army. Nothing surprises me with GW, paying 35 quid to pay full price for a single company's product must really burn. That Games Day looks about as fun as an IT industry gig - whereat least you get food and drink provided! A Spiel ticket at Essen costs 27 euros for FOUR DAYS and you get the latest games at a discount. One day all those customers at Games day will be ex-GW customers, sooner rather than later it seems.

Good reading Thadrin.

[Thadrin]

I'll assume you mean my humble rant, so thanks.
The other guy is more eloquent though. Love how he examines why the strategies GW employ make sense from a certain point of view. It's sad.

[Fassbinder75]

I'll assume you mean my humble rant, so thanks.
The other guy is more eloquent though. Love how he examines why the strategies GW employ make sense from a certain point of view. It's sad.

You're a good ranter, takes skill.
I don't understand how Zaphod can rationalise GW's business practice and remain a fan. Maybe he's schizophrenic.

Most of GW's strategies make perfect sense for a publicly listed company - if you'll excuse the customer retention policies and the media strategy, which are bafflingly and now (social media era) dangerously poor.

[Thadrin]

Its all short term stuff that gives problems long term.
No wonder rumours of a buyout are rife.

[Gaixo]

If GW Germany is being greatly reduced, is there some possibility that the DungeonBowl will be affected? It's the only Major still run by GW (or a GW employee), right?

[Joemanji]

I thought last year was Sascha's last as organiser? Worst case scenario is that it moves venue and has to change name (as with the NAF Championship). From what I hear that would have pros as well as cons with the German community.

[Indigo]

I think Sascha was leaving GW anyway and had handed over to DAS BRUDER? Dunno.

Also the remarks about GW's business strategy are fun to read, I hadn't known we had so many economics professors on TFF. GW have made mistakes; the Pokemon Era, the LOTR Bubble Fiasco to name a couple, but name one major corporation that doesn't fück up something now and then. Apple are pretty much exactly the same, down to the colour of t-shirts their shop-trolls wear.

The operating landscape for GW is massively different and changing at a much greater rate than before so I'm not surprised there's some form of struggle. I bet all those companies that made hoops & sticks went through the same problem when Hotwheels & Hasbro hit the shops. Then they made hoola hoops. (not hula hoops, they're crisps)

And digger goreman, do you really, actually think that? Or have you used a quote generating website from the 2000s to create your reply?

[Thadrin]

You don't need to be an economics professor to look at those figures and know they're bad.
Common sense and a reasonable knowledge of the market tells you plenty.

[JT-Y]

Nintendo is screwed over a much smaller percentage loss. You should hear the panic that is causing.

Loss wise GW aren't that screwed. It's the solutions that cause concerns.

[Gaixo]

I've seen a lot of pushback from shop managers today on Facebook. One claims that GW have tracked down the source of these "false rumors" (regarding the closing of HQs and reduction of product lines) and will have a public response within the week.

[Fassbinder75]

If I was a disinterested potential investor, highlighting the transition to "one man shops" hardly seems like the behaviour of a thriving business.

A former GW employee told me his manager arranged the gaming tables to make sure it was difficult to leave the store in the hope they'd stay longer and buy something.

The most important think I read out of this years figures is that sales are static but revenue is up - they're just hollowing out their existing customer base with higher prices.
A lot of people who wrote first hand about the figures are genuinely hopeful of price reductions now that revenue targets have been met. Poor fools!

[Steam Ball]

The most important think I read out of this years figures is that sales are static but revenue is up - they're just hollowing out their existing customer base with higher prices.

Code: Select all

Revenue         £60.5m (2013)    £67.5m (2012)
Pre-tax profit   £7.7m (2013)    £11.1m (2012)

The trend stopped with last semester. First column is lower than second column, in both rows. And I don't remember if this is fixed currency or not (it would be worse, 2013-second-half would be worth even less). Maybe they can manage to get it back in gear and this was a small hickup, or the start of the new trend, down. Also we should check how much "up" it was.

[firebreather]

I wont pretend that im any expert on economics and as much as i would like to see GW in financial difficulty and as such having to re-assess the way they do things, i dont see those finances as being that bad, still looks like a substantial profit for where im sat. Hasnt just about every retailer seen a reduction in profit in the last calender year.

[Talarius]

My long rambly angry blog on thr subject.
http://Thenirolledaone.blogspot.com

I want to use the clapping emoticon, but it's not an option on TFF. Great post, Thadrin. I agree 100%.

I assume Games Workshop executives wouldn't be caught dead reading a forum like ours; that'd be like fraternizing with the enemy. If you're going to attack their wallets so aggressively, you can't afford the risk of sympathizing with them. If by some sheer act of desperation they DO take a peek around, they'd do well to follow your advice.

Also, there's Wheaton's Law (rule?). That's a pretty simple one to follow, really, and GW has thousands of infractions in the last decade+.

[daloonieshaman]

I wont pretend that im any expert on economics and as much as i would like to see GW in financial difficulty and as such having to re-assess the way they do things, i dont see those finances as being that bad, still looks like a substantial profit for where im sat. Hasnt just about every retailer seen a reduction in profit in the last calender year.

spoken like someone that does not understand the value of stock
life in the finical world has nothing to do with did you make any money. It has to do with growth and profit
Granted one would still said GW made a buck. That is not the way the numbers work in the real world. In the real world GW had a profit loss of 30something percent, HUGE in the financials. A monumental sign that something is wrong in the eyes of the shareholder.
GW IS closing it's Battle Bunkers here in the US and the one man shops are sure to follow. (As GW has no clue on how to run retail in the US, never has never will)
How are they gonna drag their sorry asses out of this? Raise prices of course.
The good/bad thing is we want GW to go dry so someone can buy BB and make a go of it.