"Just what is GW's plan, anyway?" Topic

Not really sure if I'm the target of this or not.

Sorry, I should have used the vaguer, if formal sounding, "one should," etc. instead of the common "you." I was using "you" as a generic pronoun for any person— perhaps "anyone" would be a good replacement for "you" in my posts, as I wasn't specifically singling out you or anyone else here. There do seem to be a lot of people with absurd statements like billthecat's "death to GW". (Really, bill— "death"? For what crime? Selling toy soldiers? Or is it that you want to see all their employees lose their jobs and thus the income that supports their families? Because you don't like their prices? Perspective, man, perspective.)

But I understand your confusion about their business model. It seems a bit off in some respects— but at the same time, most FLGS tend to have less than stellar business models themselves. "Stock and hope people buy" is all too often the approach. GW clearly wants active sales efforts that promote their product, and promote it over their competition (hardly surprising; so do most companies). But they have no real control over what the FLGS decides to promote or not, especially if the FLGS is run by a hobbyist (highly likely) who may like to promote his latest craze, and certainly wants to promote everything he sells— especially the products with the highest profit margin for him. Since GW can't do the Hasbro thing and buy up all the competition, and isn't likely to get their product into mass market shelves (such as Target), the controlled sales model seems like a solution. Is it working? Appears so.

Our FLGS dropped GW, except for occasional products offered by the distributor as part of the weekly drop-offs (ie "Escape from Goblin-Town ltd edition).

GW isn't played at the flgs store among patrons. Lots of people have armies on shelves gathering dust, both Fantasy and 40K.

What is played at the FLGS? Privateer Press, Magic, Flames of War, some Spartan Games, X-Wing, and tons and tons of board games.

I'll add that no one misses GW or tries to get it going.

Commentary when the name comes up is…"have you seen their prices????" I'll be damned if I'll pay almost $30 USD for a larger plastic troll model. The smaller sprues of 25mm figs are high but not outrageous. But about 50% of the GW line is way overpriced compared to the competition who also equal the items in quality (or close enough). Will they sell boxes of three plastic trolls for $85 USD? I dunno, I guess someone must buy them, but did they sell enough of them?

Personally, I regard this as a great time to pick up the old LoTR stuff on the cheap.

I wonder if FLGS's that quit stocking GW product continue to allow or see GW games being played at their store?

The only real reason to stock GW is because you sell it--if you can't sell it, then you are committing business suicide by tying up capital in the inventory. However, letting customers play GW games using their models purchased online or at the GW store across town might still be advisable, as those players keep coming into your store to buy other things.

…Still no apology. (and Parzival makes many good points, as always, although perhaps missing my humor?)

But seriously, profit is not the center of the moral universe. Just IMHO, of course. I think this is what creates the 'divide' on GW opinion here on TMP. I'll leave it at that. The real 'fanboys' are posting elsewhere… As far as creating jobs goes… I'm sure the GW executives could find work with any number of other petty corporate behemoths….:)

Last night I realized the GW model is akin to car dealerships, one-manufacturer shoe stores, etc.— even Lego.

Clark's shoe stores sell Clark's shoes. No other brands. They have a quality product, and you don't go in expecting to pick up Nikes. But Clark also distributes to "mom and pop" stores that sell a variety of shoes, as well as department stores and so on. Lego does the same thing. Car manufacturers don't distribute through any sort of "mixed lot" format, but they do distribute to local dealers who may have multiple manufacturer lines spread across multiple "dealerships," often located next to each other. (Locally, Darrell Waltrip runs a Honda store and Volvo store side by side, sharing the same entrance.) In all of these models, the single product line approach incorporates a focused sales staff, and little or no acknowledgement of the competition (except to compare the offered products as being superior).

That's the model. Seems to work.

I dunno – do people buy shoes on line? I always try them out first.

Perhaps Clarks shoes isn't the perfect parallel, but we get the general idea.

GW. Love the figures, hate the pricing, meh on the fluff. But at the moment I'm into Dux B, so perhaps not the best person to comment.

I dunno – do people buy shoes on line? I always try them out first.

Not married, I take it?

Oh, yes, people do buy shoes online. Particularly female people.

(Says the husband who is aware of Zappos.)

But seriously, profit is not the center of the moral universe. Just IMHO, of course.

Never said it was. But it's not immoral, either. No profit motive, no economy. The moral issue comes in on what people are willing to do for profit, not in the profit itself. If someone can factually demonstrate how GW is immoral or unethical, I'd like to read it. Whining that the models cost "too much" doesn't qualify.

Ironically, I do think that GW's products cost "too much"— for me, that is. So do filet mignon, tailored suits, luxury automobiles, ginormous flat screen TVs, my own private aircraft, Harley-Davidson motorbikes, smartphone contracts and smartphones, first class air fare, a replica Sharps sniper rifle from the Quigley Down Under film, a traditional English longbow, my own suit of armor, a quality-made replica broadsword, a six month long trip to the British Isles, and a seat on Virgin Galactic. I don't whine about those things being expensive— I just don't (or can't) buy them. Yet. If I want that situation to change, it's up to me to find the way to change it, not demand that the seller of those things bring their prices down to my level.

So, while it's human nature to complain about prices, the reality is that the solution isn't in the complaining, or in the prices. It's in increasing one's income so that the prices no longer matter.

Do I suspect that GW is attempting to become the sole distributor of its product? To a point. The company is clearly trying to sway consumers to its corporate-owned product outlets. However, as someone who doesn't have a GW store for over 400 miles (the closest one is nearly in Tennessee), that's just not a realistic option. I have also purchased a grand total of two GW models (a blister-pack of special-weapons soldiers for my Imperial Guard) in the past two or three years, so my consumption is down to near-zero.

I suppose that I should find it impressive that GW is able to so reliably alienate its loyal (ex)-customers and still turn a respectable profit, but I just can't. The price inflation is so utterly ridiculous as to be nearly nauseating.

It's not a financial issue for me as much as it is principle and the fact that their core games have no appeal to me. I'm perfectly happy to shoehorn Gaunt's Ghosts-esque models and scenarios into pre-existing gaming systems that offer an experience more in line with what I want. I'm more interested in fighting the Blood Pact, various renegades, and non-mainstream xenos with decently realistic combat than I am in Space Marines. I *HATE* Space Marines. HATE HATE HATE.

I have nothing against GW. I think they have been an overall benefit to the hobby. Perhaps much of that benefit is behind us now? Regardless. I just believe that any Company who consistently raises their retail prices 10-20% every year like clockwork will reach a point where it impacts sales. I can't see how it wouldn't. Perhaps that time is a couple of decades away. Perhaps it is a few years. I would say that eliminating all other retail sales outlets is certainly going to show results fairly quickly. Whether that's a positive or negative remains to be seen.

Thanks,

John

I agree with all that Parzival has said, and he has saved me approximatley one bucket of time in not typing it myself.

GW : buy or do not buy – but don't waste one's life moaning about what you didn't buy or (even worse to my mind) what you did.

It's just a game.

Well I suppose the discussion over GW just highlights the difference between the hobby as a business full stop or something a little less intense. There are several generations that have been through the time when the mega corp is the basic model of business, Im from the a different generation when the was a certain friendliness between manufacters, designers etc lot of that gone it feels to me these days.
Back when you just made the best stuff you could and that was it, these days seems to be as much about marketing as actually making things. Yes I know Im a dinosaur but before long I will be entirely extinct! lol
What I cant understand is why anyone actually likes the GW style at all, always seems to be designed to appeal to 11 year olds to me lol
L

What do you think? Get over it. Nothing to discuss here, folks.

My two cents:

1. If GW spent a fraction of the time writing rules that they do developing "fluff" and background, their rules could be some of the best on the market. As it is they have been surpassed by numerous competitors.

2. Their staff constantly refers to "the GW hobby" as if there were no such thing as miniatures gaming that doesn't take place under the banner of GW. The guy at the Ford dealer doesn't try to pretend Toyota doesn't exist, or worse has no idea that it does.

Both of these things are pet peeves of mine.

carne68, I agree with you completely regarding your point 2. I dislike it because it is a cynical, dishonest attempt to deceive youngsters into thinking one cannot buy fantasy figures and/or rules from other companies, done solely to maximise profit.
I wonder whether it may actually be counter-productive – once the youngsters realise, from magazines and the web, that there is a broader fantasy wargaming hobby. will they not turn against GW for having been dishonest with them?

I sure did. I had no idea that there was a miniatures market outside of GW for several years.

In the past two or three years, I've bought two GW figures to round out a few units I already owned. I most definitely turned against GW. I may still enjoy the fluff, but their products are dead to me.

I just made one GW purchase this year just because the miniature I want was not made by any other brand.

Long term

To screw over their customers.

Short term

To screw over their customers faster.

GW are removing selling to independent stores because if you buy a game direct from GW for say £80.00 GBP GW get £80.00 GBP If you buy the same product from elsewhere they get nearer to £40.00 GBP GW want all of the profit not half of it. It really is that simple.

As for the price increases, GW are way above inflation with theirs so let's not compare petrol price increases to GW's price increases. If we compare blister packs from 1990 to now with normal inflation GW would be charging you around £5.00 GBP for five metal models. Have fun with the following inflation calculator from The Bank of England and realise just how much of your money funds the GW empire and shareholders:

link

In the next year I expect GW to ditch Finecast and become 100% plastic only. I can't see them being bought out by another company yet for a fair few years, that rumour has been doing the rounds since the early 90's.

Nicely done, Bug Stomper. …And I still hold by the idea that value is not relative to income: even if I had thousands of credits to spend on 'the hobby' every week, I would not pay GW prices: Just-price and all that. Of course, some people ARE buying, which does GW's Ministry of Information great 'credit'…

More to the point, another post got me wondering (in terms of the company's 'plans'): How long until GW starts to move away from miniatures and really starts to focus on the toy/video-game/plush-toy market…? Hasbro 40K anyone?

Their plan? Why, quite simply, to separate as many parents' of each new crop of twelve-year-olds from as much of their money as possible as often as possible until the twelve-year-olds hit puberty and stop caring about their little painted toy soldiers and more about the opposite sex, while GW's corporate leadership laughs all the way to the bank of course. All others who stay on board after age twelve are just extra icing on Games Sweatshop's corporate bottom line cake, just further "proof" in the eyes of the corporate suits that their "patron saint" P.T. Barnum was right all along…

Leland R. Erickson
Metal Express
metal-express.net