Sharpening the Sword is a regular column by retailer John Riley of Grasshopper's Comics, a 1300 square foot comic and games store in
The other day I asked a friend of mine who owns a business in another industry how things were going. He was quiet for a few moments and then said, 'Well, there's this general sense of unease right now. I think that kind of sums it up.' Looking forward to the rest of 2008, I have to agree with him. This is potentially going to be an odd year for everyone, and it's probably worthwhile to take a moment now and give some thought to what kind of environment we're going to be operating in for the next 11 months.
I'd be lying if I said I had any idea exactly where we're headed this year, but I think there are some observations we can make. When my friend spoke of the 'general sense of unease' I had to agree because I've found over the last fifteen years that election years usually tend to start with that feeling of great uncertainty. Especially this time around where the elections are so tight that we really can only speculate on who the candidates will be, it tends to create an environment of unease.
The other thing that seems to be spooking people is the constant talk about recession and the economy at large, talk which is being compounded by all the candidates running around reminding us that the economy stinks. Obviously the economy is hurting. As the reports have shown, this past Christmas was not good for retail. Combine the sub-prime mortgage crisis and all its ripple effects through the economy, and it's clear that this is definitely not going to be a big year of growth for the economy at large. On a more personal level I think that seeing home values decrease, in some cases dramatically, has also affected a lot of people who are seeing their 'paper earnings' disappear. In effect, they just feel worse off.
So what can we expect from 2008?
If I had to pick one theme for what I expect this year to be like, I would say it's going to be the year of concentrating on the core business. In some parts of our industry we're already seeing this. On the gaming end, both Games Workshop and Wizards of the Coast have been focusing on their core brands and as a result both Warhammer and Magic gained strength in 2007 after some lapses in the recent past. We're also seeing less new product releases and startups than we've seen in the past few years. Black Library recently announced that they will not be working on the 40K RPG past the core rulebook in order to concentrate on their successful line of novels. And even UDE's announcement of a WoW CMG is an extension of a very successful property rather than a whole new entity (gameplay sounds similar to the CCF in respect to variety of play). I think that we'll see this trend continue as manufacturers concentrate on strengthening their established brands rather than pursue more risky product launches in a troubled economy. I'm very curious to head out to GTS in April to see what plans the major manufacturers have (I should mention that I am on the GRD board for GAMA at this point).
On the comics end we're looking at a slightly different animal. This promises to be the biggest year ever for comic-related movies, which could bring a great deal of attention to our industry, probably mostly in the areas of trade paperbacks for the casually curious. But outside of the movies we're looking at core comic customers who are increasingly dissatisfied with the never ending stream of mega-crossovers without end.
Countdown continues to sell, but mostly from people who feel that they are so invested in it that they will ride it out to the end. At least in our store we're experiencing a tremendous drop in interest for tie-ins to any event book, which is easy to understand when on any given week there are up to five Countdown titles alone. From the big two we need to end the mega-events and get back to basic storytelling, but I'm getting the feeling that's not in their plans.
The one positive we have going into this year is that historically our industry does well in times when the economy isn't too great. Perhaps it's because people are more willing to make 'little purchases' while they're choosing to forego the big ones. As everyone cuts back and chooses not to dormer the house or buy the new car, picking up a trade paperback or Warhammer piece doesn't seem like too big an indulgence.
As retailers the thing we need to concentrate on more than anything is making sure that we provide a valuable entertainment experience to our customers. As our customers decide to forego other forms of entertainment, we have the unique opportunity to capitalize on the experience of shopping in our stores. What do I mean? Well, if our customers are cutting back on their budgets they may be faced with the choice of going to purchase a DVD at Best Buy, or going to pick up a few comics. But the experience of getting a DVD at Best Buy is pretty quick and not really very enjoyable, whereas the same customer can come to our shop for an hour and talk comics in a great environment. In that way, the actual experience of buying the comics in your shop actually adds to the value of the sale. The same goes for a gaming customer who could spend $15 to go watch a movie for an hour and a half (that they could Netflix in four months for about a buck anyway) or spend the same $15 on a four hour tournament and lunch with friends in your store.
If for the most part we're going to be dealing with the same core brands, it's up to us to continue to demonstrate the value in those products. So contrary as it may sound in a down market, it's an excellent time to invest in our core businesses, specifically with the idea of making the experience of shopping in your store even better. That may mean upgrading a few gaming tables, or making a new sign board, or starting a newsletter or discussion group. You might want to improve signage for new comics, create 'new this week' sheets or signs, do checklists, anything that makes it easier to shop in your store. Perhaps you'll want to add more tournaments, or add pizza breaks into tournaments you already run. Maybe you'll want to create a board game club or family night. Or maybe you'll want to do group trips to the various movie premiers this summer. And of course, you'll want to do everything you can to let people know about all the incredible things that they can do by being part of your community. (See? There's that 'community' thing again!) There is a huge number of ways to make the experience of your shop better.
If the economy continues to slide and people begin to really cut back on their entertainment purchases, then your store will be in a much stronger position when compared with their other options. And even if the economy makes a quick and solid rebound, you'll be better prepared to take advantage of it. But remember this, if there is a storm coming, the best time to shore up your house is before it hits. Anything after that is too little too late.
The opinions expressed in this Talk Back article are solely those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff of ICv2.com.