Is Games Workshop going bust ?!!!

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Games Workshop made a loss for the 2006/07 year (back in June), in the previous year they made a profit and handsome profits before that.

It seems they relied too heavily on their Lord of the Rings tie in and the LoTR bubble has truly burst now the hype has gone away (never believe the hype !)

Will this endanger our hobby ?

I think not.

GW has survived despite 20 years of pc/console competition and more recently the mass appeal of MMORP. It would be silly to suggest these have not had an impact because I, like a lot of other people, often spend time playing computer/console games rather than collecting/painting and war gaming. The problem lies not in the competition because they will always have a core of support and they will always be the same type of people.


Take notice GW...

The problem lies in the pricing (although I suspect GW expect me to say that !)

However, it's true. You used to get a lot more for your buck 25 years ago which maybe one of the reasons why WHFB took off like it did. GW must lose millions through people making do with older eBay purchased figures when they would be a lot happier buying new figures and sticking them together themselves straight out of the box.

GW games will never get mass appeal like console games because they're not accessible enough for people who want to pick up and play immediately. They could however significantly expand their sales by lowering their prices (a lot) to encourage new life-long fans. My nephews were keen to have a crack at the hobby but were put off by the start up costs and so didn't bother. Why would they take the risk when they know they can get hours of enjoyment out of a £10/£20 discount computer game - I was shocked when I saw a single high elf hero on foot being sold for £8 !

I suppose GW would say that it's their cost base (ie the shops in all the high streets), well do they really need a presence on the high street now ? Do they get much speculative shoppers popping in and out with £100 of figures - i think not. People pursuing this game plan their purchases, even new starters. They have to because the figures are now so expensive.

GW... here's my tip to you...

Cut your cost base then cut your prices. The shareholder will love you for it in the long term.

Other than that, I should add...

The quality of the product is unsurpassed it's the prices which are very off putting.