What would you want from a FLGS

[TopToffee]

Greetings Brothers

 

I'm considering the possibility of acquiring my FLGS from its current owner.

 

With that in mind, I was curious as to what people would want to see/have provided from their local gaming store/haunt.

 

 

Bear in mind this isn't a "fantasy store Wishlist" - so I'm not likely to have a team of expert painters on hand to paint your army while you wait! Looking for genuine, realistic, achievable suggestions that would make you more likely to visit and spend at a store, maybe even travel a moderate distance to do so.

 

Look forward to hearing what you all come up with!

Cheers.

[OnboardG1]

Well, hobby and play space is always going to be important. Prioritise quality of space over cramming as much in as possible. No one likes playing butt-rub with the sweaty dude at the next table. Nice terrain with a good amount of space is always appreciated. 

 

The environment and appearance also matter a lot (we called it "visual merchandising" when I used to work in retail). If it looks like a junk shop people won't come in and frankly, I won't stay and play (and community is what's going to see your shop through hard times). It needs to be clean, bright and well arranged. I don't mean ikea-shelves-sterile, more character is better, but it shouldn't have a bunch of old tat masquerading as memorabilia lining shelves and a carpet that looks like it belongs in a skip.

 

I know this one is going to be a challenge if you're taking over an existing premises but please, dear god, no basements. The reason I avoid the main gaming cafe near where I live is that it is in a basement with no phone reception and no airflow. You are going to have a dozen or more gamers in a confined space. You need airflow.

 

Otherwise I'd want somewhere to get drinks (although not necessarily food, since I'm not a huge fan of having to tolerate other people's lunches while I play) and regular events. Campaigns, one offs, drafts, tournaments, that sort of thing.

 

Good luck if you do decide to go for it!

[fisheyedbunny]

Good luck if you go for it mate, my local FLGS is a small shop and from speaking to the owner its a hard slog but very rewarding.

 

Must haves for me are quality lighting, clean store and space to play. Ideally also some shop armies and plenty of decent terrain to play games with. This would allow you to get people into the games for you to sell to them. Total wish listing I know but for things like non GW games also (Dropfleet/zone, Warmahordes, Star Wars Legion etc) you would probably want armies as you will not make all your income from GW alone. Even Blood Bowl teams, Necromunda gangs, Epic armies and the like would be great.

 

One of the things I liked about my local shop that they no longer do sadly is the owner went to the cash and carry and got chocolate, crisps and juice in. I know for food selling you need certain licences but I believe for these sorts of things you don't need to worry about that. Maybe do coffee/tea as well. It saved us a walk up to the local garage and was cheaper as he was not marking them up as much. Plus its another revenue stream. Not a massive one but as a small business owner I imagine every little helps.  

Depending on the space you will definitely need some solid heating/cooling options. Nothing worse than being freezing or roasting when you are trying to play a game.

 

If you go for it let us know, I see you are from Liverpool going by your details, I am possibly going to be working down there for a few months next year all going well. Can drop by and get spanked by your wolves

[Mileposter]

I helped a friend of mine during his acquisition of a FLGS. I salute your bravery.

 

The biggest desire from a FLGS? Communication. What's available, when you're running things, and what's being done when something goes wrong (and it will). The single biggest proponent of a FLGS community is the owner/attendants who stand at the middle of it all. If they're comfortable with you, they're more likely to be comfortable with the store.

 

Second biggest? Be willing to say no to customers. I don't mean being an ass - that's bad. I mean the rejection of the old "The customer is always right" mentality. I mean being able to look at something and say "No, that's not a thing I want here." and keep the atmosphere (or change it as you need) that supports your community.

 

Every other answer I could give would entirely depend on the people you bring in and want to keep.

[the jeske]

No thresholds, everything else is optional.

[Schlitzaf]

Additionally to proper gaming space and everything other folks have mention. A degree of tolerance and respect. Honestly. For me I stopped going to a couple LGS, for awhile and one I still don’t. I play YGO and Black Templars, one thing I hated beyond all passion.

 

Was dealing with some players who mocked me a “child” or dumb kid (despite being in High School) for playing a game like YGO. And then as a Space Marine player, I got derided.

 

For being essentially that. I mean even if it’s annoying “oh another Space Marine” or if you are one of those “a Primaris lover” I won’t feel welcomed and won’t return to the store. Your personal feelings about a franchise or army aside, should not dictate how you talk to your customers.

[Zuvassin]

Honestly?

 

An open and welcoming store community.

 

Something I've noticed since moving to the Midwestern United States is that a lot of gamers around here aren't what I would call tolerant or open-minded. They are prone to make jokes - personal or in terms of the subject matter they quote and how they quote it - that frankly made me stop going to most of them. Game stores shouldn't feel like Facebook during election years, or the comments section of most Yahoo news articles or YouTube soccer videos in general.

 

Also, there's a tendency for a store owner / employee's friends to start acting like they're the alpha male star quarterbacks in a high school. It seems not uncommon for this and the above tendency to overlap.

[Res Ipsa Loquitur]

Staff that don't google Magic cards while pretending they haven't noticed you standing directly in front of them. 

[Brother Lunkhead]

DON'T DO IT!!!!.......... just kidding  I'm a former game store owner/manager, and I've gotta say it was on the whole, a very rewarding experience and a lot of fun. Since you already know the store and the people who run it and the customers who frequent it you should be well ahead of the game (pun intended). I could write a book on this so I'll just give some basic points which seem obvious but are harder to practice than you would think once you are personally involved. Here goes....

• Take an objective look at how the current store is being run, what works and what doesn't
• Sell what your customers like and not what you like
• Balance gamer friendly with family friendly
• Gaming space should help sell your product
• Staff MUST be customer service oriented
• Staff MUST be customer service oriented
• Staff MU.....you get my point
• Have a good variety of games that are popular
• Get advice from other game store owners... most will be generous and want you to succeed
• IMPORTANT...do due diligence....sales records, tax records, profit and loss, debts, etc.

I could go on and on.... Good luck... it's a REAL adventure.... If you want to talk off line I'll be happy to do so. 

[Eddie Orlock]

I will second any calls for clean and well lit.

 

I also appreciate suitable hours for the community. Most folk will work 'ordinary hours', so you can't. Open at like three in the afternoon on the week day to catch afterschool and early arrivals and close at around midnight on week days. At least this is true if you're actually going to host table space. Once you've established the hours, do not change them. Don't randomly close without like months of notice, people like to build habits around these kinds of places.

 

Also, if you're going to host games or other events, publish a schedule of what should be played on what days. Be flexible if people wish to play something else by prior arrangements. Picking one day to be 1500 40k, day for example, and putting it on a poster helps people sort themselves out. Also, publish this info to a website.

 

Do what you can to make parking easy. Especially if you're hosting stuff. No-one wants to worry about getting ticketed or towed 3 hours into a 6 hour engagement.

 

Some of this may reflect my local conditions, Europe might be different.

[Kristoff]

Well, hobby and play space is always going to be important. Prioritise quality of space over cramming as much in as possible. No one likes playing butt-rub with the sweaty dude at the next table. Nice terrain with a good amount of space is always appreciated. 

 

The environment and appearance also matter a lot (we called it "visual merchandising" when I used to work in retail). If it looks like a junk shop people won't come in and frankly, I won't stay and play (and community is what's going to see your shop through hard times). It needs to be clean, bright and well arranged. I don't mean ikea-shelves-sterile, more character is better, but it shouldn't have a bunch of old tat masquerading as memorabilia lining shelves and a carpet that looks like it belongs in a skip.

 

I know this one is going to be a challenge if you're taking over an existing premises but please, dear god, no basements. The reason I avoid the main gaming cafe near where I live is that it is in a basement with no phone reception and no airflow. You are going to have a dozen or more gamers in a confined space. You need airflow.

 

Otherwise I'd want somewhere to get drinks (although not necessarily food, since I'm not a huge fan of having to tolerate other people's lunches while I play) and regular events. Campaigns, one offs, drafts, tournaments, that sort of thing.

 

Good luck if you do decide to go for it!

 

Basements are possible if you have good lighting and good airflow.  That can be difficult to arrange in an existing space, though.  I've seen some LGS that would make some basements seem desirable. 

 

If you have a local fast food place or convenient store within a short walking distance of your shop, you don't necessarily need to have a drink stop in store (but it can help add in revenue if you are savvy with your purchases).

 

But of the things you can control when a customer is not in the store, those quoted above are the first things to look at.  The next things to look at is staff that will be friendly to most everyone, and good at escorting troublemakers out.  If you can get that along with some people who can help teach modeling and painting, you'll have gems that will get people to keep coming back to the store.

 

One other thought, if you don't have the space to have a good gaming area, you may want to consider a good hobby area and discounts on the proper materials to help them with their hobby.

 

I guess it is all about the atmosphere the store presents.  Part of that is how the physical layout is, but also the people you have in the store.

[gideon stargreave]

NO FOOD IN STORE - it's :cussing disgusting, have some fold out chairs or something out front if you have people who can't wait to eat for whatever reason. Drinks are fine. This ties in to hygiene and cleanliness in general.
ZERO tolerance for being a dick head (no sexism, racism, homophobia, ableism etc.)
Cabinets with nice miniatures in, conversions, customer comps etc. 

cater to people who don't like playing, offer space to paint, to convert and so on (keep clean water, tiles etc, offer to undercoat models)
Have a demo table
Support small games (necromunda, blood bowl, kill team etc.)
Offer a bits swap service
In general, (as a long time business runner) you will make MUCH more money offering services to the premium end of the market, but if you go that route, your store will need to be premium. 

PAY YOUR STAFF WELL  if you pay peanuts you get monkeys (not commission, it breeds tosspots)
Have a variety of scenery, and make your tables look good. 
Don't make me feel like you are doing me a favour for providing any of the above - customers are doing you one by spending time there and creating a good environment. 



If you don't have the above rules in place, I'd buy online and start my own club (which i have done in the past)

[Kinstryfe]

My flgs has managed to be around for about 20 years, and has occupied 3 progressively larger and nicer locations in their history, and here is what seems to have worked/not worked for them. A lot has already been covered, but in no particular order:

 

Clean, bright areas both to shop and game. Stay on top of people who disrupt this. One slob trashing half the gaming area will cost you customers. They learned this the hard way early on.

 

Don't overshoot and crowd things, within reason. Don't make players feel like cattle.

 

Provide the essentials for playing. In addition to basic tables, my flgs has each miniatures game table supplied with a foam padding and one of those rubber game mats. It may not seem like much, but it makes it so much easier to get in a game when you don't need to carry all that stuff in with you, and they stock and sell the same product for people who want it for outside of the shop. Similarly

 

Be smart about what you promote for in store play. Having specific days advertised helps build a gaming community, as they'll know that M:TG is Fridays, 40k is Thursday and Saturday, etc. Avoid dedicating too much space to games with a low purchase rate/barrier to entry. My flgs current building has enough space for pretty much anything (I'm talking two tcg tourneys in one giant space and 2 miniature leagues in the other), but in the past it was a huge issue if a group of RPG players came in every Saturday night and took up 1/4 of the gaming space to play a game because, often, most of the players bought some dice and one rulebook, and only the GM was buying anything regularly.

 

Keep refreshment available, at least drinks. Even just a vending machine with sodas and Gatorade.

 

Air flow. Can't be overstated enough. My flgs went so far as to have ventilation built into the floors in the playing areas. Keeps geek funk at bay.

 

The store itself, keep it clean and bright. Two best lessons I can relay are to make your inventory space work for you. Not everything you stock will be a winner. If you made a mistake and bought 10 of a new independent game, and after 6 months only 2 have sold, clearance them out. You may just break even or lose a little, but you're losing more by not having stuff that sells in its place. Also

 

Cater to the clientele. You may not personally like certain games/products, but never lose sight that at the end of the day it's not a hobby oriented job, it's a sales oriented job. My flgs I believe changed hands a couple times in the late 90's, trying to cater almost exclusively to GW products and M:TG, when an owner finally gave in and started catering to the Pokemon tcg. Half the store, literally, was Pokemon cards, the average age of the customer probably dropped tremendously, some of the guys working there at the time hated it, but on more than a few occasions the boss admitted that the only reason they survived the 90's was because of the Pokemon craze.

[Ascanius]

I also appreciate suitable hours for the community. Most folk will work 'ordinary hours', so you can't. Open at like three in the afternoon on the week day to catch afterschool and early arrivals and close at around midnight on week days.

 

Yes, if there's one thing I'd say, it's that you need to be prepared to be open late. I don't think it necessarily has to be open as late as midnight, but it's frustrating when stores shut too early in the evening. For instance, the Games Workshop store in the Melbourne CBD is a decent size and well-located, but it's only open the following hours:

 

TU  1100-1800

WE 1100-1800

TH 1100-1800

FR 1100-2030

SA 1000-1800

 

I appreciate that's 38.5 hours each week, plus any time that needs to be put in before opening or after closing, and that it's likely a one-employee store, but that's a very difficult schedule for customers. At the very least, I have no idea why it isn't 1200-1900, since I don't think starting later would lose you much lunchtime traffic from the 9-5 city crowd - whereas there are probably plenty of people around who don't finish until 1730 or 1800.

 

(This isn't even based on my personal situation, because I work a rotating roster and most weeks my schedule is something like 1100-1900 or 1230-2030, so a store that opened at 0900 would be way more convenient for me, especially since my workplace isn't that close.)

 

For an owner-operator store, as opposed to an employee of GW who's probably not authorised to open the store and be on the clock more than a standard workweek, you've got to be open at more convenient times.

 

Being open late for the convenience of the customers is good, but it'd also be important to make it worth your while - which means having gaming space, organising events that encourage people to come in and buy stuff, et cetera, more than just being open so people can swing by after work to pick up a model or a few paints.

[Claws and Effect]

Well lit - If I need to use the light on my phone to reference my list, you need more lights.

 

Gaming space with an assortment of terrain. 2 tables minimum. A couple tables for board and card gamers is a plus as well.

 

Drinks and snacks. Especially if you're a good distance from the nearest store. Make sure drinks are in plastic bottles only, less cjance of spillage.

 

Clearly posted store policies - It is irritating to discover you've run afoul of a store rule because you didn't know it existed. I would also make it against policy to discuss politics or religion in the store (unless they are politics or religion in a game). No bigotry, mind your language, etc. Just make sure the policies are plainly visible.

[OnboardG1]

By the way, another thing that will help you if you're going into business ownership for the first time: try to find some open courseware business courses off of MIT like this. I imagine Harvard, Edinburgh and a bunch of other prominent business schools will have something similar (or TheGreatCourses if you can get past their issues with EU billing).

 

You'll learn a lot about things like working capital that can trip you up early in a business (and it'll help rationalise some of the decisions you've seen from other gaming stores like GW).

 

EDIT: Places like Scottish Enterprise or the Federation of Small Businesses are good places to look for more practical small business information as well.

 

EDIT2: One last thing. You MIGHT (if this is a labour of love sort of thing) consider running your business as a cooperative, especially if you have an established player base. I've always thought an FLGS would be a good candidate for the co-op business model given the investment players have in the store and the community around it.

Edited October 19, 2017 by OnboardG1

[Damo1701]

What would I like and expect from my FLGS?

 

1) Loyalty rewards - whether that's in the form of buy 5 gaming sessions get a sixth free to store credit with every purchase, something like 1p per GBP spent, which you can save up for bigger purchases you may need.

 

2) Community - depending on wha5 gaming you will offer, create a group on Facebook for it. This means players at the club/store are able to self-filter by finding the niches and opponents they are interested in.

 

3) honesty and fairness - apply any local rules to everybody, including your best friends.

 

4) An inclusive environment - this isn't just about people, but, Forge World, for example. Some people theme their armies, and when you see "No Forge World" plastered around things, it can put you off. Worried about how things like Forge World will affect your bottom line? Have a laptop/PC available for people to order while they are in store, and you will find people more likely to buy their plastic from you at the same time.

 

5) Opening Hours - Some hobbyists work a normal work day, others work shifts, and some don't work because they are looking after the kids/being available for school runs.

 

Now, some of the gamers with kids at school would love to open a gaming store while their kids are at school, close it to pick them up, and either have somebody take over, or re-open once everything is sorted. Look for these people, Liverpool is too far away for me, personally, but, if there is a bit of cash available and gamers want the time, think about offering it.

[TopToffee]

Morning everyone

 

I’ve been reading all your posts since yesterday with great interest.

 

Still really keen for more people to contribute, but wanted to firstly say thanks to those who have posted already, and secondly jot down a few bits of information on the business as it stands, and some of my thoughts for improvement going forwards.

 

The business currently operates as both a store and online, but doesn’t really make too much effort to compete in the online arena, doing 80%+ of its business in the brick and mortar store. Definitely think online could be at least somewhat grown (though obviously v competitive) but that’s for another discussion.

 

Store very well stocked, with excellent stock control parameters and a well established pre-order system, which seems especially helpful for new releases.

 

Stocks GW, Malifaux, Warmachine, FoW, X-Wing, Infinity and several others.

 

It doesn’t currently stock MTG, which seems like a big opportunity for growth - it’s not a system I’ve ever had much to do with, but I know some businesses run almost entirely funded by MTG.

 

There’s a small mini fridge with soft drinks, but that’s about it currently for refreshments. I’d look to bring in more in the way of snacks (whether that be a vending machine or cash and carry route) along with definitely a tea/coffee machine.

 

Upstairs is the gaming room. Space for ~12-15 tables. It’s a nice enough space - very well lit by skylight type windows in the day, with small spotlights over each table plus central strip lighting. Currently only offers one evening session a week.

 

The current gaming situation is on a “play for free” model. I’d continue this at least initially.

 

I’d certainly be looking to expand to more than one evening a week, as the single one currently offered is always packed to the gills.

 

Over time, I’d be looking at making significant improvements to the gaming space, and turning it from a simple “room with tables” into more of a destination, primarily through theming etc - the character of the “bones” of the room lend themselves to perhaps a sort of tavern atmosphere. Or a Space Wolf drinking hall (though that may be my biases showing through!)

 

Once those upgrades are done along with improvement in the tables and terrain (which while plentiful, kinda lacks the wow factor currently) I may look at some sort of paid (but reasonable) membership scheme for players, with associated benefits.

 

 

 

Please feel free to chime in with either any further suggestions, or thoughts on what I’ve posted here, and thanks again for all the advice and encouragement.

[OnboardG1]

Does the store come with any staff or is it a one-man sort of affair?

[TopToffee]

Does the store come with any staff or is it a one-man sort of affair?

One part time employee who does 2-3 days a week

[Kristoff]

Sounds like a good space so far. Do you have good lighting downstairs and a gaming table or two? Sometimes just having someone playing near the merchandise will get them asking about product they see. Even just a demo table downstairs showing off two factions of a game can help sell it to people unfamiliar with it.

[TopToffee]

Sounds like a good space so far. Do you have good lighting downstairs and a gaming table or two? Sometimes just having someone playing near the merchandise will get them asking about product they see. Even just a demo table downstairs showing off two factions of a game can help sell it to people unfamiliar with it.

The lighting downstairs is really bright actually.

 

In terms of tables there’s one of the blood bowl demo stands that could be used for all sorts of small scale skirmish demo games.

 

There’s also another slightly larger folding table that’s currently used for new releases and stuff on reduction in a somewhat haphazard manner - I’d definitely be looking to clear up/organise that space, which may give more room for a second demo table.

Edited October 19, 2017 by TopToffee

[N1SB]

I've written and helped write enough business plans to understand what type of feedback you're looking for.  Achievable, actionable, affordable.

 

Stocks GW, Malifaux, Warmachine, FoW, X-Wing, Infinity and several others.

It doesn’t currently stock MTG, which seems like a big opportunity for growth - it’s not a system I’ve ever had much to do with, but I know some businesses run almost entirely funded by MTG.

There’s a small mini fridge with soft drinks, but that’s about it currently for refreshments. I’d look to bring in more in the way of snacks (whether that be a vending machine or cash and carry route) along with definitely a tea/coffee machine.

Upstairs is the gaming room. Space for ~12-15 tables. It’s a nice enough space - very well lit by skylight type windows in the day, with small spotlights over each table plus central strip lighting. Currently only offers one evening session a week.

The current gaming situation is on a “play for free” model. I’d continue this at least initially.

 

Thanks for this info.  I took a look at hobby stores in Liverpool and know there's already a Warhammer store there.  That's not a problem, just something you're already aware of and I agree your non-GW products will be important.  Like you're already thinking of MtG, looks like you already got good plans.

 

I'm going to share what my local FLGS has done, successfully, because it's in a similar scenario.  It's run by an ex-GW store manager (after GW initially pulled out of my region entirely, though they're back now) with staff who were basically regular customers, young kids at the time.  They're now almost competing with the Warhammer Store (now that GW decided to expand and return to my region), but still prosper thanks to a few things IMHO:

 

 

A WhatsApp/phone messaging app "Looking For Games" group (not even necessarily run by you)

 

This falls in the blanket of social media, but this was so no-cost/big impact I had to mention it.  My FLGS has a "Looking For Games" group on WhatsApp (that's just what we use, pls consider whatever is more popular in your locale), just so that players could arrange matches among themselves, "who's free for a game Friday night?"  It's NOT even run by the store, just by a regular player there, who had made it for himself to find people to play with.

 

The FLGS's staff joined this group, but they're not even the group owners/admins, and they're treated just as players themselves (albeit ones that happen to work in the store).  They don't usually chat in it, but they do listen.  Over time, players started using the group for tactical advice, "what do you think of the new codex, which units should I get".  One thing lead to another and now players pre-order stuff from that chat, "hey could you guys save a box of Shadow War: Armageddon for me?"

 

The idea is that this simple, free method became the ultimate soft-sell tool in that, they do NOT spam it with product info (that's what's Facebook's for), but they just listen to what customers like and want and sometimes order.  It's the cheapest yet probably most effective marketing research.

 

But why this over Facebook?  Something about it being a chat group and "Looking For Games" make people really loosen up.  I think they see Facebook as their profile, they know their friends judge them by what they post, so are more careful about what they say or don't say.  But a WhatsApp group is just for brainstorming, the equivalent of the post-game talk around the table...except this is a table they take everywhere with them, even after they leave the store.

 

This isn't about marketing consultants telling you how great social media is.  It's just a simple tool to hear voice of customer, YOUR customers, and it's free and easy.

 

 

Facebook

 

Obviously, you want to use Facebook, just as a news feed to players in your locale.  It's fine, no need to buy ads, just maintain the store's account or make one.

 

It is honestly somewhat useful because Facebook does seem to push more locale-based things of interest, might drive more casual foot traffic.  Also free.

 

 

Knight Models's Batman: the Miniatures Game/Marvel Miniatures Game

 

(This isn't HeroClix, it's actually high quality metal miniatures, 32 mm and you can use 40k terrain on the most part, so it's compatible but not cannibalistic.)

 

This sounds crazy and irrelevant, but it's not.  There's a miniatures game based on the Batman: Arkham games.  It's pretty good, but more importantly, it's a draw.

 

The FLGS added it just as a "foot in door" sales tactic for new customers.  To everyone's surprise, it's actually really fun, and tied players over until 8th ed came out.

 

Yes, you already have something like this: X-Wing.  I mention it anyway because just looking up Liverpool, you have like 3 pretty big comic stores within 100 meters of each other (Worlds Apart, Forbidden Planet, that other comic book shop).  To support 3 such large shops, there's got to be some interest.

 

The beauty of this is you don't need much of a stock (to my understanding, I'm sure there are vendor terms with Knight Models), because it's a skirmish game on the scale of Infinity.  I've got a starter-sized "army"; it's literally 2 models.  You just got a SKU of maybe 5 starter boxes and a rulebook and you can attract the comic crowd.  Just set up half a shelf to stock these near the front of your store, small investment, but it more draw more people than one would expect.

 

You also mentioned expanding to MtG, which I think is a great idea, but since you mentioned it, I thought to suggest taking a look at Knight Models as well.  FYR:

 

https://knightmodels-store.com/en_GB

 

(Mods, pls don't delete this, it's just for a fellow Frater's trying to start up a FLGS's convenience, I won't talk about it again.)

 

 

Vallejo Paints

 

Don't know if you already stock this, but they're great and something I can't get at my local Warhammer Store.

 

 

These ideas aren't so much what I wanted from a FLGS, but rather what my local FLGS has done to stay relevant when 2 Warhammer Stores moved in.  The FLGS is still mainly a 40k/30k/AoS shop, but these little advantages, combined with more playing space, is what it's done to attract/maintain/grow their customers.

[D3L]

Honestly if you're in Liverpool, pop over to Stockport and check out how Element Games do it, you wont regret it, and they're definitely a type of bunch who will interact with sister stores.

Fan Boy Three and Travelling Man, in Manchester are also relatively good stores to replicate, certainly FB3 has a large MtG following, and their games nights are big.

A variety of brush quality on offer, Vallejo, secret weapon and AK paints, resin supplies 2 part pourable, and a good source of Oyumaru (hit me up a PM if you need a hand with that, it's one of the things I import), pet store supplies (sand, gravel, cheap plastic flora), toilet roll in the toilets (you'd be surprised)

I'm not sure if it's still going, I'm 9600 km away now, but the mecca for me as a child was the Barnsley Association of Wargames (I just googled, it's still going, it's still awesome), certainly one to replicate in my book

Edited October 20, 2017 by D3L

[Claws and Effect]

On snacks: 

 

I would limit snacks to items that are not messy in nature. 

 

Candy bars, bags of chips (crisps to you Brits), maybe some trail mix. 

 

Just stuff that a customer who is feeling a little peckish might want to have available. 

 

Here in the US, I could go to a big box store and get 24 ounce bottles of soda in a 6 pack and sell them for $1.50 for a profit. That's more product for less money compared to a convenience store, and could make a nice little addition to revenue. 

 

Good plan on the MtG. I don't know how big it is over there, but in the US it's HUGE.