gamesug

I just want to clear up some stuff. I am going to post facts. I am a small local video game store owner. I just read this article today http://www.t3.co.uk/news/247/games/playstation_2/the_great_ps3_ebay_cash-in
Why is everyone trying to blame console shortages on small retailers? All the small retailers in my state probably didn't get as many xbox 360's as one best buy. Since launch we only where able to get 4 from our distrubitor. I would have loved to get more, hell my distrubitor was probably selling them on ebay. I ebayed 2 and sold 2 at the store. Sure I could have sold them all at the store but the 2 we did sell one went to a loyal customer(good). The other one went to some guy who called had to ask where we where located how many he can buy and came in bought the console and no games and left. I will bet you a million dollars he is going to ebay it himself.

I guess I am just tired of people taking about stuff they don't know anything about. Sure you may play a lot of video games have every console but it doesn't mean you know how the video game industry works. Anyone going to E3 that is in the industry (not including media) next month will agree with me and all the other video game store owners in this thread. The pricing that someone posted before is correct. We don't make any money off consoles. New games are close to 10% the way we make money is off of used games.

I just makes me sad when I hear from people that they would rather buy from walmart and put the mom and pops out of business. I mean its the same game and the same price. I guess video games culture isn't like the music industry still where people still support their local music stores.

I wish we could get a 1000 xbox 360's and ps3's and sell them too all the customers that come to our store. Fact is we only got 4 and we had to buy tons of project gotham racing 3 and other crap to get it. Who is getting screwed here? People get this impression that we have this never ending flow of xbox 360s that we are pumping into ebay. My target only got 10 so we where even lucking to get 4.

So if people want to continue to blame the mom and pop stores because you didn't get your system on launch that is fine because you just don't understand how the industry works. If anyone is to blame it is wholesalers and ebay. We can't sell systems that we dont' get and ebay is the site that had the xbox 360 advertisement on their homepage during the xbox 360 hype.

See you at E3

plagiarize
you said 'Support your local mom and pop store, BUY STUFF OFF EBAY!'? If local mom and pop stores had more support they would not have to sell on ebay.

response to post #55
"Why am I going to go to your shop to pre order a PS3 when you're just going to screw me over, when EB and Gamespot won't?" All the local video game stores I know don't take preorders for systems like the PS3 because they don't know how many they will get if any. I can't tell you how many times I had customers come to my store and tell me that they where number 50 on the list at ebgames and that they only got 40 systems in. EB and GS will screw you left and right.

How can we help our loyal customers if we go out of business? We do help them out now if they want to buy a xbox 360 we don't require them to buy a bundle which means we have a stock of project gotham 3 which we take a loss on.

Now with your second statement. It would be a waste of time for me to even argue with you about comparing the business practice between microsoft and sony with a local mom and pop shop.

I agree with post #47 its the big companies and wholesalers that can buy up the production. The mom and pop shops have to beg for them and then they are forced to buy massive amounts of software to go with it. Going back to the orginal poster don't you think if they could they would get as many systems as they can so they can sell on ebay and there store?

"Mom & Pop plot to screw you out of a PS3... and put food on their table"

Whats wrong with putting food on the table and supporting your family then sell a PS3 to a spoiled kid who is bored of his ps2, xbox, and xbox 360 for no profit?

I own a local video game store and at launch we got 4 xbox 360s and sold them on ebay and made a profit. The people we sold them to on ebay had no complaints and are very happy with the purchase.

We get the systems for 397 so we would only make a 3 dollar profit if we sold them in the store. If we did sell them in the store they would be gone the first day not by loyal regulars but from people coming across town just to by the console no games or accessories and they are just going to go home and list it on ebay themselves.

Mom and Pop video game stores are closing down like crazy because of the ebgames and gamestop. People do not like to support there local video game store and would rather get less for trade and pay more form the big companies.

Now that the xbox's are more available we do sell them in the stores now. But we are required to purchase project gotham and a wireless controller for each xbox 360 we get. We do not sell them as a bundle to our customers because of complainers(you know who you are) So we are now have a huge stack of project gotham games that we can't sell. We can sell the wirless controllers but now we have a lost of $40 dollars for each xbox 360 we sell. So don't blame stores if they sell bundles.