Mysterious new shipments arriving at local stores may prove that Games Workshop is out of touch with customers in ways no one had considered.
GW recently sent all stores in North America a mysterious box that seems to promote direct ordering. Overall, this is just an extremely odd move by GW that shows they aren’t in touch with the stores carrying their products.
Mystery Store Shipments are Proof Games Workshop is Out of Touch
The signage was listed as Trade: customer order POS suite 2023
This box of signage asking customers to directly order products from their store was sent to retailers this week with no notification or accompanying documentation.
As you probably know, there have been heavy allocations on pretty much everything since February 2023, which is a problem for stores. However, when retailers order direct from the GW webstore, they also make less money than if the item was in stock to order through their trade rep at wholesale cost.
At this point, stores are trading larger shelf space and potentially play areas for higher-margin products from Games Workshop. When stores order from the GW webstore, they make less profit and, in some ways, become a showroom for GW living rent-free.
At least cigarette and other manufacturers pay for shelf space at big box and corner store retailers. Games Workshop doesn’t even do that, and depending on who you ask, they may directly compete with those very same “partner-stores” via their own website and marketing.
We think paying for shelf space would be the least they can do these days with all their new release allocations to stores.
Card Kingdom’s Retail Display for Magic the Gathering Card Game
Then if they want stores to order direct for their customers, at least pay for the advertisement space so the stores get something out of it instead of lower margins. Especially when GW is basically competing with trading cards that take up a fraction of both shelf space and play area. Perhaps more importantly, while cards have a lower margin, they sell exponentially faster.
Another thing that stores receiving this kit mentioned to us is that seeing these “Billboards” for ordering directly could inspire customers to order online instead of from that very store. Which, of course, cuts the store out totally and gives GW maximum profit.
This is just kind of a weird flex from Games Workshop to send these kits to their self-titled “partner stores” without notification or explanation. Even weirder is that they are asking stores to do something that directly competes with their profits while hindering their ability to order new releases that are the fastest-turning easiest profit items from them.
What do you think about Games Workshop sending these signage kits to stores unannounced- are they out of touch?
Let us know in the comments of our Facebook Hobby Group, and make sure you enter the latest monthly giveaway for FREE today!
Get ad-free access to our hobby videos, a monthly crate of miniatures, and support some of the best creators out there for as little as $6 a month on Patreon!
Click Here For All the Hobby Products & Tools We Swear By
About the Author: Rob Baer
Rob Baer
Job Title: Managing Editor
Founded Spikey Bits in 2009
Socials: Rob Baer on Facebook and @catdaddymbg on X
About Rob Baer: Founder, Publisher, & Managing Editor of Spikey Bits, the leading tabletop gaming news website focused on the hobby side of wargaming and miniatures.
Rob also co-founded and currently hosts the Long War Podcast, which has over 350 episodes and focuses on tabletop miniatures gaming, specializing in Warhammer 40k. and spent six years writing for Bell of Lost Souls.
Every year, along with his co-hosts, he helps host the Long War 40k Doubles Tournament at Adepticon and the Long War 40k Doubles at Las Vegas Open, which attracts over 350 players from around the world.
Rob has won many Warhammer 40k Tournaments over the years, including multiple first-place finishes in Warhammer 40k Grand Tournaments over the years and even winning 1st place at the Adepticon 40k Team Tournament.
With over 30 years of experience in retail and distribution, Rob knows all the products and exactly which ones are the best. As a member of GAMA (Game Manufacturers Association), he advocates for gaming stores and manufacturers in these difficult times, always looking for the next big thing to feature for the miniatures hobby, helping everyone to provide the value consumers want.
While he’s played every edition of Warhammer 40k and Warhammer Fantasy (since 5th Edition) and has been hobbying on miniatures since the 1980s, Titans of all sizes will always be his favorite! It’s even rumored that his hobby vault rivals the Solemnance Galleries, containing rulebooks filled with lore from editions long past, ancient packs of black-bordered Magic Cards, and models made of both pewter and resin.
