Board games to order. Production of board games as a business Board game production technology

This is difficult to explain logically, but in our era of total dominance of electronic technologies, traditional board games cause a real stir among gamers of all countries, peoples and ages.

Outdated entertainment in an updated interpretation is very profitable investment capital. We are, of course, not talking about chess and checkers, which have remained the same for a couple of thousand years, but about games like Monopoly and variations on this theme. Sales in the board games market at the end of 2012 amounted to 3.4 billion US dollars. Agree – impressive! And if you consider that the market growth rate is 17%, then this business idea becomes more than promising. Of course, of the total market volume, 60% is consumed by only two countries - the USA and Germany, but the share that falls on the CIS countries is quite attractive for development. Thus, according to market players, board games worth over $70 million were sold in Russia last year, and $15 million worth in Ukraine.

The domestic “tabletop” business, as board games are popularly called, is still very young, because remember the store shelves ten years ago: simple and uninteresting “walkers”, like twins similar to each other, or very expensive imported games, which, in addition to their extremely the high price was put off by the lack of translation into Russian of at least the rules, not to mention the game elements.

Today, there are successful game manufacturers in the country that produce products either based on their own developments or under license from Western manufacturing companies. But still, there is no need to talk about market saturation today.

Production process

The tabletop production business consists of several stages:

1. The first and most important stage is developing an idea for a board game. At the very beginning of this stage, you should focus on the potential audience of the game, its expectations and preferences. In order to think through the concept more competently, you need to answer the question: what gender and age will the game be intended for? The answer must be extremely precise, for example: for a boy 12 years old, a girl 8 years old, etc. (without “spread” yet for several years back and forth). One of the most important processes in creating a game is thinking through storyline, features of the gameplay, purpose and degree of entertainment of the game.

At the same stage, it is necessary to test the game based on its “draft” (pilot) version. To begin with, you can try the game on friends and acquaintances, and then give it to strangers (for example, if the game is for preschoolers, then kindergarten) and follow gameplay, comments, difficulties encountered by players during the process, etc. Any unsatisfactory observations should be immediately put into practice - to eradicate problematic and controversial areas of the game, replacing them with more “digestible” elements.

Despite the responsibility of this stage, it is one of the easiest, because it is the most interesting. So, for example, the Russian manufacturing company Bonko Games debuted on the market last year with the product “Election Race, or Who Could Become President.” From the title it is clear that the idea for the game came to its creators on the eve of the start of the presidential election campaign. Tatyana Bondarenko, owner of Bonko Games, admits that the process of creating the concept was very exciting: various “crusts” made it possible to solve many problems in the game, cars with flashing lights, instead of the usual plastic chips, made the process more realistic, brighter and more interesting, trips to electoral districts and lobbying for laws contributed to maximum immersion in the gaming atmosphere...

2. The second stage is the approval and consolidation of the external design of all elements of the game: field, cards, chips, packaging, etc.

Once final design approval is complete, an estimate is drawn up to launch the game into production. One thing to keep in mind is that the smaller the print run, the more expensive each board game set turns out to be. The optimal circulation for one type of game in our realities is 5-6 thousand copies. But if you are a beginner and are planning to launch your very first game into production, then do not take such big risks, start with 2-2.5 thousand copies, as the already mentioned company Bonko Games did. This circulation (2 thousand) cost Tatyana Bondarenko 22 thousand US dollars.

Now it’s time to choose a contractor who will print the game. The situation here is ambiguous. On the one hand, the domestic market is oversaturated with printing houses and publishing houses of various profiles and sizes. On the other hand, among this multitude there are only a few professionals in their field, which means that the release of a batch of games in our country is associated with a number of risks: from incorrect creasing or cutting, to simply missing colors. In 99% of cases, a foreign contractor will undoubtedly please you with the result, and will also do it cheaper. For example, a game case with a velvet interior made in China will cost about $1.25. In Russia, a case without such finishing will cost more than $2 per piece. Agree, the difference is noticeable. But the whole difficulty of choosing a contractor lies in the fact that when placing an order with a domestic contractor, you will always have him “at hand”, you will be able to constantly monitor intermediate results, visit him to make amendments and adjustments, etc., but not in China run over. In addition, when ordering a print run from a domestic contractor, an entrepreneur will not face the problem of delivery from another party, as well as the nuances of customs legislation.

A similar situation is observed with those game elements that are not produced by printing - cubes, chips, etc. The simpler they are, the lower the cost of one copy will be. So, for example, Bonko Games could easily equip their games with the usual plastic pyramids instead of machine chips, which would cost 3 cents for each copy. Cars with flashing lights as chips added 12 cents to the cost of each copy. It would seem like a small thing, but when you multiply such “trifles” by the circulation, you get exciting amounts.

Numbers

So, how much will it cost to produce one board game in total? Below are examples that can serve as a guide for drawing up a budget for the implementation of this business idea:

I repeat for clarity: Bonko Games spent 22 thousand US dollars to produce a circulation of 2000 copies;

The Ukrainian company Arial spent $50,000 on the development and release of its first five board games, with a total circulation of 19,000 copies;

The leader of the Russian board game market, World of Fantasy, invested $30,000 in its first game, Berserk, which later became a bestseller. Of this amount, a third went to registration of intellectual property rights, the rest - to design, payment for the work of artists and production itself.

In general, the cost of a circulation depends on a complex set of factors, but the gradation of prices for games from all of the above manufacturers in retail sales is in the range of $2.7-$15 per copy.

3. Sales and promotion is the third stage.

Typically, board games are marketed primarily to smaller stores (department stores, toy stores, and bookstores) further development Sales depends on the target audience of the game. Market participants claim that the first 10 boxes will be purchased solely for criticism. Indeed, practice shows that the first copies are purchased by fans of “tabletop games” or “fans” engaged by competitors. The purpose of the acquisition is to write a “review” of the game as quickly as possible (preferably first). Market players advise not to pay attention to such notes; real and objective reviews will appear 2-3 weeks after the start of sales. This is where you should carefully monitor all problems reported by players, as well as notify the gaming community about their elimination. So you will bring game set to perfection, and at the same time create a good reputation for yourself.

In order for production to be stable, it is necessary to establish a network that would include at least 200 points.

Working with large supermarket chains is more difficult, especially with foreign ones. For example, an “entrance ticket” to METRO Cash & Carry costs 40 thousand euros and this is the standard price for cooperation with famous Western chains. But at the same time, you are guaranteed regular sales and payments in full. Domestic supermarket chains will enter into an agreement for reasonable money, but such cooperation can be compared to “Russian roulette” - you never know whether the terms of the agreement will be fulfilled. So, for example, Ilfat Ilyasov, founder of the Arial company, says that the crisis had a very strong impact on his company, although it did not fall into the most vulnerable industries. The fact is that at a certain stage in the development of the crisis, a number of supermarket chains simply refused to pay the company revenue for goods sold in their supermarkets.

Wherever you decide to sell your game, you will need a presentation of your product. And in addition to “look how cool she is,” it (the presentation) should contain answers to the following questions:
- why exactly is this game better than others in its category?
- why will it sell well?
- How will consumers like it?
- why will people go to the store for this game?

Promotion in gaming clubs

When the creators of Berserk started thinking about promoting their product, they came up with a brilliant idea: one of the founders agreed with a gaming club to hold a Berserk tournament. Reviews about the tournament itself, and, of course, about the game, instantly scattered throughout the global Internet, which created a real stir around the game. So put all your communication skills to work and look for new ways: clubs, themed establishments, coffee shops and much more are at your service. They will probably meet you halfway, because the benefit is mutual: the establishment will receive an additional influx of customers and additional profit.

Online store

Profitability

In order to shed light on the profitability figures as clearly as possible, let’s look at how the price of board games is formed:

- Sale in a supermarket. The usual condition of supply for networks is a markup of 45%-50%. Those. if the cost of the game ranges from $18.75 to $21.85, the wholesale price will be about $31.25 per copy, and on supermarket shelves it will cost approximately $62.5.

- Selling through an online store.“The Election Race, or Who Could Be President” by Bonko Games appeared in stores in February of last year and sold for $50, while the wholesale price of one copy was $24.

Conclusion: the publishing company's markup averages 66-11%.

The average sales speed of one game (first released to the market) is 2-3 thousand boxes per year.

The profitability of market leading players is 300%-350%. Of course, a novice entrepreneur is far from achieving such results, but in general, the payback potential of such a business idea is very high.

And remember: back in 1934, a major publisher refused to buy an idea from an American unemployed man, Charles Darrow. This idea was the last chance for him to earn extra money, and the poor fellow risked implementing it on his own. The idea was a board game, for which the name “Monopoly” was coined... You know what happened next: a worldwide hit, tens of millions of copies sold worldwide, an incredible number of variations and interpretations.

So everything is ahead of you and everything will work out for you!

Predicting the popularity of a new board game is a thankless task - once the publisher refused to distribute Monopoly. Tatyana Bondarenko decided to start this business not because she is fascinated by board games - her entrepreneurial instinct prompts the businesswoman to make good decisions.

Publishing board games is a difficult business genre: no amount of focus groups can help you predict in advance the commercial success of a box containing a playing field, chips, cubes and cards.

In 1934, unemployed American Charles Darrow failed to sell the idea of ​​Monopoly to a major publisher, but he took the risk of releasing the game at his own expense - and in the end it became a worldwide hit. His example still inspires newcomers to the difficult market. We decided to follow the adventures of one of them.

From the "Start" cell

Entrepreneur Tatyana Bondarenko and her husband started producing board games under the Bonko Games brand a little over a year ago. The calculation was absolutely commercial, and did not at all grow out of a hobby: no one in their family ever collected “board games”, did not disappear on gaming forums, and did not participate in fashionable game libraries.

But she already had entrepreneurial experience: at one time, Tatyana left a stable, but incredibly boring career as a bank employee and went to work, first opening her own small printing house, and then a private hotel for dogs. And in the meantime, she managed to work on “stream” copywriting, which taught her to write a lot and without creative crises. This useful skill turned out to be very useful in her new, board gaming field.

If you look at it, the board game market in Russia is very young. Just ten years ago it seemed that computer games won a final and unconditional victory in our country over desktop-printed ones, since of the latter only simple “walkers” for children could be found on sale younger age, and if you're lucky - expensive imported games, but without .

However, since then, Russia has had its own publishers and bestsellers - both domestically developed and released under a Western license - with circulations of over ten thousand copies. According to market players themselves, about a hundred new game titles are currently released in the country every year.

Meanwhile, Tatyana Bondarenko, with the maximalism characteristic of beginners, saw the weaknesses of the Russian market and opportunities for herself. According to her, domestic developers of high-quality board games are still in short supply, and store shelves are mostly filled with so-called localized games from Europe and America.

At the same time, licenses are often not purchased for the most popular games (since the rights to publish Western hits are expensive), and localization can be only partial - to the point that board game fans then have to independently download the game rules from the site in Russian.

So the niche for the creators of Bonko Games appeared obvious - to develop games on their own, to produce not “waste paper”, but a high-quality product with decent design and printing. The idea for the debut game came to mind quite quickly: they decided to take advantage of the socio-political situation and release – just in time for the presidential elections – a game called “Election Race, or Who Could Become President.”

It was fun to come up with game mechanics and surroundings: various “crusts” that allow you to solve a lot of problems, cars with flashing lights instead of the usual chips, trips to constituencies, lobbying for laws...

For example, I had to work hard on a deck of cards with bills. “Fifty of them were required, each with six bills: in total there were three hundred in just one deck,” Tatyana estimates the amount of work done.

So that the game turns out to be information-rich, and the texts are ironic and full of allusions to real life, she had to bring up all the biggest political events over the past few years. To make the box with the game look more impressive, it was decided to style it as a strict black case.

When the idea lay down on a white sheet of Whatman paper in a simplified, schematic form, and then was played out dozens of times with several groups of “testers,” the moment came for the real investment of money. At that time, entrepreneurs had only 350 thousand rubles at their disposal.

“Initially,” Tatyana says with a smile, “we naively imagined an ideal scenario: a game was invented, transferred to whatman paper, tested taking into account different game situations, and handed over to a good designer. What difficulties could there be? However, inventing a game turned out to be much easier than publishing it and then selling it.

Obstacle race

Game design was initially a position on which the creators of “Election Race” decided not to skimp. Old-timers of the market will probably grin, but startupers spent 120 thousand rubles on it alone. “The artistic implementation of a board game for that kind of money, given that the entire turnover of the game can be only one and a half million, is nonsense,” agrees Tatyana Bondarenko.

However, “presentation” for the perfectionists from Bonko Games was above all: they wanted to maintain the brand, starting with the debut game. The playing field was printed on a hard frame, traditionally used for book binding, game cards and the certificates were transferred to thick cardboard with a glossy surface. The invented surroundings significantly increased the final estimate.

“We could simplify our task and put plastic pyramids in the set instead of machine chips,” explains Tatyana. – It would cost only a ruble per set. Meanwhile, the machine cost us three rubles. Every detail here costs money. When you multiply all these rubles by the circulation, you get a rather large amount.”

The idea with a poker box and velvet upholstery inside was never realized. It turned out that all printing houses in Moscow and the region work only using ready-made templates, and there are practically no specialists developing packaging. I had to get out and look for more modest options. A box with a handle that was accidentally discovered at home became a clear example for the production of case packaging.

Now, when more than six months have passed since the release of the game, Tatyana regretfully points out the shortcomings: “They couldn’t make the inside of the box as planned. In theory, it should have consisted of two compartments, one of which would hold the playing field, and the other would contain all the other accessories.

When we verbally explained what we wanted to see as a result, we were offered a terribly inconvenient design that would complicate the already complex production technology and would take half a day to assemble.”

The agonies over just one box, which cost Bonko Games 65 rubles apiece, led to a disappointing conclusion: there are no opportunities for producing truly high-quality board games in Russia. In China, as it turned out, the ideal poker version with velvet upholstery would cost no more than 40 rubles. But in this case, a lot of time would have to be lost on coordinating the game layout and solving production problems.

The printing house had to gradually adapt to unfamiliar production, and Tatyana had to go through all the “circles of hell” that major market players describe annually at specialized exhibitions. Director of the “Correct Games” project Ivan Tulovsky, speaking about the prospects for publishing board games in Russia, admits that over the 10 years of market formation, we have not learned how to print high-quality games.

During the production process, according to him, it is necessary to constantly be in the printing house, otherwise the output can be a product that is very far from the designed layout. In addition, you should be prepared in advance for a decent percentage of defects in the form of broken cards, uneven fields and mismatched color shades.

During the creation of the “Election Race”, one hundred playing fields were damaged. “When they were printed, it turned out that no one in the printing house could cut them out correctly,” recalls Tatyana. “My husband and I had to show how it’s done.”

In front of the surprised employees, we applied the ruler to the playing fields, cut the mouthguard with a large breadboard knife and folded it into the box.” Having “served themselves” in this way at the printing house, the startupers received playing fields at a price of 28 rubles per piece. And the printing house acquired invaluable experience in the production of “tabletops”.

Old-timers of the board game market like to joke that any task that is technically any more complex than the production of puzzles is beyond the capabilities of the vast majority of Russian printing houses. Each publisher solves the problem in its own way.

Thus, the company “World of Hobby”, which introduced domestic consumers to such Western bestsellers as “Colonizers”, “Carcassonne” and “Munchkin”, long ago came to the conclusion: it is still possible to print games of European quality in Russia - only for this you need to create your own production. Therefore, the company carries out all post-printing at two of its own production sites in the Ivanovo and Kaluga regions.

In the end, the Bondarenko spouses spent about 700 thousand rubles to publish “The Election Race” with a circulation of 2 thousand copies - a very modest amount, according to Tatyana’s estimates. However, production problems put Bonko Games behind schedule: the game was released not by October 2011, as planned, but only by February 2012.

We made it in time for the real March elections in Russia, but missed part of the time that could ensure effective sales: summer was just around the corner. “Summer is the time when all toy makers are in poverty,” Tatyana admits. – We are very dependent on wholesalers who select goods depending on the season. From June to August, they prefer to buy inflatable rings, balls and jump ropes rather than board games.”

Try and sell

The idea of ​​exploiting election themes for commercial purposes seemed to be in the air. Six months before the release of “Election Race,” a similar socio-political game appeared on the market – “Presidential Elections” from “Drofa-Media,” a developer and manufacturer of children’s gaming products. Everything was in order with the release dates of this old-timer of the market, and it seems that the company managed to skim off the cream.

According to Olga Poseva, head of the sales department at Drofa-Media, at first their “tabletops” had good sales, but after the March event interest in her cooled down. “The game didn’t become a bestseller, but we didn’t place much emphasis on it,” she comments. “After the election, it became an average product that simply added to our product line.”

Unlike its more famous competitor, Bonko Games is placing a high bet on its first-born, since there is nothing else in the Bondarenko couple’s portfolio yet. And now, right on the march, they have to build sales channels. Working directly with large stores, bypassing the wholesale link, turned out to be troublesome and required labor costs that were unreasonable for a publisher with a still meager product line.

Retail has already demonstrated waywardness in relation to the publishers of “Election Race”: one Moscow trading house did not appreciate the irony of the game, apparently sensing some kind of “dangerous” political overtones, and unexpectedly withdrew it from sale and removed it from the store’s assortment list. But through wholesalers we managed to put the game on the shelves of some Auchan stores and sell 120 copies in the first three months.

Why the shelves of many Russian stores are mostly filled with economy-class board games also did not remain a secret for young publishers for long. It turned out that this was the initial attitude of both retail itself and wholesalers.

It is, in principle, more difficult for a product in the “above average” and “premium” price categories to get onto the shelves than for “waste paper”: additional arguments are needed in favor of the fact that the game will sell well, and it can be difficult to offer them to a little-known publisher.

According to Natalya Urusova, owner of the online board games store Igrocity.Ru, the price range of the most popular games in Russia is from 500 to 1,500 rubles. In this case, preference is given to games for families or for groups. And “Election Race” from Bonko Games turned out to be expensive.

“Offline” it appeared at a price of 1,600 rubles, in the online stores “Komus” and “Superfishka” - 1,150 each. The wholesale batch went to the Urals at a price of 750 rubles, but we can safely assume that further markups in wholesale and retail links increased the cost at least twice.

Another well-established way to promote board games, not yet used by Bonko Games, is gaming events in clubs, bars and pubs. The interest here can be mutual: the establishment receives an influx of visitors, and the publisher, in addition to popularizing the game, can count on the fact that one of the participants will decide to purchase a copy “for home, for the family.”

The publisher's costs are purely organizational - providing their own animator who will hold the event at a high level. It is noteworthy that publishers of popular games can even count on a small reward from the establishment.

A logical question arises: is it worth going to all the trouble of producing and selling board games yourself? Can't we just develop the mechanics and design of the game to sell to a publisher?

Large Russian publishers, it seems, have indeed already grown to the point that they are ready to buy such a product on the side - and have even begun to publish relevant advertisements on the Internet. The conditions, however, turn out to be not very attractive for the developer: 20 thousand rubles or a dollar per box sold.

An “effective” circulation, as industry participants themselves admit, starts with a thousand boxes, and sales of most games amount to no more than a thousand or two copies. It turns out that you can’t earn much by selling a game idea: this is more likely the lot of single amateurs who develop for the love of art. So the creators of the “Election Race” initially did not even consider this option.

According to Tatyana Bondarenko, in the first month and a half of presence on the market, they managed to sell 400 boxes of “Election Race”, and in six months - more than half of the circulation. By the standards of the Russian board game industry, the result is not bad.

The first experience, however, encourages introspection. The obvious conclusion: you can’t live on one game, you need a briefcase. A little less obvious: the company should not live by “premium” alone; good “economy games” in the assortment will not harm it either.

Taking it to the next level

The element of chance that gives games such excitement is fully present in the board business itself: you never know which game will really “pop” at retail. The economy also leaves its mark: a game with a brilliant “engine” may well turn out to be so expensive to produce that, given the prevailing price level on the market, it will not find its buyer.

Ivan Tulovsky from Correct Games explains the large percentage of localized Western products on the market by the fact that Russian publishers are trying to follow the path of minimizing risks. A game that has become a hit abroad is at least some guarantee that such a product will sell well in Russia.

And yet, Bonko Games still intends to take risks by releasing games of its own design. Limited financial resources, however, force a change in tactics.

The ideal scenario for an established and profitable production now seems to Tatyana Bondarenko like this: you need to launch a line of games in the economy and mid-price segments, which will provide a more or less stable cash flow and will allow you to earn money to publish a truly serious and expensive game from time to time.

A portfolio of five titles should be enough to start consistently releasing 3-4 games a year to the market. “It will be possible to celebrate the victory when the assortment reaches at least 30 games, and our brand becomes recognizable in the market,” Tatyana estimates.

Entrepreneurs already have several economic games in their “proprietary” ironic style, the cost of which at retail should be 350–400 rubles. In one of them - the card game "Akulin" - the characters are stylized in the 18th century, and the game will come with unexpected surroundings - glasses and a dark scarf - to create the image of an unsympathetic heroine for those who lose.

A more distant goal - expensive game“Gold Rush”, offering players to get rich in a mine; already invented for her game mechanics and set game items– a fake gold bar, metal coins, a distressed leather money pouch and custom packaging in the shape of a prospector's backpack.

In total, Bonko Games has more than 25 projects in development. Some of them are thought out to the smallest detail and are almost ready for game design. Unlike financial resources, startupers have plenty of ideas.

Sales of board games in Russia increased by RUB 3 billion in 2017. When the market supply is covered by 25-30%, this type of activity allows you to make good money. Business payback can be achieved within 3-6 months. You can write games yourself, enter into contracts with authors, and adapt Western analogues. The option of purchasing a franchise is relevant. When investing from 300 thousand rubles. You can count on profitability of up to 200%. " Hobby World" and "Igroved" are striking examples of organizing a similar business in Russia, which managed to reach multi-million dollar turnover and conquer the Western market.

Are board games a profitable business niche?

In recent years, board games have been actively gaining popularity in Russia. In 2016 alone, the turnover of this market amounted to 10 billion rubles. How is this possible in the age of information technology, saturated mobile applications And computer programs for gamers?

The reasons most often cited for the active spread of tabletop entertainment are:

• the desire of people to take a break from gadgets that have become an integral part of modern life;
• the opportunity to communicate live with loved ones among family or friends.

Reference! More than 50 thousand varieties of board games have been created and distributed in the world today.
Source: RBC

In Russia 10 years ago, on the market you could only find children's games with chips and cubes from the Soviet past, checkers, chess, lotto, dominoes and several world bestsellers - Monopoly, Carcassonne and Scrabble.

The situation began to change in 2010-2011, when the first companies appeared that began to produce Western models as franchises and develop their own versions of this kind of fun.

Currently, only 25-30% of the board games market is covered, which means you can make good money on this. It is important to take into account the features of this segment of the Russian economy:

1. Competition between sellers is active in Moscow and St. Petersburg. In other regions of Russia it is felt weakly.
2. Games are most often an unplanned purchase. Therefore, it is important to know how much residents of a particular region are willing to spend on goods not on the list. In Moscow it is 1,000 rubles, in St. Petersburg - 700 rubles, in small cities - 300-500 rubles.
3. IN major cities Such entertainment is sold more effectively in specialized board game stores, and in medium-sized and small cities - in the departments of toys, recreational goods, and gifts.
4. The minimum circulation of one game is 500-600 pieces. - It is unprofitable to produce such a product in smaller quantities.

Interesting fact! The segment is characterized by the phenomenon of “chain advertising”: out of 10 players who have completed several rounds of Scrabble, Uno or other board game, 2-3 people will purchase a separate copy for themselves.
Source: Vedomosti

Business model: board games as a way to earn money

Why can the idea of ​​producing and selling board games be considered a profitable business option in Russia?

• Firstly, according to statistics, even during the crisis years of 2014-2016, sales of computer entertainment fell by $150 million, while the board game market continued to grow.
• Secondly, when independently developed and sold to a publisher, the profitability can reach 200-300%.
• Thirdly, you don’t have to wonder where to find start-up capital - you can start with 5-10 thousand rubles.
• Fourthly, it is important to understand that games with simple rules are in greatest demand.

Reference! Games of medium complexity for children and teenagers in the price segment of 100-500 rubles are in higher demand on the Russian market. Expensive and complex board games for adults (500-3,000 rubles) are less popular.
Source: RBC

Business organization options

There are several options for organizing a business based on board games:

1. Buying a franchise. A way for beginners to quickly find their clients and achieve payback in a few months.
2. Independent development of games and their sale while maintaining authorship to a specialized publishing house. Initially, the author sends a prototype of the game to the publisher. If the latter is interested, an agreement is concluded. The publication bears all the costs of producing and selling the game and appropriates the proceeds, paying the author 3-10% from each box released.
3. Independent development, production and sale of tabletop entertainment. Such a risky and bold idea can be further diversified by printing based on prototypes from third-party authors.

Note! You can open a retail outlet by registering an individual entrepreneur. It is also worth considering the possibilities of using the simplified taxation system (STS).

Product characteristics - first steps in business

Before starting a business based on board games, it is important to work out in detail a number of important nuances:

• The target audience. It is important to understand who the product is intended for: boys 15 years old or youth 25.
• Subject. Any board game has a different theme - knights, wars, dinosaurs, movies, etc. This determines which shelf in the store it will end up on.

Important point! The topic and target audience must be in strict accordance with each other. Any buyer looking at a game will always ask themselves the question: “Is this for me?” and “Why should I buy it?”

Before you start selling your game or franchise product, it is important to conduct a “cognitive resilience” test. To do this, you need to gather one or several groups of 6-8 people and, based on the results of the game, answer the following questions:

1. Are the rules of the game clear?
2. Is the plot interesting?
3. Are there any shortcomings or errors?

If the test results turn out to be disappointing, then there is no point in building a business based on the chosen version of the game.

Important point! Technical issues matter. The quality of printed images and the presence of components in packs (chips, card cubes, etc.) should be monitored. A box with a board game should be elegant, neat, stable and have a bright and memorable design.

Technical side

Purchasing equipment for printing, laminating, and packaging games requires enormous costs. That is why you can use the services of third-party organizations.

Source: Habrahabr website

How to organize sales?

When opening a board game store, you can choose one of 3 options:

• Combined outlet. Along with the main product, toys, recreational products, hobbies, and leisure items are sold here.
• Leisure club with point of sale. In this case, the fee is charged per game. In addition, players can buy table entertainment for home, place bets, receive a prize, buy a hamburger and cola, etc.
• Online store. The most reliable option that reduces investment risk. You can start selling with popular games, and then expand the range.

Advice! The first batches of games can also be sold on the basis of agreements with the departments of toys and leisure goods in large supermarkets.

Advertising is the engine of sales

Advertising, based on word of mouth and social networks, plays an important role in sales. Leaflets (POS materials) are best distributed in shopping and entertainment areas. Advertising partners, consisting of the exchange of Lithuanians with toy and recreational goods stores, also works effectively. A less effective option is advertising on billboards, transport, and online ads.

The main segment of buyers is young people aged 25-35 years. In this regard, advertising near cafes, educational institutions, and fitness clubs seems to be effective.

Staff matters

A sales consultant at a table for a specific product must meet a number of requirements:

• know in detail not only the composition of the boxes and the prescribed rules of the game, but also understand it from the player’s position;
• understand what can be advised to the buyer based on his age and interests;
• be able to interest in the game, explain its essence and order.

How much can you earn selling board games?

If the author transfers the game to a publishing house and expects to receive royalties, then his costs will be about 5-10 thousand rubles. to create a prototype of the game. Typically, royalties are paid on the number of copies published, not on the number of copies sold. If the minimum batch is 500 pieces, then you can count on revenue of 25 thousand rubles, because:

• the average cost of the game is 1,000 rubles;
• The average royalty percentage is 5% of the cost.

In this case, payback can be achieved already in the first month of activity. With other options for organizing a business, the situation is different.

Table 3. Business financial plan (independent business, franchise). Source: Vedomosti

Cost item	Franchise business	Independent business
Rental and renovation of premises
Purchase of commercial equipment
Business registration
Lump sum franchise fee
Franchise royalties
Staff salaries
Costs of purchasing or printing the first batch of goods
Creating your own website

* - Independent business does not require payment of royalties and lump-sum fees
** - The franchisor can provide the buyer with advertising materials and place advertisements on the website and in in social networks; He also partially bears the costs of design and printing of products.

Reference! According to statistics, an average of 50-100 sets of the game can be sold per month. The average revenue will be 50-100 thousand rubles. In this situation, you can count on payback within 3-6 months.

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How to launch an international network of educational board games

Sergei did not find suitable board games for his son and came up with them himself.

Masha Shapoval

talked to business founders

Together with a friend, he opened an online store in St. Petersburg. After six years, this business brings in 1 million rubles a month.

The games are now sold in Russia and Eastern Europe, Israel and Chile, Japan and Taiwan. This is how the guys came to this.

How they were launched

In 2012, Sergei launched a club to teach his son and his friends basic school skills: counting, multiplying, understanding the basics of physics, modeling, and recognizing geometric shapes. He wanted children to learn this through games. Sergey photographed the classes and talked about them on his blog on LiveJournal. Within six months, 1,000 people subscribed to the blog.

Sergei is a psychologist by training, and at that moment he worked in consulting: he conducted trainings for office workers. He studied elementary school textbooks, found many difficult moments for children and came up with board and outdoor games on these topics. Sergei showed the layouts to his friend Anton: they decided that such board games could be successful.

Sergey prepared layouts of the first four games: three about numbers and counting, the fourth about geometric shapes. Familiar designers drew the guys a website layout for barter: for training and consultations on business presentations, copywriting, public speaking and infographics. We spent 50 thousand rubles on the development of individual elements.

50,000 R

Entrepreneurs spent on designing game layouts

All that remained was to print the board cards on large cardboard sheets, and then cut them out and assemble them into decks. Few printing houses knew how to do this, so the first edition was printed through friends. For the second, larger edition, it took a month to find a printing house.

First sales

The sale of games was registered under the name of Sergei, an individual entrepreneur. At that time he was already an entrepreneur - he conducted trainings.

In October 2012, entrepreneurs sent the first games to the toy library organizers for evaluation. These are events where people gather in a cafe to play board games.

At the same time, pre-orders were launched at the St. Petersburg parent forum. There the guys found an intermediary who collected pre-orders and money from clients for a percentage of sales. Teachers of children's clubs and leaders of developmental classes became interested in the games - they ordered boards for students and advised parents. For the first batch, Sergey and Anton printed four games, 500 copies each.

There were some mistakes. Some boxes had to be printed several times: the cardboard was too thick and the glue was not strong enough to hold it. The batch cost 450 thousand rubles - Anton borrowed this money as a bonus from his main job.

Sergey and Anton got ready to deliver the games immediately after New Year's holidays. Time was running out, so the guys came to the printing house to help: they cut cards, assembled decks and put them in boxes. The circulation was stored in rented cells in a warehouse.

RUR 450,000

Sergey and Anton paid for printing the first batch of games

In the first month, entrepreneurs sold 900 games and earned 240 thousand rubles from them. Three months later, we found our first wholesale partner - it was an online store of children's toys, the head of which read about the guys' project on LiveJournal. The store took 100 games.

Launch costs, 2012 - RUR 510,000

Printing 2 thousand games

RUR 450,000

Game layout design

50,000 R

Rent of cells in a warehouse

10,000 R

for free

How games are invented

Children in primary school are not yet involved in the learning process. To get them interested, you need game uniform. The mechanics used in the Gang of Smarties games are not new. For example, some work on the domino principle: children find and match identical pictures and at the same time learn to count.

All board games can be played without a leader - with children of the same age or even with adults. For example, “Animal Letters” is often played by families. The game has two sets of cards: with letters and with animals and their names. Participants take turns opening letter cards and comparing them with the letters that are included in the names of the animals. The one who gets the last letter in the name of the animal takes the card for himself. The participant with the most cards wins. A child can beat an adult without even knowing the alphabet. He matches the letters he draws and remembers them in the process.

Usually Sergey works on several topics at the same time. It takes from a day to a year to come up with one game.

Prototypes are reviewed by the team: employees try them out, write down what to change, and estimate how much it will cost to produce. Before release, they sell a thousand copies to private clients and small wholesalers. After the first circulation of 5 thousand, reviews are collected and the games are improved based on them.

Today “Gang” has 21 games in its assortment. Topics: counting, multiplication, geometry, logic and reading. The most popular are “Animal Letters” for 790 rubles, “Read-Grab” for 890 rubles and “Turbo Account” for 490 rubles.

790 R

stands in "Gang" one of the most popular games"Animal Letters"

In addition to educational games, Sergey and Anton launched two new lines: entertaining quests and educational notebooks. Quests are a quest to find a gift with cards and riddles. Gift shops buy them. Notebooks prepare children for school: they teach them to count, write and learn letters. Both quests and notebooks are usually cheaper than educational games.

Another direction is corporate gifts. "Banda" prints its games for the children of employees with company branding.

Team and office

For the first year, the guys worked together, combining business with their main jobs. Sergei invented games and ran social networks. Anton communicated with private and wholesale customers, monitored income and expenses, collected and sent orders through couriers.

In 2013, the flow of orders grew to 6 thousand games per month, and the guys hired a remote worker - a mother with children. She communicated with customers and sent orders.

Sales continued to grow, and after a year the three of them could no longer cope. Sergey and Anton quit their main jobs and found a salesperson, a sales manager, an assistant and a storekeeper at Headhunter. An office with a 45 m² warehouse was rented for the team.

Currently, Banda employs 45 people. The guys do not have a hierarchy - employees are united by projects. For example, for a gift project for New Year The team consists of designers, sales and marketing specialists.

Sergey and Anton divided the business 50/50. Anton conducts operational activities: he is responsible for ensuring that orders arrive, money is paid, and promotions are carried out. Ideas, content, games, strategy and brand are Sergei's sphere. The partners agreed that each makes the final decision on his own block. This is how they avoid quarreling.

Entrepreneurs use a multi-stage selection process: they conduct an interview, give test tasks, establish a probationary period with specific indicators. But even with such a system, finding employees is difficult.

One day the guys hired three interns for a designer position, but no one came up. Two candidates failed to cope with the tasks and pace. The third completed a paid one-week internship and expected to return to work the very next day.

But "The Gang" always takes a break for a few days to think. That same evening, the intern gave The Gang a negative recommendation on an employer review site. The team decided not to cooperate with him.

Clients and promotion

The main clients of the “Gang” are parents, organizers of joint purchases, online stores of games and gifts. There are also companies that purchase games as corporate gifts for the children of their employees.

For each category of clients, the guys create a landing page with a selection of newsletters. If a child cannot learn multiplication, a series of 7 letters are made for his parents. Parents read newsletters, follow links on social networks, subscribe to other newsletters and receive discounts on games. Such customers trust the company and are ready to buy more than those who are immediately led to the game page.

The support service communicates with clients in the Omnidesk system. Managers track what mailings the client received, what he was interested in and what questions he has already asked. This way the team can suggest a game that suits him best.

Entering the international market

In 2014, “Gangs of Smarties” games began to be ordered from abroad. For example, the guys received 15 orders from Australia. The head of a local math camp recommended the games to children from Russian-speaking families.

As the dollar rose, gaming costs remained unchanged and the profitability of the international gaming market increased. The guys went with their stand to the annual exhibition of children's goods in Nuremberg - this is the largest exhibition in this field. They paid 2.5 thousand euros for participation.

The Gang games immediately attracted the attention of the participants. In two hours, 15 representatives of network children's centers and publishers from Hungary, Saudi Arabia, Finland and the USA visited the guys' stand. They asked where to buy games and if there was a translation into their language.

At first we managed to reach an agreement with Hungary. Sergey and Anton sell games in this country to only one store - this scheme is called exclusive. The “Gang of Smart Guys” produces games, creates pages for them and gives advice on promotion, and partners take this advice into account and sell the games to their customers. Later, exclusive partners appeared in Israel, China, Taiwan, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia and Japan.

In countries like Germany and the UK it is not possible to work under such conditions. These are highly competitive markets, and no one knows “The Gang” there yet, so partners expect that they will be sold a license for the games or given 80% discounts. “Banda” does not sell its license: then the partners would release the games themselves, and the guys would not influence this process in any way. Provide such big discounts Sergei and Anton are not ready either.

In order for German partners to agree to terms that are beneficial to the “Gang,” entrepreneurs increase the popularity of games in the local market. Our heroes found an employee with knowledge of German, started social networks for a local audience, sell games on Amazon and continue to participate in exhibitions. Now in Germany, Sergey and Anton receive six new clients a week. Entrepreneurs are confident that after a while the partners themselves will offer to cooperate on exclusive terms.

Typically, the publisher is closely associated with one or more networks. For example, all our games receive priority placement in Mosigra (the largest domestic retail chain) and in other partner networks. Specify exactly how the marketing of the game will be done - publishing is easy, but selling the game for several thousand a month is very difficult. Note that in the domestic top sales at the beginning of 2013, 12 out of 20 games were released by us.

How thorough is the selection process?

To begin with, the games are tested. Considering that we are going to invest our funds and team time in the project, only best games from those proposed. We usually review 150–300 games per year and release less than a dozen of them.

If my game is not suitable, can I contact another publisher?

Yes, we usually even recommend a suitable option if the project is good, but it seems to us that it is not entirely suitable for our market. Each has its own specifics. We love, for example, working with games that will sell 500 or more per month, or with really wonderful, smart and complex projects.

Why are only less than a dozen domestic board games released per year?

Because any author competes with localizations. If you can take a ready-made and proven game from the West, where it has already shown effectiveness, it is more logical to work with it than with something new. Nevertheless, we try our best to support the domestic market and regularly hold events for game authors.

What will Magellan do with my prototype, how will the development of the board game go?

• 1. You don’t have to send a prototype as the first step, but simply send the rules and materials of the game. After reviewing them (if we like the game), we request a prototype.
• 2. After the tests, recommendations will probably be given to change a number of things in the mechanics, setting and rules. We give the vector to you or change it ourselves (by agreement).
• 3. The agreement is signed.
• 4. Then the work of illustrators will begin. Good illustrators; the success of the game largely depends on the quality of the images.
• 5. Layout of maps, rules and other components.
• 6. At the same time, a “cover” is made - an illustration for the box and text on it. The name of the game is being specified.
• 7. Then, components are manufactured for each individual technical specification.
• 8. When everything is ready, your game is assembled into production.

Here are examples of stories from the publication of our board games:

In what form is it better to send a prototype?

Preferably in the most complete form, that is, in the form of a box with components and rules. Cards must be cards (not pieces of paper that cannot be shuffled); If you write by hand, then write in block letters. The box must be durable and clearly labeled. Everything inside should be as close to reality as possible - for example, it’s good to use chips from other games or nuts instead of chips, but it’s bad to use paper markers. The field can be drawn by hand - this is better than attaching a file. And so on.

If it is not possible to send it in the form of a box, then you need a description of the concept (2-3 paragraphs) and the rules of the game, as well as files for creating a prototype. Remember that the idea itself does not make sense to discuss. We need the test team to be able to sit down and play at least once.

The most important thing is what the game is called, who it is for, how many players, what age, what is the duration of the game, what mechanics are used, what are the maximum similar games already know why your product is better.

If I just have an idea for developing a board game, what should I do?

Build a prototype. It's better to take your time: if you put it together in a hurry, it is quite possible that the game will be rated worse than if you thought through the details and wrote down the rules clearly and understandably. But don’t linger—perfectionists come last. It’s better to stop at a certain stage of readiness and listen to the publisher’s opinion than to work in the wrong direction for a year.

Are any non-disclosure documents signed?

At the prototype stage - no. Authors often fear that the publisher may use files without their participation. Let us note that due to the absence of at least some clear protection of game mechanics in Russian legislation, any agreements and documents at this stage can, of course, leave a feeling of security, but in practice they will be legally void. Therefore, you can only trust or not trust the publisher. Again, no one will risk their reputation, just as releasing a game without an author is simply not economically feasible.

What games should you definitely not send?

• 1. Copies already famous games. “But I came up with Monopoly, but instead of cells there will be names of rock bands” - this is a bad idea.
• 2. Games your 14 year old sister can't figure out. If the rules take 40 pages in neat font, and it takes several days to learn how to play, perhaps it’s worth simplifying. It will be quite difficult to sell this.
• 3. Games without implementation - that is, something from which a prototype cannot be made.
• 4. Several versions of the same game with minor changes - one prototype is enough.

I already have illustrations. What then?

If they are good, we will publish them. But practice shows that it is better to bring a couple of samples of concept art - and then it will be clear before work begins whether the illustrator is suitable.

What about the money? Is it possible to make money by creating a board game?

The author receives from 5 to 10% royalties from each edition that leaves production. If a game costs 1000 rubles on a store shelf, then it costs 500 rubles in circulation and approximately 300 rubles in cost. You receive royalties from the wholesale price, that is, in our example, from 500 rubles.

What is the average circulation?

The minimum circulation is 1000 pieces, the usual one is 3-5 thousand. We try to work with games that can sell more than 10 thousand units a year. Considering that once a game is published, it will bring you income for at least another 3-4 years, you can calculate the profit yourself. Usually, permanent job the publication is for very, very few people who are ready to do several projects per year, but as an addition to their main income, it is quite worthy.

What risks does the publisher bear?

• – If the game does not hit the market, the publisher will lose funds for development and the first printing. You can only earn money by playing - and at least receive royalties from the first game.
• – If a defect occurs somewhere that causes the batch to be remade (a frequent occurrence for any publisher), everything will be resolved at the expense of the publisher.
• – If the game is not delivered to the shelves on time and a fine is imposed from the networks for being late, this is the publisher’s problem, not yours.

And so on. Thus, you are not affected by traditional publishing risks or any other things. You simply receive royalties from each box - no matter what happened to it financially. These royalties remain unchanged, even if incredible adventures happen to the circulation.

What documents will need to be collected?

The main document is a copyright agreement, in which you guarantee that you are the author of the game and have all rights to it, and the publisher describes in detail its obligations. In most cases, signing it is enough. An author's agreement can be signed both with a resident of the Russian Federation and with a non-resident of our country.

If you use third-party materials in the game, such as illustrations, you must have rights transfer documents from the illustrator or an agreement with him. If we do the illustrations, you don’t need to think about it.

We take care of everything else. Including game certification, for example.

What tests are done?

It is assumed that you send a finished game (by the way, if you have a protocol of at least 20 games, that’s good). The game is tested not for balance, for example, but for playability. Tests take place in three stages: first, developers watch, then experienced players, then, under the supervision of random people “from the street.” All three stages must be completed. The most important is the third.

What happens if the game doesn't work?

Typically, 10% of games are good enough to be published. But less than 2% of board games sent to publishers are released. The rest are simply put aside in case they are needed. We let you know if your game is good but not yet published - and recommend other publishers. In this case, the game is queued for publication. In practice for Last year we bought two games from such a “queue” of reserve. The usual queue length is about 30 projects.

How long will it take to evaluate the prototype?

Usually about a month.

How long will the board game be in production?

The cycle is 8-12 months from circulation to appearance on the shelf.

Please note again

Providing information or a prototype for review does not constitute a non-disclosure agreement. But, again, we promise that we will work with your game very carefully.

We don't consider ideas - only prototypes. Magellan's review and evaluation of your ideas is not an admission of novelty, excellence or originality, and does not prejudice the company's right to challenge or pursue any existing or future ideas of a similar nature. However, if we consider the mechanics promising (but the game in the form of a specific implementation is unsuitable for publication), we will tell you about it and offer improvements.

You represent and warrant that you (or the group you represent) are the sole owner of the information being disclosed or that you have the unrestricted right to disclose it. You also represent that all third parties who may have an interest in the information disclosed have been informed of the terms of the agreement and agree to its terms.

The prototype will not be returned.

We consider it undesirable to consider a project simultaneously with another publisher - in this case we will wait for the other publisher's response. Please notify us before submitting your project if your project is already under consideration by another publisher. When we request a game prototype from you, we assume that we are the only publisher considering your project, unless you have expressly agreed otherwise with us in advance.

We may make significant changes to the game, which may result in changes to the game's mechanics, themes, or any other aspect to better suit the game's product line. And better sales.

The project may not be suitable for many reasons: we may consider that the game is not profitable enough; that we will not be able to present the game in in the best possible way; the game may be too similar to something we already have in development; We did not like the mechanics of the game and its execution or for any other reason. We will provide details if anything goes wrong.

We do not provide reviews on sent games.